What Can Cause Snake Plant Leaves Curling
If your snake plant leaves curl and you wish to fix the problem, your first step is to identify its cause.
Identifying the underlying problem and searching for key signs of stress will help you to know what to do.
Some of the most common causes include insects and pests infestations, fungus, improper watering…
…lack of light, improper fertilization, temperature stress, incorrect pH, and transplant shock.
Here we have story from Jane, about her experience having leaves curl on snake plant
Let us hear Jane’s story…
My mother always used to say that if a snake plant had leaves curling, it was because it needed more water.
Of course I never really believed her until my own plant started doing the same thing.
It’s been about 2 weeks since I watered it last and all of its leaves are curled up!
Man, I thought it was a myth for the snake plant.
After that, I starting again to take care snake plant. Within in time, it starts back to normal.
Man, I was so worried my snake plant goes down and seems like dying.
I promise to myself for not caring my snake plant like I used to be.
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- The snake plant features stiff, upright, sword-like leaves Banded or edged in gray, silver, or gold.
- Add life to any room at home, A porch or patio, or Share the Green with the office
- Grows Best near a sunny window, can tolerate low light. Water when the top couple inches of the soil are dry
- Height at shipping is approximately 20 Inches tall, measured from the bottom of the pot to the top of the plant
- Ships in a lightweight, 10-inch diameter decor planter; made from a 100% recyclable #5 material. To avoid water spillage, this container does not have ho
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Snake plant (sansevieria) leaves curling is a common problem you may encounter if you are growing this plant. Now, you are wondering what you should do first.
Arifur Rahman, Agriculturist from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University
Here’s the main thing
Insects and Pests Infestations
Pests Infestation: Thrips
Thrip infestations of snake plants are the most common cause of leaves curling.
They thrive on leaves, buds, and stems. When thrips feed, they penetrate the cell wall of the plant…
…therefore damaging the plant.
If you suspect you have snake plant thrips, you may be able to identify them…
…by looking for the black spots on leaves or buds. You may need to magnify the spots if necessary to identify them.
A different way to identify thrips is by gently shaking your plants’ leaves over a piece of white paper.
If you notice small black bugs on the leaves, you may be infested.
After you identify the pest type, you can begin treating the snake plants.
To do this, remove any and all leaves which are infected with the thrips. Using a knife, remove dead and dying leaves.
After removing dead leaves, separate them from other plant life by throwing them away…
…in a container far away from snake plant leaves.
Wipe down both sides of the plant leaves with a wet cotton ball to get rid of all bugs.
Next up
Insects Infestations: Mealybugs and Spider Mites
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There are mealybugs and spider mites that feed on the sap of snake plants.
This will cause the plants to become weak and unable to store water in the leaves.
In more advanced stages of infestation, you will see the leaves falling off.
Identify spider mites by putting a white piece of paper underneath the snake plant and shaking it.
If you see tiny, rotund mites with red and black markings, you’ll know the source of unhealthy stress in your snake plant.
To eliminate spider mites, wipe the bottom of the leaves with moistened sponge.
This reaches their favorite hiding place. For a faster solution, you can spray the plant outside.
A heavily infected plant might take more applications.
Mealybugs can also cause stress to snake plants.
They are easily identified, with flat and waxy soft bodies and oval, segmented bodies which are similar to grubs.
When you have an advanced infestation, white round eggs will be recognizable as mealy bugs.
Trying to pick the mealybugs off by hand is a good solution if you only have a small, localized infestation.
If the problem was larger you might have to dislodge them by an outside water bath.
A widely-available chemical treatment for spider mite or mealybug infestations is an insecticidal soap.
Insecticides get into the bugs skin and cause an imbalance in electrolyte levels…
…making it difficult for the bugs to survive. An effective alternative to insecticide spray is soap mixture.
Combining soapy water with water and spraying plants inside can effectively prevent a bug infestation.
Soapy water suffocates the bugs and kills both the adults and their eggs.
Go on..
Fungus
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Its leaves can curl due to fungal problems. Southern blight and red leaf spots are typical issues that affect the snake plant.
If you suspect this may be the problem, look for signs of plant stress in addition to curling leaves.
A red leaf spot can also cause the leaves to display red lesions or white webs that grow out…
…from the surface of the leaf as well as developing brown, hardened leaves.
Make sure to follow proper watering techniques to relieve a fungal problem.
Providing the soil with well-drained soil and ideal temperatures may alleviate the problem.
Getting a fungus or viral infection on the plant may necessitate that you dispose it far away from everything else.
If you want to keep the plant but it is infected badly, consider putting it into a propagation or repotting mode.
Make sure that you dispose every part of the plant that has been infected by fungus.
Next up…
Improper Watering
Underwatering
It is the most possible cause of your snake plant leaves curling.
If you have underwatered your snake plant it will not be able to carry out normal physiological functions.
Without water, the roots of your snake plant can not intake the essential nutrients from the soil.
Because the nutrients remain in the soluble form within the water.
Also without water, it can not transfer the essentials to the leaves.
As a result, your snake plant leaves show curling and in severe cases wrinkling.
Snake plant brown tips are another common symptom of underwatering.
As a solution, snake plants do not need much water to revive within your lovely home.
Watering it once in 2-4 weeks is sufficient to fulfill the moisture needs.
Watering frequency and amount will depend on the season, potting mix quality, and pot size.
If the soil is hard then you need to loosen it before watering, then start watering regularly.
Within a few days, your snake plant leaves will be unfurled. Make sure you do not overwater it will make the situation worse.
Next up…
Overwatering
It can be fatal for your snake plant to overwater, and sometimes it will be impossible to save the plant.
Along with yellowing leaves, curling leaves are other signs of an overwatered snake plant.
Root rot can infect your snake plant if roots are over-watered.
The disease will eventually cause the root system to become dysfunctional as a result of the disease.
Therefore, it may cause your snake plant to curl its leaves because it cannot take up water and nutrients.
To solve the problem, you need to check the plant root system right away.
Pull out the whole plant and then wash the root system to get rid of the soil.
Check the roots carefully. If they have rotted root you will smell its foul odor.
Trim off the rotted roots and disinfect them with charcoal powder.
Repot the plant in fresh new soil using a new container if the root rot is too severe.
If the root rot is too severe, then you have to propagate the plant to save it from dying.
Next up…
Lack of Light
When indoor light conditions are sufficient, your snake plant can thrive.
However, if it doesn’t receive the minimum light requirements, it may start to show symptoms such as curled leaves.
Like other plants, snake plants also need some light to continue their photosynthesis process.
This process is essential to sustaining food production in plants.
Without food, leaves may curl and show symptoms of senescence.
As a solution, find a spot near the window or somewhere else that provides enough light…
…to let your snake perform its photosynthesis process.
Snake plants can use artificial light sources without any issues for photosynthesis if your house doesn’t natural light.
Next up…
Improper Fertilizer Application
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It is not necessary to fertilize snake plants frequently during the summer or growth period.
Feeding once a month during this period is sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements.
Too much fertilizer stresses out the roots and leaves of the snake plant.
Snake plant leaves can’t handle the extra nutrients, causing burnt leaves or curling inwards.
Using nitrogen-rich balanced fertilizers will solve this problem.
If you have not done so already, you can consider using organic fertilizers since they slowly release fertilizer on your plants.
Next up…
Temperature Stress
When the temperature is high, you may see your snake plant’s leaves curl.
When temperatures are high, the transpiration process is speeded up.
Thus, the plant loses more water than normal. Loss of water causes the leaves to curl.
Likewise, the cold temperature can harm snake plants. When the water in the leaves freezes, it forms a crystal.
This leads to permanent damage to the snake plant leaves.
You should place your snake plant in shade if you live in a climate that has extreme temperatures.
Or move the plant where the temperature is lower.
You should not keep the plant outside if the temperature is below 10°C/50°F.
Instead, make sure it is always kept warm inside your room.
By doing so, your plant will recover from the temperature stress and you can revive its curling leaves.
Incorrect pH
Any houseplant soil must have the appropriate pH. because soil pH determines the availability of nutrients in the soil.
The ideal pH range for snake plant soil is between 5.5 and 7.5. Due to the low pH or acidic soil, magnesium (Mg)…
…is unavailable and the plants cannot produce chlorophyll for photosynthesis.
Therefore, lower leaves show symptoms like yellowing and curling.
It is therefore crucial to know the pH of your soil to be sure about the problem pH testers are available in the market.
You can easily increase the pH by adding hydrated lime to the soil if it is too low or acidic.
However, if the pH level is too high, you can add some lemon juice to the water before watering in order to lower it.
Last but not least…
Transplant Shock
Transplanting is an ongoing care practice for houseplants.
If the snake plant has been transplanted recently, it will need some time to adapt to the new environment.
Snake plants may not be able to absorb enough water to continue their physiological functions…
…during this transitional period. Curled leaves are one of the visible symptoms of transplant shock.
If this is a problem after transplanting, keep the snake plant out of direct sunlight and water moderately.
After a few days, it will become accustomed to the changed environment.
Consider using nutrients-rich, well-draining soil for transplanting your snake plant…
…instead of using older soil that has run out of nutrients.
Sum Up
See having snake plant is good choice for you to have! It’s cool, its famous, it’s easy to have and care!
What else do you need? In this pandemic time like this, is a good choice for you to have an new activity…
…and having snake plant is a good choice for you to have!
Conclusion
Last thing for sure. This plant need to be care carefully, remember plant need the “love” too.
There are still many recent and interesting articles about Snake Plants..
Alright that’s all for today! Do you have any questions about all of this?
Or do you want to add some tips and guide grow jade in hanging basket ?
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I hope you can now take care your snake carefully and grow it big!
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