13 Ways to Save a Dying Plant- Complete guide

by Becky Decker · March 3, 2024

Oh my god! What the hell has happened to the plants? Why are they drooping?” was my reaction after coming back home from a week-long vacation. You won’t believe me; it was a heartbreaking experience.

If you are a hardworking gardener, it is really disappointing to see this view of plants. But don’t worry, I will not let my plants or yours die. I will make sure to save the dying plants and make them thrive again with the same beauty and grace.

The main thing to focus on is not giving up too soon and focusing on the reasons behind it. Let me make it clear: I don’t promise or guarantee that it will help you save the plant because treating the plant and possibly reviving it depends on the stage of damage the plant has reached. So without wasting your precious time, let’s start learning.

Causes of Plant Death:

Many plants are more resilient to fight against the problem and recover from the rough conditions. All you need to do is understand what’s the problem the plant is suffering from and take all the necessary steps to save the plant.

Some plants are quite demanding and do require specific growing conditions, whereas others require not much more than occasional watering and placing near a window where they get Sunlight.

Whether it is a low-maintenance or high-maintenance plant, it will start to die because of some common reason. Here are the most common reasons behind the dying of the plant.

Underwatering:

The plant will start drooping on leaves if you don’t water them. In short, the leaves will begin to drop when not watered regularly.
In starting the plant leaves will turn brown and then after not getting it for a much longer time.
It will result, causing the entire plant to turn brown which will make it very difficult for you to revive the plant once the leaves start dropping or turning brown.

Overwatering:

Some gardeners overwater the plant because they don’t want the plant to die without getting water but it is not the reason to overwater.
Due to overwatering the plant will reduce the oxygen content in the soil resulting in root rot conditions.
If the plant is getting over water, it will start to turn into yellow leaves.
You will observe the plant looking burned or scorched, and at last the beliefs will start to drop which is because the roots decay.
In case you don’t know what’s main reason behind it is. You can check it with your finger and see if there is any wet layer or not.

Lighting:

The light plant gets used in the photosynthesis process and getting too much or too little of light will stress the plant.
The plant, which used to grow in shadier places will burn and dry out if exposed to sun, and the plant, which likes to grow near sunny windows, will start to fare poorly in a room where there is no sunlight.
Make sure to do helpful research regarding the plant before you decide to keep it in a place in your home, garden, or yard.
The plant always has instructions regarding the preferred and light levels and water schedule they require.

Infestations:

There are some little bugs that do like to live in and eat the plant.
They are used to munching on the leaves until there is nothing green on the plant or they also create a home on the plant that results in slow eating of all the nutrients until the leaves start to fall off and die.
However, we cannot create a bug-free environment so you need to keep an eye on the plant even if you have planted them in a sealed location with a closed door and windows.
Make sure to change the location of the plant at which there are bugs which will prevent them from spreading to other plants.

Food:

There are some plants who need occasional fertilizer, but this doesn’t mean you can feed them semi-regularly to make them happy and healthy.
In case, you have planted a plant in difficult conditions such as a place where the plant does not get sunlight, then you can apply fertilizer to help the plant to stay alive.
If you over-fertilize or under-fertilize the plant it will also lead the plant to die as over-fertilization will rapid the leaf growth and undersize the root system under fertilization means the plant doesn’t get enough nutrients they need and will lead to slow growth.

What to do to save a dying plant?

1. First look if the plant is actually dead:

Before deciding anything, you need first to check if the plant is actually dead or not. For that, you need to look for signs of life like the roots will be greenish on the inside and the leaves will be flexible and strong.
You don’t need to give up if you just saw the leaves turn brown.
In case the plant still consists of a few green leaves and flexible stocks, there is a chance to save the plant from dying.
Having buds on the plant is also a good sign.

2. Remove any dead foliage:

It is important to get rid of dead sections of plants.
Make sure to remove all the dead pieces present in the plant starting with the stems until the plant gets to see symptoms of green.
While removing the plant you need to leave 5 cm of stem above the earth if the stem is completely dead but you observe the roots are still alive.
You will see the growth of new branches from the old stems when the plant is recovered.

3. Check out whether over-watered your plants:

The plant must get water to exist and thrive.
In case of overwatering and damp soil, it will lead the plant to get brown or yellow withered leaves.
All this will affect the roots and that will cause decaying of roots.
In this case, make some changes to protect the plants from overwatering and save them from dying.
First of all, you need to remove the plant from direct sunshine and need to wait so that the soil gets dry before you water it again.
In case you find the soil is wet you need to replace both the soil and the pot.
Before planting them you need to go through watering requirements and make sure to follow them all in the future.

4. Check if Plants are thirsty:

It is common to drown like getting overwatered.
In case the plant is underwater that will result in the plant beginning to wilt.
You will find the tips of leaves begin to dry up and brown hence resulting in turning leaves brown, die, and fall off.
If you find the topsoil is dry, compacted, and cracked it is a high chance due to the lack of water.
In case you find any type of damage early you can easily repair the plant fast because dry plants are simple to rehydrate.
To rehydrate you need to allow the plant to soak in water for some hours which will make it quickly recover the plant.
If you follow all these steps then you can transform from droopy and miserable to gorgeous, healthful, and cheerful.
You need to take care of the plant regularly by filling the plant pot with water and having drainage holes.
The plants are used to taking water through both leaves and roots and you need to repeat the watering schedule unless there is any change.

5. Adjust The Sun Food:

You need to make sure the plant gets the right amount of light.
In case they don’t get enough sunshine that will make them pale leaves and weaken of stems.
You need to move the houseplant to the perfect region of a home after knowing when it is full daylight, partial sun, direct sunlight, or indirect sunlight.
If the plant doesn’t get sunlight it will struggle with slow development and end up dying if not taken steps to revive it that depend on its status.

6. Check to see if the plant requires extra humidity:

In case the plant is native to the tropics and will begin to die which can be because of dying to return to its natural habitat.
The humidity required by the plants does vary.
You will find some signs that is visible if they are suffering from more moisture in the air.
In case the humidity level is too low you will see the plant will start to shrivel, brown, and wilt.
The plant like ferns do require humidity to thrive and normal living in the room will lack humidity.
Make sure as soon as possible to transfer the plant to a more humid spot and away from the sun.
Placing them in the bathroom is a perfect place to keep the plants to maintain the humidity inside your house.

7. Additional nutrition should be provided:

You need to add additional nutrition During the spring and summer growing season which is a very important step.
In case the plant has weak stems and discolored leaves which is a sign of malnutrition you need to feed the plant with compost or fertilizer and Save a dying plant.
If the plant is suffering from malnutrition it will cause uneven growth and uneven leaves with weak stems so you need to relocate the plant and provide them with appropriate manure and fertilizer which will help them to get back to life.
Applying organic liquid plant food is the best option in this case for example water-soluble nutrient-rich fertilizer will help the plant to nourish.

8. Consider Repotting Plants:

Many times the plant overgrows of their pot and the root inside the container would even wind around making it very difficult to update the water and nutrients.
To save a Dying plant you need to remove the plant from the container carefully and shift it into a bigger container in case there is more root than soil or the roots are calling around inside the pot.
All you require to do is repot the plant which will bring back a dying plant to life.
Make sure the larger pot is well drained and full of healthy soil which will help the plant to thrive quickly.

9. Give Plants Filtered Water:

Giving impure water that contains chloride chloride will have a negative impact on the plant’s health.
For example bamboo is a plant if you provide them chlorine-laced water it will destroy the bamboo plant.
So to save a dying plant you need to install a rainwater collection tank and use it to water the plant or you can use filtered water.

10. Getting Rid Of Insects And Diseases:

In case of any sign of pest symptoms such as irregular growth, curled leaves, or Discolored leaves having holes, all these are symptoms of having insects and disease on the plant.
Make sure that there is no bug on the green plant if you find one you need to save a dying plant by using a treat the plant with a mix of mild soap solution with water.
In case you find out the plant has succumbed to disease you need to take advice from an expert so that he or she can identify the problem and the way to treat the plant.
The plant can suffer from diseases such as Powdery mildew, root rot, and leaf spots So you need to keep the plant isolated from other plants to prevent the spread of pests and diseases.

11. Change Soil Of Plants:

The plants are used to using a lot of nutrients and organic matter present in soil over time.
The soil sometimes becomes impoverished and it will lose the ability to store water and minerals.
You need to repot the plant with fresh and nutrient-rich soil to save dying plants and keep them healthy.
Planting the plant with a potting mix that is light and fluffy by combining peat moss, pine bark, and perlite or vermiculite will keep the plant happy and well-nourished.
Avoid using garden soil in potted plants because it is too dense for the plant to grow.
The garden soil does have clay or sand that prevents them from breathing properly.
You need to use potting soil for planting that you can find in any garden center or nursery.

12. At the very least, wait a month:

In case you find that the efforts are not paying it off.
The plant does take a long time to nearly kill the plant and will take a longer time to get back to health.
All you need to have patience is the most important thing to save a plant from dying.
Make sure to care for the plants for some weeks.
I will suggest you not to give up after following the steps to save a plant from dying.
It will take some months to find out any improvements or new growth in the plant.
The method will take some longer time than expected so don’t give up soon.

13. Compost it as you let your plant go:

In case after doing everything the plant doesn’t recover for at least a month then it’s high time to leave the plant and let it go.
Make sure not to just throw the plant instead of placing it in a compost bin.
If you place the dead plants in a compact, they are used to generate nutrient-rich soil that you can use to fertilize the houseplants or garden.
In short, the plant can resurrect by which you can help both the health of the plants and the environment.
Resurrection is not always successful if the situation gets out of hand.
This method will not help to recover the plants from reviving that appear to be dead.

Conclusion:

Hence you need to know how to save a dying plant all you need to follow all the prevention methods that will help to save the plants.