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.
English ivy
6 guidesHedera helix
Hardy trailing vine grown indoors and out — fast and forgiving, but a notorious magnet for spider mites in warm, dry rooms.
Boston fern
5 guidesNephrolepis exaltata
Lush tropical fern that lives and dies by humidity — the first plant to crisp up in dry indoor air or after a missed watering.
Croton
5 guidesCodiaeum variegatum
Tropical shrub grown for its electric foliage — drops leaves at the slightest chill, draft, or move.
Anthurium
6 guidesAnthurium andraeanum
Glossy-leaved tropical aroid with lacquered red spathes — loves warmth, humidity, and a chunky, fast-draining mix.
Dieffenbachia
6 guidesDieffenbachia seguine
Bold dumb cane with paddle leaves — fast and forgiving in medium light, but its juicy cane rots if overwatered.
Alocasia
6 guidesAlocasia amazonica
Dramatic tropical aroid with arrow-shaped leaves — thirsty, humidity-hungry, and quick to drop into a dormancy sulk.
Hoya
6 guidesHoya carnosa
Waxy-leaved trailing epiphyte that stores water in its leaves — thrives on bright light and benign neglect.
Echeveria
6 guidesEcheveria elegans
Rosette succulent from Mexico — built for bright sun and dry soil, quick to rot or stretch in low light.
String of pearls
6 guidesSenecio rowleyanus
Trailing succulent of pea-like beads — stores water in each pearl, so it rots fast if watered like a normal houseplant.
Bird of paradise
6 guidesStrelitzia reginae
Architectural tropical with paddle leaves — wants strong light and steady water to size up and eventually flower.
Arrowhead plant
6 guidesSyngonium podophyllum
Fast-growing aroid with arrowhead leaves — nearly as easygoing as pothos and happy in modest light.
Nerve plant
6 guidesFittonia albivenis
Mosaic-veined tropical groundcover — faints dramatically when dry and sulks in low humidity, but bounces back fast.
Money tree
5 guidesPachira aquatica
Braided-trunk tropical tree — tougher than it looks, but its trunk softens and rots fast if the soil stays wet.
Ponytail palm
5 guidesBeaucarnea recurvata
Not a palm at all but a succulent that stores water in its swollen base — thrives on bright light and long droughts.
Yucca
5 guidesYucca elephantipes
Sculptural drought-tolerant cane — wants strong light and dry soil, and sulks or rots in damp, dim corners.
Polka dot plant
6 guidesHypoestes phyllostachya
Freckle-leaved tropical that wilts the moment it dries out and stretches leggy in low light — pinch it to stay bushy.
African violet
6 guidesSaintpaulia ionantha
Compact flowering favourite — blooms reliably in modest light, but cold water on its fuzzy leaves leaves permanent spots.
Christmas cactus
6 guidesSchlumbergera bridgesii
Tropical jungle cactus, not a desert one — stores water in its segments but still wants more moisture and humidity than a true cactus.
Begonia
6 guidesBegonia rex
Grown for its painterly leaves — loves warmth and humidity but resents soggy soil and is prone to powdery mildew in stagnant air.
Maidenhair fern
5 guidesAdiantum raddianum
Delicate, fan-leaved fern famous for crisping the instant it dries out or meets dry air — the diva of the fern world.
Chinese money plant
6 guidesPilea peperomioides
Coin-leaved Pilea that pups freely — easygoing in bright light, but droops and yellows if over- or underwatered.
Areca palm
5 guidesDypsis lutescens
Feathery indoor palm — wants steady moisture, humidity, and filtered water; its fronds brown at the tips in dry or hard-water conditions.
Orchid
5 guidesPhalaenopsis amabilis
Epiphytic moth orchid — grows in bark, not soil, and rots fast if its crown or roots are left sitting wet.
Cactus
6 guidesCactaceae
Desert succulent built for drought and blazing light — almost always killed by overwatering, not by neglect.
Haworthia
6 guidesHaworthia
Small, hardy rosette succulent — happier than most succulents in moderate light, but just as quick to rot if overwatered.
Tradescantia
6 guidesTradescantia zebrina
Fast-trailing inch plant — vivid in bright light, leggy in shade, and a quick target for spider mites in dry air.
Bromeliad
6 guidesBromeliaceae
Tropical rosette that holds water in a central cup — wants warmth, humidity, and bright light, and resents soggy roots.
Weeping fig
5 guidesFicus benjamina
Classic indoor ficus tree — notorious for dropping leaves at the slightest change in light, water, or position.
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.
Strawberry
5 guidesFragaria ananassa
Low-growing perennial fruit — productive in full sun, but prone to slugs, crown rot in wet soil, and birds at fruiting time.
Eggplant
5 guidesSolanum melongena
Heat-loving fruiting nightshade — slower than tomatoes and a magnet for flea beetles and spider mites.
Kale
5 guidesBrassica oleracea
Hardy cool-season brassica — sweetens after frost, but cabbage worms and aphids love it.
Spinach
4 guidesSpinacia oleracea
Cool-season leafy green — fast and easy in spring and autumn, but bolts to seed the moment it gets hot.
Broccoli
5 guidesBrassica oleracea
Cool-season brassica grown for its flower head — bolts in heat and feeds cabbage worms if left unprotected.
Potato
5 guidesSolanum tuberosum
Cool-to-warm season tuber — hilled as it grows, and vulnerable to blight and Colorado potato beetle.
Onion
5 guidesAllium cepa
Long-season bulb — sizes up with steady moisture and plenty of sun, then cures for months of storage.
Cabbage
5 guidesBrassica oleracea
Cool-season brassica grown for its dense head — splits with irregular watering and feeds cabbage worms and aphids.
Cauliflower
5 guidesBrassica oleracea
Fussiest of the brassicas — needs steady cool weather and consistent water, or the head buttons or turns ricey.
Blueberry
5 guidesVaccinium corymbosum
Acid-loving fruiting shrub — yellows fast (chlorosis) when the soil pH is too high, and wants consistent moisture.
Corn
5 guidesZea mays
Tall warm-season grass crop — a heavy feeder and drinker that needs block planting for good pollination.
Herbs
Basil
5 guidesOcimum basilicum
Warm-season annual herb from tropical Asia — fast-growing, flavour-packed, and intolerant of cold soil.
Rosemary
5 guidesSalvia rosmarinus
Woody Mediterranean herb — wants sharp drainage and full sun; far more plants die from overwatering than from neglect.
Mint
5 guidesMentha spicata
Vigorous spreading herb — thrives in moist soil and part shade, and will take over a bed if it is not contained.
Thyme
5 guidesThymus vulgaris
Low, woody Mediterranean herb — loves heat, sun, and dry feet; rots quickly in rich, wet soil.
Cilantro
4 guidesCoriandrum sativum
Cool-season annual herb — bolts to seed (coriander) the moment it gets hot, so succession-sow for a steady supply.
Oregano
5 guidesOriganum vulgare
Hardy Mediterranean herb — thrives on sun and lean, dry soil; flavour intensifies when it is not overwatered.
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.
Open Growli