Plant diagnosis
Diagnose your plant
— pick a plant, pick a symptom.
Yellow leaves, drooping, brown spots, mushy stem, curling leaves, or stalled growth — the cause and the fix depend on the species. Pick your plant below for a guide written for that exact combination.
Common symptoms
Each symptom links to the full umbrella guide. Pick a plant card further down for species-specific advice.
Yellow leaves
Yellowing foliage (chlorosis) is the single most common houseplant complaint. It almost always points back to water, light, or nutrient balance.
Curling leaves
Curling leaves are a plant's way of reducing surface area to conserve water or shield itself. The direction of the curl tells you what's wrong.
Drooping
A drooping or wilting plant is losing turgor pressure in its stems. The cause is either too much water (rotting roots can't pull) or not enough.
Brown spots
Brown spots can mean fungal disease, sunburn, mineral burn from tap water, or localised rot. The pattern and texture tell you which one.
Mushy stem
A soft, mushy or blackened stem is advanced rot. Caught early it can sometimes be salvaged via propagation; left alone it collapses the plant.
No new growth
A plant that has stalled for weeks during its normal growing season is either dormant, root-bound, light-starved, or quietly failing at the roots.
Houseplants
Monstera
6 guidesMonstera deliciosa
Climbing aroid from Central America — wants bright indirect light, chunky aroid soil, and a moss pole to fenestrate.
Snake plant
6 guidesDracaena trifasciata
Drought-tolerant succulent that stores water in its rhizomes — almost impossible to underwater, easy to drown.
Pothos
6 guidesEpipremnum aureum
Trailing aroid native to the Solomon Islands — the most forgiving vine in the houseplant world.
Fiddle leaf fig
5 guidesFicus lyrata
Statement tree from West African rainforests — dramatic, fussy, and famously allergic to being moved.
Peace lily
6 guidesSpathiphyllum wallisii
Shade-loving aroid that wilts theatrically the moment it gets thirsty — also the clearest "water me" signaler in the houseplant world.
Philodendron
6 guidesPhilodendron hederaceum
Vining and self-heading aroid family — most varieties are nearly as forgiving as pothos.
Dracaena
5 guidesDracaena fragrans / marginata
Cane-stemmed tropical that grows like a slow palm tree — sensitive to fluoride and chlorine in tap water.
Peperomia
6 guidesPeperomia obtusifolia
Compact semi-succulent with thick leaves that store water — a desk-friendly plant that loathes a wet pot.
Prayer plant
6 guidesMaranta leuconeura
Rainforest-floor plant that folds its leaves up at night — desperately needs humidity and clean water.
Calathea
6 guidesCalathea (Goeppertia) spp.
Drama queen of the Marantaceae — patterned leaves, paranoid about tap water, hard fan of 60%+ humidity.
ZZ plant
6 guidesZamioculcas zamiifolia
Rhizomatous African native that stores water in potato-like tubers — the office-cubicle survivor.
Spider plant
6 guidesChlorophytum comosum
Arching grassy leaves and dangling pups — beloved by beginners, infamously fussy about fluoride in tap water.
Jade plant
5 guidesCrassula ovata
Tree-like South African succulent — slow, stoic, and easy to rot if treated like a tropical.
Aloe vera
6 guidesAloe barbadensis
Arabian-peninsula succulent that stores water in plump gel-filled leaves — sun-hungry, drought-adapted.
Cast iron plant
6 guidesAspidistra elatior
Victorian-era parlor plant from East Asia — earned its name by surviving gas lamps, draughts, and neglect.
Chinese evergreen
6 guidesAglaonema commutatum
Patterned-leaf aroid from Southeast Asia — handles low light better than almost any other variegated plant.
Parlor palm
6 guidesChamaedorea elegans
Compact understorey palm from Mexican rainforests — happy in lower light than most palms but quick to brown in dry air.
Rubber plant
5 guidesFicus elastica
Glossy-leaved tropical tree — easier than its fiddle-leaf cousin but every bit as dramatic about being moved.
Schefflera
5 guidesSchefflera arboricola
Umbrella-leaved tropical tree — fast-growing, light-hungry, and a magnet for spider mites in dry rooms.
Vegetables & fruit
Tomato
6 guidesSolanum lycopersicum
Warm-season fruiting crop from the Andes — needs 6-8 hours of direct sun, consistent water, and steady feeding.
Pepper
6 guidesCapsicum annuum
Warm-season fruiting crop from Central America — slower and more heat-loving than tomatoes, but tolerant of brief drought.
Cucumber
5 guidesCucumis sativus
Warm-season vine fruit — thirsty, hungry, and prone to bitter fruit if stressed.
Lettuce
4 guidesLactuca sativa
Cool-season leafy crop — bolts in heat, rots in waterlogged soil, but otherwise nearly fool-proof.
Bean
5 guidesPhaseolus vulgaris
Warm-season legume — nitrogen-fixing, fast to set pods, sensitive to cold wet soil at planting.
Garlic
5 guidesAllium sativum
Long-season bulb crop — planted in autumn, harvested in summer, hates wet feet.
Pea
5 guidesPisum sativum
Cool-season climbing legume — sweet, fast, and inevitably done by midsummer in most US climates.
Squash
5 guidesCucurbita pepo
Sprawling warm-season fruit — massive leaves, massive water demand, and a target for squash bugs and vine borers.
Carrot
5 guidesDaucus carota
Cool-season taproot — needs loose, stone-free soil and steady moisture to size up sweet roots.
Herbs
Basil
5 guidesOcimum basilicum
Warm-season annual herb from tropical Asia — fast-growing, flavour-packed, and intolerant of cold soil.
Herb garden
5 guidesmixed culinary herbs
Mixed culinary herbs — Mediterranean herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage) and tender herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro) have opposite watering needs.
Can't find your plant?
The flagship what's wrong with my plant guide walks through the diagnostic flow species-agnostically. Or open the Growli app, send a photo, and I'll work through it with you — plant boldly, I'll handle the rest.
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