Many house plant owners praise the attractiveness of their Syngonium plants’ leaves. They are often a lustrous shade of green, while some are available with a blush of pink for added charm. These flowers are sometimes known as Arrowhead or Goosefoot plants.
Curled leaves on your Syngonium plant? Here’s what you should do. To make Syngonium plant leaves unfurl, we need to address the underlying source of the problem. The most common reasons include carelessness with watering, issues with the plant’s roots, a lack of nutrients, dry air, excessive heat, or too much light.
In our guide, we run through everything that can make plant leaves not unfurling. By the end, you’ll be armed with lots of information you can use with most plants to encourage leaves to unfurl.
Why Syngonium Plants Leaves Won’t Unfurl?
Here’s a handful of reasons that make your plants leaves curl and prevents them from unfurling as they should.
1. Improper Watering
No doubt about it. The Syngonium plant is susceptible to either overwatering or underwatering. When plants are overwatered, they receive more water than they need. With less water available, plants are suffering from underwatering. (Learn How To Tell If Zucchini Is Bad)
Under-Watering Syngonium plant
When water is withheld, a plant goes into survival mode by folding its leaves and shielding its stem from the sun.
Your plants have yellow leaves; these yellowing leaves may turn brown and eventually fall. When you water your Syngonium less frequently, its leaves curl.
Fix:
Provide sufficient water, so you don’t underwater your Syngonium plant. Depending on the location, watering once per week is the recommendation.
Over-Watering Your Syngonium plant
Syngonium plants, sometimes known as goose plants, can be easily damaged by overwatering. The plants don’t like wet feet, as this causes leaves to fall off the plant and possibly curling.
Fix:
Provide sufficient water for the plant; the soil should be moist and not wet.
2. Rooting System
The roots of a Syngonium plant are robust and wide. If there is nowhere for them to spread out and drink water. Curling leaves and stunted growth are specific results.
Fix:
If you want more of the plant or want to save it, you should either plant it in a larger container or plant it in soil. The soil is also essential; this unfurling plant prefers quick-draining soil.
3. Lack of Nutrients
To thrive and have new leaf growth, Syngonium plants require specific nutrients. Curling leaves indicate that your Syngonium plant is deficient in some nutrients.
Fix:
When a plant’s leaves begin to curl and turn greenish yellow in response to a shortage of nutrients, it’s time to start giving it the fertilizer it needs to thrive.
There’s also the chance that prolonged lack of fertilization will deplete soil nutrients, cause the leaves to curl, or both. Use fertilizer to remedy the situation.
4. Incorrect Humidity Levels
Without adequate humidity, Syngonium’s leaves will turn yellow and fall off. When humidity levels are low, leaves curl because more water is evaporated. Here, curled leaves prevent water loss because of transpiration.
Fix:
We can fix this by giving the right amount of water along with the following:
- To prevent the plant from drying out, mulch around the base.
- To boost humidity around your plant’s leaves, use a pebble tray. This pebble trap method can also help prevent overwatering.
- If the plant is indoors, consider using a humidifier.
5. Light Exposure
Insufficient light causes the leaves of a Syngonium plant to curl. Like all other plants, the Syngonium plant requires light for photosynthesis, an essential process for plant survival.
When a plant loses the ability to create its own food, it becomes sickly and dies off, as evidenced by its leaves’ curl and eventually falling.
Fix:
- Expose your Syngonium plant to direct light, but not harsh direct sunlight. Your Syngonium needs at least six hours of light exposure daily to remain healthy.
- Move your plant near a window to help your plant receive enough sunlight via indirect light rather than full sun exposure.
- We can also give artificial sunlight to the Syngonium plant to get enough sunlight during the winter.
5. Extreme Temperature
Whenever the temperature rises too high or drops too low, Syngonium plants will curl. If the temperature becomes too high during the summer, the leaves of Syngonium plants may curl as a sign of distress.
Fix:
Keep plants inside during the summer as protection from direct sunlight. Likewise, keeping them in warm areas helps leaves unfurl where cold temperatures cause them to curl, such as in the winter season.
6. Over Fertilizing
Too much fertilizer never helps plants develop and has always been detrimental. Fertilizing too much is analogous to dosing a plant with chemicals, which can accumulate in the roots, reduce the plant’s ability to absorb water, and cause the leaves to curl and turn yellow.
Fix:
- Properly fertilizing each plant is the best solution. Only apply once or twice a year, in the spring and summer.
- Give fertilizer using the NPK formula for optimal growth.
- Fertilizers should not be given to young plants or newly potted plants.
- With solid fertilizer, give adequate water after application.
Tip: To encourage the healthy growth of your Syngonium, refresh the soil with those nutrients or fertilizer if the potting mix is quite old.
7. Leaf Spot Disease
A fungus called leaf spot forms brown areas on the leaf. If the illness is not treated promptly, the leaves may curl, turn yellow, and eventually drop.
Fix:
Cutting the infected leaves is the most effective technique to treat such leaf disease. However, if the illness is still in its initial stages, another option is to use a fungicide.
8. Water Quality
Your Syngonium’s water to thrive or curl will also depend on the quality of the water you use. If you use tap water containing fluoride, chlorine, and other minerals, your leaves may curl. Your Syngonium’s leaves will curl and turn brown because of the high salt concentration in the salt, which prevents proper water absorption.
Fix
The solution to this problem is to filter water before watering your Syngonium. Once you control the number of salts, your plant has better water absorption. (Learn How Long Does Cedar Last Outdoors)
Why Are My Arrowhead Plant Leaves Curling?
Arrowhead plants are the most popular indoor plants. Beautiful foliage and easy care. Tropical plants have fewer leaf problems than indoor plants, although this doesn’t make Syngonium plants immune to leaf problems.
Houseplant leaves curling is inevitable. Plant owners must follow a stringent indoor plant care routine to avoid the leaf problem.
So why are arrowhead plant leaves curling? Causes include low humidity, improper watering, extreme temperatures, too much light, lack of nutrients, and over-fertilization. Examine your houseplant to find the problem and remedy it. Leaf problems could hamper plant growth.
Incorrect Watering Routine
Eastern North America’s arrowhead plants. The plant thrives with lovely leaves in moderate moisture. However, insufficient soil moisture will make arrowhead plant leaves curl as the plant tries to save water.
Push your index finger into the soil; water the plant to prevent leaf curling if the soil is dry. Watering consistently by following a fixed schedule. For example, water the plant more in summer and spring than in winter.
Lack of Nutrients
Nutrients and minerals help Syngonium plants thrive. Unfortunately, curling arrowhead leaves show insufficient nutrients in the soil.
- You’ll also observe Syngonium leaves turning yellow, or you’ll find a lack of potassium causes white arrowheads and curled leaves.
- Insufficient magnesium in the soil makes the leaves curl and turn greenish-yellow.
During the growing season, use slow-release fertilizer (summer and spring). Avoid fertilizing in winter.
Overwatering Problems
Overwatering your arrowhead plant will cause root rot. Incorrect soil drainage and aeration cause the problem. Syngonium roots struggle in wet soil. Root rot hinders plant absorption of water and nutrients. Plant leaves curl to conserve water as if they were facing too much harsh sunlight or there is low humidity.
Using a container with drainage holes may avoid overwatering, as the holes drain excess water from the potting mix. Leaf tips curling and turning brown are a sign of overwatering. Repot your plant to avoid root damage.
Inappropriate Lighting Exposure
Syngonium plants thrive in bright indirect sunlight. The light helps the houseplant undertake vital physiological activities that facilitate better growth.
Insufficient light will start curling, so change the plant’s location to avoid Syngonium leaves curling by placing it in indirect sunlight.
Ensure the indoor plant receives three to six hours of filtered sunlight. Too much sunlight can cause leaf curling in arrowhead plant leaves, and direct sunlight can scorch the leaves.
Extreme Temperatures
Extreme temperatures can also curl arrowhead leaves, and such extreme temperatures can be hot or cold.
Arrowhead plants’ leaves curl in winter because of the cold, and also, in a hot summer, they can curl leaves. Keep the plant at 45-85F. Better growth and no curling arrowhead leaves will result.
Over-fertilizing
Arrowhead plants are not heavy feeders, and too much fertilizer can kill the plant. Salt accumulation around roots hinders water and mineral absorption; thus, leaves curl and turn yellow.
Correctly applying fertilizer is vital, and experts recommend fertilizing twice in summer and spring.
Make sure the fertilizer has the nutrients needed to make arrowhead plants thrive. Because of dormancy, avoid fertilizing indoor houseplants with water-soluble fertilizers. (Read Getting Rid Of Mushrooms In Mulch Guide)
Leaf Spot Diseases
Fungal infections affect arrowhead plant leaves more. Brown spots and patches appear on the leaves.
The untreated illness causes leaves to curl and fall off, so cut your diseased leaves to stop the spread. To treat leaf spots, use fungicide early if possible.
FAQ:
Why Is My Syngonium Drooping?
Syngonium podophyllum is a tropical plant native to the climate of South and Central America. Low humidity makes your arrowhead plant droop.
Why Is My Arrowhead Plant Turning White?
The bleaching of arrowhead plants is caused by excessive sunlight exposure. Therefore, the best action is to give the plant the right amount of water and at least six hours of strong indirect sunlight.
Why Is My Syngonium Leaf not unfurling?
It is caused by root rot and other problems with water. Use the proper container size and think about the proper watering schedule.
Why Is My Syngonium Leaves Turning Yellow?
The potential causes include an excessive amount of water, uneven watering practices, and poor illumination. To fix the problem, think about the best arrowhead plant care regimen.
Why are my Syngonium leaves not unfurling?
Your Syngonium needs to be placed near a moderately sunny window where it will receive 2-4 hours of direct sun daily to maintain its color. The Syngonium leaves curling and failure to unfold can also be a root and water-related problem besides receiving insufficient light.
How do you make a leaf unfurl?
To help your Philodendron leaves unfurl, you can increase humidity. Use a humidifier or mist your plant every couple of days.
