Why are My Pothos Leaves Drooping and How to Fix Them

If you used to get worried about why pothos start turning yellow when you water them, and when you stop watering, it may cause root rot and dryness. This was the same problem I used to face when I started to grow them.

I can relate to this because I have grown different types of pothos in my garden, so I can help you with how to fix them as soon as possible.

I suggest you not waste your time just thinking the pothos will recover on their own. After noticing the pothos leaves dropping and before starting to learn how to fix them, you must know the main reason behind pothos drooping.

To help you out, I have explained all the main reasons behind pothos leaves drooping, so without further struggling to fix them, let’s learn the reasons.

10 Reasons for Pothos drooping leaves and solution

Indoor plants, and the Pothos, in particular, are meant to make your home look bright, alive, and beautiful. So, it can be pretty disappointing to see your Pothos start to droop and look unhealthy. And, if left untreated, it can be even more disappointing to find that your Pothos is dying.

If you want to stop your Pothos from drooping, you have to first figure out the reason why it might be drooping in the first place. There are several reasons why a Pothos can start to droop, and we have outlined all of those reasons for you below. Depending on the reason, we have also outlined how you can remedy the problem and revive your Pothos plant.

Pothos does not get enough water:

• Pothos plants are able to survive when they have been watered once every one to two weeks.
• Make sure the soil gets dry out between watering.
• The pothos plant will start dropping if you dont provide sufficient water to the plant.
• If the plant does not get enough water the plant leaves will look thin and brittle and will start to lose the bright green and yellowing color of the plant.
• If you want to check if pothos is drooping because of not getting enough water you need to gauge the soil moisture level.
• The soil for about 2 to three inches below the surface needs to be moist and if not this indicates that the plant is not watered enough.

Fix the problem: 

• To solve this problem you need to soak the pothos plant for which first fills up the sink or large container with 4 to 5 inches of room water temperature. 
• You need to place the pothos pot in water and leave it for about an hour.
• The pothos plant will be able to soak water as much is required through the drainage hole present at the bottom of the pot.
• After the soaking is done you can again water them as you used to do once every one to two weeks after which the plant will stop drooping.

The environment is not humid:

• The pothos plant originated in Asia and is used in tropical climates.
• The pothos thrives best in humid areas.
• In case of having particularly dry or situations where the weather has changed recently is the main cause of pothos drooping.

Fix the problem: 

• To solve the problem of pothos plants suffering from an environment that is not humid enough then you need to use external measures to increase the humidity.
• I suggest you keep the pothos plant near another plant which will help to increase humidity in a small area.
• Try to spray the pothos plant using water a few times a week which will keep the leaves and vines moist and humid.
• Keeping your pothos in the bathroom will also help to create a humid environment for the plants.
• You can also try using a humidifier to maintain the humidity of plants.

Pothos getting too much direct sunlight:

• Pothos plants use to thrive best when you provide the plant with plenty of indirect sunlight.
• In case you keep them in direct sunlight the soil of the plant will dry out due to which the humidity in that area will reduce. 
• Getting too much direct sunlight will start to burn the leaves and pothos droop.
• All of this indicates that pothos suffering from sunburn.

Fix this problem:

• To fix the problem of getting too much amount of direct sunlight you need to move the plant to a new location.
• You need to keep the plant in a place where it gets plenty of light but it should not be direct in sunlight.
• After adjusting to the new location the plant will start to perk up again.

The weather is too cold:

• The plant originated from Asia and prefers to thrive in warmer and more humid areas.
• In case the weather gets too cold it will damage the plant causing pothos drooping.
• Plants growing in cold weather will result in wilted, droopy, or discolored leaves.
• The weather for the plant is cold when it falls below  50°F or when frost is present on the plant.

Fix this problem: 

•  You can fix the problem of pothos drooping By keeping the plant in a warm temperature in the house between 75 to 80 degrees.
• You can also try to change the location of the plant pot and make sure it is not near any windows and doors.
• Avoid keeping the plant in contact with cold drafts or any vents.
• During winter months if you have a fireplace you can place the pothos pot a few feet away from the fireplace in order to maintain warmth around the plant.

The Pothos’ roots:

• If the roots are overgrown and feel constricted or congested in the pot there will be the problem of root bound.
• In this problem, the roots will not be able to observe the water and nutrients from the soil which will cause pothos drooping and will become discolored.
• Having the problem of root bound the plant will try to conserve as much energy which will make the leaves become thin and dry.
•  if you don’t treat the problem as soon as possible the plant will die because of the root condition.

Fix this problem: 

• You can fix the problem by repotting the plant into a big-size of the pot.
•  make sure to choose the appropriate size of the pot which can be done by choosing 2 to 3 inches wider and taller than the current report.
• Doing this will help the plant root to spread out comfortably and will not become bound together.
•  make sure the pot consists of plenty of drainage holes and use fresh new soil for repotting the plant.
• You will see an improvement in the appearance of the plant after repotting within a few weeks.

The Pothos are suffering because of pests:

• There are chances of the plant getting infected with pests like spider mites and aphids when you keep the plant outside or near other plants.
•  Although they are common to find pests in different kinds of plants but the pothos plant has to suffer by getting weak results in pothos drooping.
• Drooping of the leaves stems, and vines turning brown are the most important signs showing that the plant is suffering due to pests.
• If you do not treat the plant as soon as possible the pest will multiply and will cause more damage to the plant.

Fix this problem: 

• There are various ways of treating the plant suffering from pest problems such as using different chemical products for example insecticide soaps but make sure to apply them over the plant according to the instructions mentioned.
•  you can also use the natural method for treating the plant such as by using name oil or Horticulture oil all these precautions will help to treat the pest problem but also help in preventing any sort of future infection.

The Pothos has been overwatered:

• Overwatering the plant does result in pothos drooping and wilting leaves.
•  In case of Providing water to the plant more than once in 1 to 2 weeks will cause or watering issue or if the pot does not have sufficient drainage it will cause the soil and the roots oversaturated and moist.
• The problem of overwatering results in root rot conditions as the root will not be able to get oxygen properly.

Fix this problem: 

• The quick and the best way of treating the plant with an over Water issue is to remove the plant from the pot and replace it with the new soil.
• You need to replace the soil with a new potting mix which will have proper drainage.
•  I will suggest you mix some perlite to the soil which will create more drainage.
•  make sure the new pot does have enough drainage holes at the base of the pot.

Suffering from a fungal or bacterial infection:

• The plant suffering from any bacterial or fungal infection will make the pothos plant look weak and will result in pothos drooping leaves.
• To check the plant you need to check nicely the plant stem and Vines if there is any bacterial or fungal infection the color will change and the stem and wine will become soft or mushy.

Fix the problem:

• If you want to get rid of the fungal bacterial infection you need to spray the plant with fungicide.
• Fungicides are available in any nursery or plant store But make sure to spray it according to the instructions mentioned on it.
• In case you don’t want any bad smell of fungicide inside the home you can use apple cider vinegar mixed with water to spray on the plant.
• You need to spray the mixture on the plant over the leaves and stems every few days so that the plant will start to perk again.

The Pothos is under stress from being repotted:

• The plant leaf will start looking wilted and drooping pothos when the plant is suffering from stress because of being newly repotted.
• The plant is lately getting stressed whenever they change the environment and after repotting the plant you will see the leaves of the plants start dropping or turning discolored

Fix the problem: 

• After getting shifted to a new pot the plant will come back within a few days and the leaves will start returning to the normal color and the thickness will maintain.
• In case the problem is not getting solved then the problem is not repotting but it can be other problems as mentioned above.

Too much fertilizer:

• Providing the plant with too much amount of fertilizer with also result in pothos drooping leaves.
•  in case the problem arises after applying the fertilizer then it can be due to over-fertilization.
• It does have a high chance of getting over-fertilization if you use potting soil such as Miracle Grow which already consists of fertilizer mixed in the soil.
• The bag can be used for at least 6 months and if you have repotted the plant using this potting mix there is no need to use fertilizer.

Conclusion:

in case the pothos plant starts to drooping you need to know all the reasons behind it and fix the problem according to the situation after reading the article you will easily prevent the pothos leaves from drooping.