Why Your Snake Plant Has Brown Tips?
The snake plant is one of the most hardy plants around, which is probably why it is a familiar house plant. However, even the toughest plants have limits, and one sign is brown tips on snake plant leaves.
Brown tips on snake plants can be a consequence of the stress of abnormal growing conditions. The trick is to find out what is causing the stress, and figure it out before your snake plant sustains too much damage.
Watering Problems Causing Brown Tips On Snake Plants
Watering snake plants only after their soil is completely dry is probably the most important thing you can do in order to keep them healthy.
Your snake plant’s health can suffer and its appearance will deteriorate if it is watered incorrectly. The following problems can result in brown leaves and brown leaf tips on your snake plant.
Underwatering
There is a limit to how much water snake plants can store. When the plants are extremely dehydrated, you will first see it in the leaf tips.
If submerged, this is a common response, however it rarely means your snake plant will die. Once regular watering is resumed, the plant may grow several new leaves from the rhizome in order to take advantage of the growing water supply.
Inconsistent watering
Almost all plants acclimate to the conditions in which they grow to some extent. In a suddenly overwatered plant, brown leaf tips show signs of stress. The most common time when I overcompensate is when I suddenly remember about a neglected plant that I have neglected for a while.
Overwatering
Watering your plants too much retains moisture in the potting mix, which restricts aeration. This makes the roots and potting mix dense, allowing anaerobic bacteria and fungi to thrive, leading to root rot.
As a consequence of overwatering, you will see signs of oedema or blisters as well as bacterial or fungal disease in the leaves, which will appear as brown or black spots on the leaves.
Plants with compromised roots that cannot absorb water and nutrients will show signs of nutrient and water deficiency in their leaves, including discoloration and brown crispy tips.
You can figure out whether you need to water the snake plant by feeling the potting media through the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot before watering. If the soil is damp, you don’t need to water.
When it comes to houseplant care, watering is one of the most challenging skills to master.
Over-Chlorinated Water Can Cause Brown Tips On Snake Plants
Most tap water contains chlorine and chloramine, which is very useful for making sure that drinking water is safe for human consumption. However, some houseplants are sensitive to the type of water they receive when watered.
If you intend to water your plants with water that contains chlorine, filter the water you use or leave it in direct sunlight for a day before using it.
Excessive Direct Sunlight And Heat Cause Brown Tips in Snake Plants too
There are a number of factors that determine how much heat and sunlight a snake plant can tolerate. A snake plant can thrive in warm, sunny conditions if this is what they are used to.
A snake plant that has been kept in low light conditions will show signs of stress when it is moved to direct sunlight or warmer conditions. Your snake plant’s tips will turn brown if it cannot withstand the intensity of the light.
Cold Stress Factors
It is generally not advised to expose snake plants to temperatures below 50°F (10°C). Anything below this lowers the plant’s ability to cope and your snake plant may develop brown tips.
If you have snake plants indoors, avoiding temperatures below that may not be a problem, but if you have snake plants outdoors in the summer, make sure you bring them in well before temperatures fall below 45 degrees.
Excess Fertilizer Can Cause Brown Tips On Snake Plants
A snake plant is meant to live in tough, succulent soils with nutrient-poor soils, making it adaptable to low nutrient levels. As a result, it consumes little nutrient.
By feeding your snake plant too often, or using excessive fertilizer, you can cause damage to the foliage or roots. This can often result in brown leaf tips, seriously altering the appearance of your plant.
It is most important to remember that snake plants need little food, but do not overdo it. I fertilize my snake plants once a month throughout the growing season.
For snake plants, if you’ve been a little hard on them, stop fertilizing for a few months. Rinse the potting mix with plenty of water. Once your plant is happy again, you can begin feeding it again. Just make sure not to give it too much, rather than too little.
Low Humidity Factors
In many indoor spaces, the air is too dry for houseplants, which causes them to lose an excessive amount of water and is one of the reasons why snake plants have brown tips.
Although snake plants do not require a high humidity level to thrive, try to keep humidity levels at least 40%. I periodically check the level of humidity in the air surrounding my house plants with a digital hygrometer.
Pests Factors
Snake plants can be damaged by mealy bugs, spider mites or fungus gnats, which can cause brown tips on the leaves. These sap suckers can cause snake plants to dry out.
How To Fix Brown Tips On Snake Plants
Identifying the problem and improving the growing conditions to prevent brown tips on snake plants is the best way to fix brown tips on snake plants.
Unfortunately, the effect of the damage to existing leaves on your plant is permanent. No matter how much care you provide, the damage will not resolve.
However, if you give your snake plant the care it needs, it will grow plenty of healthy leaves, and then the brown tips will not be as noticeable. You have the option of pruning the affected leaves.
Should the damage be minimal, you can simply snip off the brown tips. The brown tips will not grow back; trim your plants so they look nice.