Why Is My Plant Losing Leaves? What to Do When Leaves Start Dropping

Written by Kelsey W.

Is the plant you’ve had on your porch for years starting to lose its leaves, a lot of leaves? Are the plants out near the street in front of your house dropping leaves like no tomorrow? Is the houseplant in your bathroom losing more leaves than it’s growing?

Plants lose leaves predictably for reasons like seasonal changes and growth, but sometimes leaf loss is unexpected, and it starts to accelerate into something very concerning. Are your plants dying? Is something hurting them? Do you need to do something drastic to ensure their survival?

It’s never fun to see one of your plants start to lose its leaves, but all is not lost, especially if you notice what’s happening before it gets too severe. Let’s learn about why your plant might be unhappy, and how you can encourage it to start growing leaves instead of dropping them.

Why Do Plants Lose Leaves Unexpectedly?

The first step in figuring out what to do when your plant starts losing leaves is to understand the many reasons why this may occur. When you know the reasons, the solution might be as easy as reversing a recent decision you made about the plant that will encourage the plant to stop losing leaves.

Here are some of the most common issues that may cause leaf loss:

Change of Environment

Plants are almost like humans in some ways in that they get used to where they live and can get a little stressed when you move them. Some plants are much more sensitive to movement than others and will protest by dropping their leaves until they’re practically bare. One of the biggest offenders when it comes to movement is the Ficus plant.

Several types of Ficus plants exist, and most of them will get quite testy with you if you move them from their happy place. Too often, a Ficus will come home from the garden center and start losing leaves with wild abandon due to the stress it experiences in its new environment.

The Missouri Botanical Garden notes that a weeping fig drops leaves with “sudden, significant changes in temperature and/or light,” and that acclimating it gradually minimizes the drop.

The timing and color of the drop tell you a lot. Leaves that drop suddenly while still green usually point to a sudden change (a move, a draft, a temperature swing, or overwatering). Leaves that yellow first, especially the lower, older ones, and then fall usually signal a care issue building over time, such as watering or feeding. The University of Washington Botanic Gardens describes this same pattern of yellowing and dropping on ficus.

Improper Watering Schedule

One of the most common reasons plants start to lose leaves is because their caretakers forget to water them, or a really dry hot spell comes along, and the plants don’t receive a boost in water. Some plants that don’t get enough water will start to turn brown, but others will start to lose leaves and simply not grow any additional leaves.

If the plant isn’t getting enough water to sustain itself, there’s no reason for it to continue making more leaves that will only stress it even further while it feels parched. Getting the watering schedule right can help a plant recover. In that same vein, overwatering can also cause leaves to drop.

If you have more than one type of plant in your home or in your garden (very likely the case if you have a garden outside!), you may need to account for a diverse watering schedule where one or two plants get an extra trip with the watering can versus some of the other more drought-tolerant plants. Your jade plants might be losing their leaves because you’re watering them too much, but that’s not the case for the other plants in your garden.

The pattern of the drop can point you to the cause. With underwatering, the lower, older leaves usually yellow and fall first. With overwatering, old and new leaves tend to yellow and drop together while the soil stays wet. In Southern California, dry heat and Santa Ana winds pull moisture from pots fast, so container plants often lean underwatered. The Royal Horticultural Society covers how to read these watering symptoms on a struggling houseplant.

Bugs are Eating Your Plants

Infestations are a very common reason plants start to drop their leaves, especially when you’re caring for outdoor plants. Indoor infestations can occur, too, but they’re less common. One of the ways that bugs eat plants is to suck the moisture out of them, which means the plant can’t continue to produce new leaves or support current leaves.

Not only will the infestation cause the plant to stop producing new leaves, but the current leaves may start to drop from the plant until it’s just not able to sustain itself, even with an appropriate watering, fertilizing, and sunning schedule. Mealybugs and spider mites are some of the most common invaders that lead to leaf loss. If you have marigolds, watch out for spider mites!

UC IPM notes that as spider mite feeding continues “the leaves turn yellowish or reddish and drop off.”

Change in Seasonal Weather

Some plants thrive in the sun or in the shade, and the changing pattern of the sun can have a significant impact on whether a plant thrives or just gives up and starts losing leaves. One of the most common problems faced by indoor plants is the eventual loss of sunlight (or even indirect sunlight) from the movement of the sun to a more southerly position during the winter.

If your houseplants are only getting “just enough” sun during the summer and are getting even less in the winter, they could stop producing new leaves or start dropping leaves once their sunlight is cut so short. You may need to become aware of the seasons and move your plants accordingly.

You can often prevent leaf loss due to seasonal changes by thinking about those weather changes before you put your plants in the ground or place them in their forever spot. If you know a plant needs a lot of sun, like a daylily, don’t put it on a north-facing wall where it’ll still be in the shade in the spring when they should start blooming.

What About Shrubs and Hedges?

Outdoor shrubs play by slightly different rules. A deciduous shrub dropping its leaves in fall is just going dormant, which is completely normal. An evergreen hedge such as Photinia ‘Red Robin’ thinning out, though, is usually reacting to a leaf-spot fungus, a cold wet spell, or drought, and it typically fills back in once conditions settle. The Clemson Cooperative Extension notes that Entomosporium leaf spot causes spotting and eventual leaf drop on red tip photinia.

How Do You Help a Plant to Stop Dropping Its Leaves?

The only way you can stop a plant from dropping its leaves is to figure out the reason it’s unhappy. In some instances, you can figure the reason out pretty easily. You probably already know that you’ve been neglecting the houseplant in the window in your living room.

You might try to set a reminder on your phone to water the plant, so it doesn’t get so parched. We have so many things going on in modern life that it’s really easy to forget that 2-minute task of filling up a watering can and visiting the plants.

The good news is that plants are usually quite resilient and responsive to changes in their environment. Just as the plant started losing leaves because it was unhappy, it should start regaining its health once you move it. Further, if your plant is dropping leaves, there’s a decent chance it’s only one problem facing your plant, so it should be a straightforward and easy thing to correct.

But if you’re very unsure about the reason your plant is dropping leaves, examine each of the following, one by one, about your plant, and ensure you’re adhering to the right type of schedule and environmental conditions for your plant:

1. Recent changes (location, weather)
2. Watering schedule
3. Humidity level
4. Sunlight (too much or not enough)
5. Infestations (bugs)
6. Sickness (mold, mildew)

In many cases, just one of these issues is out of whack and needs to be addressed. Maybe it’s a buggy infestation, or maybe it’s the sunlight. Just remember that if it’s bugs, you’ll need to carefully inspect all the other plants in the vicinity, too, to make sure the infestation hasn’t spread.

Can You Really Bring a Plant Back from the Brink?

There’s a school of thought that suggests that any plant can come back from ill health as long as it’s got at least a little bit of green on it. However, it can become an insurmountable task at a certain point. In most cases, the earlier you notice that the plant is dropping leaves when it’s not supposed to, the better chance you have of reversing the trend.

However, even if you’re a little busy and you don’t notice immediately that your plant is starting to look a little less happy than usual, you should never assume that all is lost when you realize something’s wrong. The most important part of the equation is diagnosing the issue. Once you know the problem, you can implement a solution immediately.

And you should always reach out to your local garden center with your concerns. You don’t have to be an expert in horticulture to grow plants, and there are so many resources available for you to help you along the way. Your garden center experts can help you figure out what’s going on when you’re at a loss.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my plant losing leaves?

Plants lose leaves when something in their care or environment changes faster than they can adapt. The usual causes are inconsistent watering (too much or too little), too little light, a recent move, sap-sucking pests, or a cold draft. Identify what changed most recently, fix that one thing, and the plant will usually stabilize and start growing again.

Why are green leaves falling off my plant?

When healthy green leaves drop suddenly, it usually means a change the plant could not adjust to, often a move, a temperature swing, a cold draft, or overwatering, rather than a slow decline. A classic example is a ficus shedding leaves after coming home from the nursery. Give it stable conditions for a week or two and the dropping usually slows on its own.

Why do plants lose their leaves in winter?

In winter, many plants get less light as the sun sits lower and the days get shorter, and an indoor plant near a window can tip from just enough sun into not enough. Outdoors in Southern California, milder winters mean less dramatic drop than colder regions, but deciduous trees and shrubs still shed their leaves as they go dormant. Moving a struggling houseplant to your brightest window for the season usually eases the leaf loss.

Why are my shrubs losing their leaves?

It depends on whether the shrub is deciduous or evergreen. A deciduous shrub dropping its leaves in fall is simply going dormant, which is completely normal, but an evergreen hedge such as Photinia ‘Red Robin’ thinning out is usually reacting to a leaf-spot fungus, a cold wet spell, or drought stress. Evergreen hedges generally fill back in once the weather settles and you correct any watering or airflow problems.

What causes sudden leaf drop?

Sudden leaf drop is almost always a stress response to an abrupt change, most often a move, a temperature swing, a cold draft, or watering that swung from one extreme to the other. Because the trigger is sudden, the drop can look alarming even on an otherwise healthy plant. Trace your steps back a week or two, undo the recent change if you can, and keep conditions steady while the plant recovers.

Can a plant survive without its leaves?

Yes, many plants can survive losing all their leaves as long as the stems and roots are still alive, and a little green tells you there is life left to work with. Deciduous plants do this every year on purpose, and a stressed houseplant can releaf once you fix the underlying problem. The earlier you catch it and correct the cause, the better its odds of pushing out a fresh flush of leaves.

What causes leaf drop on indoor plants specifically?

Indoor plants most often drop leaves from overwatering, too little light, dry indoor air, or being moved around the house. Tropical houseplants like ficus are especially sensitive to relocation and to drafts from heaters or AC vents. Keep them in a stable spot with consistent watering and the brightest light you can offer, and leaf drop usually settles down.

Let Green Thumb Nursery Help Keep Your Plants Green and Growing

Growing a beautiful garden doesn’t have to be complicated or confusing, and you don’t need to feel like you’ve failed as a plant parent when your plant isn’t doing so well. Some plants are difficult to grow, and they need just the right conditions to thrive. Let the helpful crew at Green Thumb Nursery help you figure out the best way to care for your plants with advice on placement, feeding, and general care. Let’s ensure your plants enjoy a great life while they beautify your home.

Sources:

• Missouri Botanical Garden
• University of Washington Botanic Gardens
• Royal Horticultural Society
• UC IPM
• Clemson Cooperative Extension

Do you like what you see? Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get content like this every week!

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP!