Dieffenbachia, the natural habitat is the humid rain forest, is an extremely popular indoor plant, as it perfectly cleans the air, is aesthetically attractive and is an excellent decoration for the interior of any home and office. However, despite all the positive aspects, it has one very unpleasant feature - the juice of its leaves is poisonous, so if you have pets that like to gnaw plants, you should limit their access to the bush, otherwise everything can end very badly.
Conditions of detention
In care, diffenbahia is relatively unpretentious. The main thing is to recreate the conditions that are as close to natural as possible - warmth, bright light and humidity:
- the temperature in the room where the diffenbahia is contained must fluctuate within 20-25 ° C, and in winter it does not fall below 17 ° C;
- air humidity should be at least 60%;
- The lighting should be bright, but diffused, especially in the warm season. In the summer, exposure to the leaves of the diffenbahia of direct sunlight may cause a burn. In the winter, however, the light is not enough and additional illumination is required.
The problems of caring for the diffenbachia
Often the owners of shrubs face various problems that inevitably accompany their cultivation. Thus, the diffenbahia can yellow, dry and curl leaves, rot the stems and roots, and, not their toxicity, they can be exposed to pest infestation.
Of all the aforementioned troubles, the most frequent occurrence is, perhaps, the yellowing of the leaves. The beginning of this process should in no case be ignored, otherwise it will actively spread and lead to the death of the plant.
Florists, scrupulously observing the recommendations for care and maintenance, sometimes wonder why the yellow leaves and leaves dry at the diffenbachia and what to do about it?
Why does the diffenbachia turn yellow?
Let's consider the main reasons of change of coloring of leaves of this plant:
- Bright sunlight . As already mentioned above, direct sunlight can cause burns of delicate leaves of diffenbachia. Therefore, if it is located where a bright light is inevitable, for example, at the southern window or on a loggia, then in the warm season it is necessary to take care of the shading.
- Excessive watering . Excess moisture causes rotting of the root system. This leads to a disruption in the nutrition of the plant and, as a consequence, yellowing and falling leaves.
- Dryness of air . Low humidity in the room, especially in the cold season, when central heating works, leads to the fact that the tips of the leaves turn yellow and dry.
- Low air temperature . This plant categorically does not accept cold, so at low temperatures the leaves begin to turn yellow and die.
- Screws . Dieffenbachia needs fresh air, but it absolutely does not accept cold wind and drafts.
- High water hardness. It is better to water the bush with soft peeled or boiled water.
- Lack of space . If the root system has grown to the extent that it becomes cramped in the pot, this results in the yellow leaves of the diffenbachia. The plant should be transplanted with a large capacity.
- Infection with pests , for example, a spider mite leads to the appearance of yellow spots on the leaves of the diffenbachia.
Thus, if the yellow leaves turn yellow, you should pay attention once again to the conditions of its maintenance, to adjust the care and, possibly, to take measures to control pests and diseases.