The prayer plant is one of the most famous indoor plants that belongs to the Marantaceae family and comes in five varieties.
However, you can face some problems if you own a prayer plant because these plants are sensitive to environmental changes such as insufficient humidity, temperature, light, moisturizer level, etc.
If prayer plants aren’t getting things properly as they need, they can turn their leaf into yellow, brown, curly, and sometimes even drop them.
Therefore, it’s important to know about prayer plant problems so that you can treat them and keep your plant happy and thriving.
Common Prayer Plant Problems
Okay, so here are 12 problems and their treatment that you might face while propagating or growing a prayer plant:
1. Leaves Curling
One of the most common problems in which your prayer plant starts curling its leaf is “Leaves curling,” which is usually caused by lack of humidity, insufficient water, and sometimes even temperature stress.
You shouldn’t keep your prayer plant in direct sunlight because it can scorch its leaves if they start getting burned. Moreover, you can’t keep your plant hungry. They need water just like us humans, which helps them grow and make their food through photosynthesis.
Treatment: Number one, you want to make sure that you keep your plant in bright indirect light; don’t keep it in sunlight. Plus, provide sufficient water to avoid dehydration, especially during summer and the growing season, which is spring.
Providing water one time a week is recommended, but before that, you can also touch the soil.
If you see it is a little moisturized, you shouldn’t give it water because overwatering isn’t good, too, but if you notice the soil is getting completely dry, then you should provide water to it.
2. Drooping Leaves
Prayer plants get sensitive during the growing season, and they want both proper water and light. If you’re not providing sufficient light, your prayer plant will start dropping its leaves.
On the other hand, if it’s not getting water in the proper amount, either you are providing too much or probably too little, so it will start wilting leaves. In both cases, leaves will wilt, curl, and eventually fall off as the plant will try to conserve moisture.
Treatment: The treatment is pretty simple: if you don’t want your prayer plant leaves to start curling and turning brown or dropping, then start providing sufficient water and bright light.
Yeah, That’s true. Prayer plants are one of the best household plants as they can survive in low light. They don’t need direct sunlight. But still, prayer plants want bright light for at least 6 hours a day. You can keep them near a window.
3. Yellowing Leaves
As a new plant parent, you will see your prayer plant turning its leaves into yellow. However, there are a few reasons why it might be happening, such as old age, nutrient deficiency, or too much sunlight.
If the reason is old age, there is nothing to worry about; it is just a part of their life cycle in which old leaves turn yellow, and eventually, they drop off because the plant focuses on new growth, especially during the growing season.
However, if the reason is a nutrient deficiency, then you need to provide fertilizer to maintain their healthy foliage because prayer plants need some important nutrients such as nitrogen.
Moreover, age and nutrient deficiency aren’t the only reasons why your plant might be turning its leaves yellow color or any other color like brown. Sometimes, even providing too much sunlight or direct light can be problematic for a prayer plant because it doesn’t need it.
Treatment: The solution is very simple. If leaves are getting yellow and eventually falling off because of old age, then you shouldn’t worry about that. It is happening because it’s part of a plant’s life cycle.
But if it’s not the reason and happens too frequently, then you can provide fertilizer and keep it in bright light instead of direct sunlight.
4. Brown Leaf Tips/Edges
Sometimes, your prayer plant can develop brown leaf tips or edges. It happens because either your plant is not getting enough humidity or it’s due to mineral buildup in the soil and sun scorch.
They will not just turn leaves’ edges yellow but also crispy, burn the leaf margins, or even damage some of the plant’s parts, which will appear brownish.
Treatment: To treat this problem (Brown Leaf), you need to increase humidity and flush the soil to remove excess minerals. If your plant is in direct sunlight, then move it to indirect bright light.
To increase the humidity of the environment, you can either keep your plant with other plants or you can misting it every day; using a pebble tray or running a humidifier nearby are also good options.
5. Stunted Growth
If you’re growing a new prayer plant, there will be a time when your plant won’t have enough space on the pot to extend its root, which will cause problems such as stunted growth.
As I have also said earlier, nutrition deficiency is one of the main problems that can cause stunted growth because nutrition is important to them, just like us as humans, and it lets them grow and stay healthy.
Treatment: Number one thing: you want to move your plant into another bigger pot, which needs to be at least 2-3 inches wider than the previous one.
Besides this, you can use fertilizer. If your plant is not growing, it will surely increase the stunted growth.
6. Leaf Spots
You might see a little spot on your prayer plant leaf due to fungal infection or bacteria. Because of that, your plant will start losing color, which can also appear in the foliage.
Moreover, if you don’t take action quickly, the spot will get bigger, turn, and then leave yellow, eventually causing the leaves to die.
Treatment: If you want to fix this fungus and bacterial problem, you first need to examine the leaf spot, and then you can either remove it through fungicidal spray or powder if the problem is caused by fungus.
On the other hand, if it is a bacterial infection, you might want to improve your air circulation. Moreover, it’s also better to adjust the watering schedule because sometimes wet conditions can facilitate the spread of these prayer plant problems and diseases.
7. Wilting Leaves
Underwatering is one of the most common problems that can wilt your prayer plant’s leaves. They need consistently moist soil as it’s their natural habitat, and when they don’t receive enough water, they struggle a lot, which causes wilting leaves and eventually fall off.
However, underwatering is not the only problem; even over-watering can lead to a condition called root rot. It happens due to excess moisture and poor drainage. Because of this problem, a prayer plant cannot absorb water and nutrients.
Treatment: In order to get rid of this wilting prayer plant problem, you need to check that the soil is properly moisturized and drains; moreover, you can also look for any pest infestations. With just a little bit of prayer plant care, you can grow it happily.
8. Leaf Curling Inwards
The prayer plant is famous because of its leaf movement. However, if they start curling inward, then it is not a good sign because they may lose all the beauty and features the praying plant is famous for.
Leaf curling inward is usually caused by too much heat or extreme weather conditions, which can also be cold as well.
Treatment: Make sure your plant is receiving enough indirect light instead of direct sunlight or a dark environment. You need to keep your plant in a suitable environment, which is around 65-85°F (18-29°C).
Although sometimes prayer-plants can bear a little too much heat, like direct and light, remember that they are not the natural habitat for prayer plants, and they are not outdoor plants either.
Instead, it’s an indoor plant. Therefore, always keep it inside the home or near a window but not in direct sunlight. Moreover, you can also increase humidity while avoiding drafts.
9. Discolored Foliage
As we humans need vitamins and minerals, plants also need minerals at least. A mineral deficiency in a prayer plant, such as a lack of nitrogen, magnesium, or iron, can cause the leaves to turn yellow or develop patchy discoloration, which isn’t good for the plant’s health.
If the prayer plant isn’t getting enough minerals, it can’t produce chlorophyll in the right amount, and that’s the reason for abnormal leaf coloration.
Moreover, improper soil pH is also not good for the plant’s health. For example, if the pH is too high or low, it will lock up the nutrients, which will cause discolored and unhealthy foliage.
Treatment: The best way to get rid of this problem is to check the soul and make sure there are no nutrient deficiencies or pH imbalances. If so, then you can use a fertilizer or pH adjusters to restore balance.
10. Stem Rot
Overwatering is not good for prayer plants as they’re indoor plants. Besides this, poor drainage is also the main problem that causes some people to face stem rot problems while growing or propagating a prayer plant.
Treatment: The simple solution of stem rot in a prayer plant is to provide balanced water and focus on drainage. Before providing water, make sure the soil is completely dry.
11. Pests (Mealybugs, Spider Mites, Aphids)
These common houseplant pests thrive in environments with poor hygiene and limited plant monitoring. Mealybugs, spider mites, and aphids are attracted to prayer-plants that are grown in dirty, neglected conditions.
Without regular inspection and cleaning, these pests can quickly establish colonies and do extensive damage to the delicate foliage.
Pests are one of the most common problems that your plant might be facing. It happens because of Pests like environments with poor hygiene and limited plant monitoring.
Mealybugs, spider mites, and aphids are attracted to prayer-plants that are grown in dirty, neglected conditions. Without regular inspection and cleaning, these pests can quickly establish colonies and do extensive damage to the delicate foliage.
If prayer plant is not clean instead its dirty then it’ll attract Mealybugs, spider mites, and aphids. Once these pests get opportunities, they will quickly establish colonies and damage the delicate foliage.
And soon, if you don’t treat the pests problem, they will start to weaken your plant and probably kill it by the time.
There are a few symptoms when you realize that pests are, in fact, in your prayer plant. For example, they will start feeding on the plant’s sap, which will cause yellow leaves, wilting leaves, and leaves dropping.
Treatment: First, you need to maintain a good hygienic environment around your plant. Actually, you need to take care of your plan, just don’t leave it as it is. You can frequently inspect any sign of pests.
You can use spray or a clean cloth to remove any dirt or whitish powder from your prayer plant; neem oil is also a good choice.
12. Transplant Shock
While propagating a prayer plant, many people make mistakes, which become a problem when they get transplant shock. In this way, many people separate offsets and try to grow a plant during the wrong time, such as winter or peak summer, which isn’t good.
You can only propagate prayer plants during the early summer or spring season because that’s the suitable time. Because propagating at the wrong time can cause transplant shock to your prayer plant.
Treatment: it is very simple. Just repot your prayer plant in the spring season, which is from March to June. Besides this, you want to minimize the route disturbance.
Conclusion
Overall, Prayer plants can face some problems, such as yellow leaves, brown and crispy edges, root rot, developing pests, falling leaves, etc.
However, it is easy to troubleshoot all these problems by taking care of your plant; you have to provide water and light in moderation. Plus, you want to make sure that your plant is getting fertilized frequently enough to maintain its steady growth, especially during the growing season.
Why are my prayer plant’s leaves curling up?
There are a few common reasons why your prayer plant leaves would curl up, such as low humidity, underwater, and temperature stress. Therefore, you need to provide water in moderation and suitable temperature, not let your plant die in direct sunlight or cold weather, and an indirect bright life is enough for it.
My prayer plant’s leaves are turning yellow. What’s wrong?
The number one reason why your plant leaves are turning yellow is because they’re getting old or not getting the proper nutrition they need. In old age, prayer plants turn their leaves yellow and then drop off; it is the basic life cycle of a prayer plant. So, I don’t worry about that.
However, if you see this yellow problem too frequently, then it is because of a lack of nutrition, so you need to fertilize your plant.
How do I get my prayer plant to grow new leaves?
If your plant is not growing new leaves because it has stopped producing new growth, then you might consider checking its roots and making sure the prayer plant isn’t root-bound in its pot. If it is, repot it into a large pot size, at least 2-3 inches larger than the previous one.
Besides this, you might not be providing enough light, and there is no humidity available for your plant, so you need to increase this to let your prayer plant grow its leaves.
Most importantly, don’t forget to fertilize your plant at least once in 2-3 months, especially during the growing season.