Hi all! I'm new and have not had a chance to introduce myself yet, but have a problem that I can't seem to figure out on my own. I bought a Schefflera a couple of weeks ago and am trying to figure out why her new leaves come out all wilty. Is it sun or water? Too much, too little? I'm still learning about how to take care of houseplants, so any help would be appreciated. The picture (courtesy Flickr) shows the wilty leaves on the left and the good ones on the right. Thanks all!
It could be the plant has spider mites. Schefflera are subject to them. A good insecticidal soap on the backside of leaves should do the trick for them. Also, do not let your plant sit in water. If possible water your plant and let the water drain out, then place it back into its saucer. Oh, this is a sun loving plant.... good luck.
I'm just wondering, IS it really wilty? The new leaves are often more shiny and of a different colour than mature leaves. The photo's a bit too small for me to be sure, though.
The temp on your plant should be miniumum of 62 to 65 at night.It can tolerate lowertemps of 45 degrees. Be sure to keep your soil uniformly moist but not wet.Give food or fertilise evert 2 months.Its a fast growing tree and may get 6 ft or more taller.It does good in full sun or bright indirect light.It doesn't seem to like being moved around .I had one that reached my ceiling and then started dying and I never found out why.It was move by a friend of mine and that seems to have started its demise.It died little by little until it was gone.I do love this plant and I now have a small one. Good luck with yours.
The leaves kind of bend down where the stem meets the leaf. I worry because it doesn't seem to be thriving, only slowly losing leaves. (that and I am one of those people that looks at their plants every day). Here is a better picture The underside of her leaves is very healthy. Some of the leaves started to turn a little brown, so I'm not sure if that's from scorching from sun or not. I read that they like to be misted, so I might try that. If it's the temperature, I'm not sure that I can fix that one. I would have to put her outside and she didn't like it on my balcony. Her stems started losing their strength and started wilting. I just hope I don't kill her before I figure it out. Thanks for the advice!
Have you looked for scale? I know these plants are very prone to disease and insects. You might want to check it for scale.
