Overwatering is probably the reason why your Peperomia plant is dying. Underwatering can also kill your Peperomia plant if you don’t respond early on. Leaf spot diseases harm Peperomia plant to a great extent.
Peperomia also called the Radiator plant there are several species of peperomia that are grown for their beautiful foliage it makes a great indoor plant as it doesn’t grow too big.
It is quite easy to grow Peperomia, but some people do mail me with a lot of queries. I thought I’d clear it up with a blog post.
Underwatered Peperomia
Underwatered Peperomia shows wilting symptoms and the plant leaves begin to droop. Leaves droop when they lack adequate water.
If it is not watered at this stage your peperomia plant will die. Water your Peperomia thoroughly so the rootball becomes wet.
Peperomia leaves curling
If your peperomia leaves are curling, become dry and crispy this could be the result of underwatering or low humidity.
Water your peperomia to fix the curling leaves. The leaves may also curl due to infestation of sucking pests like Aphids or Spider mites.
Use Neem oil or any insecticidal soap solution if you observe the presence of pests. Check the leaf curls for any insects.
Peperomia leaves drooping
Your Peperomia leaves droop because of under watering which leads to wilting of the leaves eventually the plant will die if it’s not watered.
Water your peperomia properly and the leaves will stand erect.
Test the soil by sticking your bare fingers in to the soil. If the top 3 inches of soil is dry then it’s time to water your plant and if it still has moisture then you will have to wait till it dries out
Overwatered Peperomia
When your Peperomia is overwatered, it leads to stem rot and root rot, leaves may turn yellow and die eventually. The base of the stem turns black and begin to rot eventually your plant will die if left unchecked
How do you know if Peperomia has root rot?
Base of the stem becomes black and soft; these signs indicate the presence of root rot. In extreme cases the stem portion decays and the Peperomia will die.
The leaves begin to turn yellow, brown and eventually die and fall off. The major cause of root rot is over watering your peperomia.
Peperomia black leg
The base of the stem becomes black which is caused by a variety of fungal pathogens. This happens when you overwater your Peperomia.
Initially, the roots are attacked and then the infection spreads to base of stem causing ‘Black Leg’.
If the Peperomia is continuously overwatered, then stem will rot and your Peperomia will die.
To manage this repot the plant into new soil by removing the infected roots. Cut off the infected roots using a sterilized pair of pruning shears.
Peperomia leaves turning brown and falling off
Browning of leaves is one of the most common signs of over watering your Peperomia. Sunburn also causes Peperomia leaves to turn brown.
When you over water your plant it leads to necrosis resulting in the brown patches on leaves.
The leaves may also turn brown if it is placed under direct sun due to sun burn. To avoid sun burn place your Peperomia under proper filtered light.
Peperomia brown spots on leaves
Brown spots on the leaves are due to some fungal pathogens. Brown spots appear on leaves if the water is too saline.
- Cercospora leaf spot- raised brown areas on underside of leaves
- Pyllosticta leaf spot – dark brown concentric rings. It is specific to watermelon peperomia
- Rhizoctonia leaf spot – mushy dark brown or black spots
Foliar spray of any copper fungicide will control these leaf spots. Don’t wet the Peperomia leaves while watering. Wet leaves invite fungal pathogens.
Why is my Peperomia turning yellow?
Peperomia Leaves turn yellow mainly due to overwatering. Peperomia leaves also turn yellow when the plant lacks certain nutrients. Peperomia leaves also turn yellow if the plant is infested by sap-sucking insects like Aphids, Mealybugs, etc.
Lower leaves will also become yellow when there is Nitrogen deficiency.
Calcium deficiency is a serious problem when your growth medium is acidic (ex: peat) and you over water it.
Apply water soluble fertilizers through foliar sprays to take care of deficiencies this prevents salinity of soil.
Prune off the infested parts of the plant if the infestation is in the early stage. To control sap sucking insects spray neem oil solution.
How can you save Overwatered Peperomia?
- Try putting holes in the soil with help of chop sticks this will help the soil to dry out quickly.
- Close the holes after the soil is dried properly to prevent wilting due to lack of moisture.
- Mix your potting mixture or soil with equal proportions of sand (1:1) this makes soil light and soil doesn’t retain too much moisture
How to save Peperomia from root rot
- Stop watering the affected Peperomia as soon as you know the roots got rotten.
- Over watering leads to anaerobic conditions. Pathogens like Pythium, Rhizoctonia thrive well in anaerobic conditions which aggravate root rot and it eventually spreads to stem portion as well.
- Try repotting your Peperomia into a healthy soil if rot becomes worse and remove the rotten roots to prevent the spread of rot into healthy tissues
If the rot symptoms are worse i.e., the stem portion rots seriously then your peperomia has less chances to become normal and it’s already too late to help.
Why is my Peperomia leggy?
Legginess in plants is often the result of improper lighting. Your peperomia starts growing irregularly to get adequate sunlight for its growth.
Place your Peperomia under proper filtered light this would take care of leggy growth. But the existing leggy growth may not become normal.
You can cut off leggy growth if you don’t like the leggy part.
Peperomia leaves falling off
Peperomia leaves fall off as they become old. This is not at all abnormal, so don’t panic! But if the leaves fall off abnormally this could be due to cool temperature.
If the temperature is too low, place your Peperomia at a warm cozy place. The leaves also fall off if they are severely dehydrated.
Peperomia drooping after repotting
Normally plants show drooping symptoms after repotting this is called transplanting shock. The plant will regain its normal shape after recovering from this transplanting shock.
Water your plant properly and regularly. During this period the plant may die if there is no sufficient moisture around roots during this period
Do not disturb the roots during transplanting. While repotting retain the soil around root system do not shake it off.
Place your Peperomia under proper filtered sunlight to put up new growth.
Happy Growing 🙂