Hi,

I have had this plant for about 2 months. As you can see, some leaves are beginning to wilt and lighten in color near the top. My questions are: 1) should I snip these to enhance survivability of the rest of the plant? 2) what is the most likely cause?

- plant is in a plastic pot that drains well
- when I water I check the depth about an inch or two down to make sure it's dry before watering
- i water thoroughly and do not let it stand in any water
- If I err with plants, I tend to err on overwatering, so I've gone about 2 weeks between waterings for this plant (again, letting the soil dictate whether it's ready)
- I have only east-facing windows, and this is situated on a ledge (inside) that tilts slightly northeast (avoiding risk of burn from direct sunlight).
- I understand the plant is sensitive to change, so I've kept it where it is for the past 6 weeks (was initially on a different window sill); temperature in the house/outside has varied a bit as we have had some chillier days amid muggy days.

Note on the pictures: Most of the leaves look quite healthy, I know, and the plant overall looks good. However, the discolored/wilting leaves gain in numbers each day, so I'm trying to get ahead of the problem.

Thanks for any advice you might have.



Shows overall condition, but you can spot a couple of dying leaves


One bad one in the foreground and one in the background


Close up

The tender new leaves will always start out a lighter color. If you waited two weeks before watering and see leaves that have wilted then you need more water. To be honest, I think your plant is doing very well and no need to do anything different. You are watching your watering well and you already know, umbrella plants do best in bright, indirect light. Keep us posted if any new changes occur.

oneeyeluke said:The tender new leaves will always start out a lighter color. If you waited two weeks before watering and see leaves that have wilted then you need more water. To be honest, I think your plant is doing very well and no need to do anything different. You are watching your watering well and you already know, umbrella plants do best in bright, indirect light. Keep us posted if any new changes occur.

Thank you for your reply. Of the ten or so leaves wilting and discolored, only a few are new while the others had been a healthy, sturdy green. It's the turn for the worse in some of those leaves that causes me concern. I'll slightly increase the frequency of watering to see if that helps.

Your Schefflera is recently out of the ideal conditions of the greenhouse. Those conditions cannot be duplicated in a home environment, so you should expect your plant to adapt by slowly losing some of its older leaves. Over time, the plant will thin out some. That does not mean it is dying; just adapting.

As long as new leaves come in and remain healthy, then everything is okay.

Don't let any more than the top one inch of soil get dry before you water.

WillC said:Your Schefflera is recently out of the ideal conditions of the greenhouse. Those conditions cannot be duplicated in a home environment, so you should expect your plant to adapt by slowly losing some of its older leaves. Over time, the plant will thin out some. That does not mean it is dying; just adapting.

As long as new leaves come in and remain healthy, then everything is okay.

Don't let any more than the top one inch of soil get dry before you water.

That's very helpful information that I hadn't thought of (the adapting from the greenhouse period). I'll focus on the one inch depth going forward. I am thoroughly watering it each time--hopefully it's not too much--and ensuring good drainage and no standing water in the pot.