Elephant ear plants are popular among ornamental plant enthusiasts because they make good landscape plants. They can reach three to five feet in height, but are also ideal indoor plants. Foliage colors vary from green, green/white variegated, to purplish-black. Unfortunately elephant ear leaves can also turn yellow and fall off due to various conditions.
Elephant Ear Plant Leaves Turning Yellow: What Are The Common Reasons?
1. Low humidity
Elephant ears are not drought-tolerant plants, and poorly-timed watering could cause stress resulting in yellow leaves. Low humidity with dry soil could cause the leaves to droop and turn brown on the edges.
To fix this, provide your plants with appropriate humidity levels through humidifiers, misting, and the use of a pebble tray.
2. Water imbalance
Elephant ear plants prefer damp, but not wet or saturated, soil. Take extra care when following a regular watering schedule. Improper soil moisture or overwatering could take a toll on your plants, resulting in yellowing leaves.
When watering your plants, ensure that the liquid can flow from the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot. Discard any excess water from the planter and make sure the plants do not sit in standing water. Overwatering can also be avoided by installing a drainage system or a raised bed.
3. Improper light
Elephant ear plants prefer bright but indirect sunlight. They can tolerate medium light, but if exposed to direct sunlight for too long the leaves may get burnt and may also turn yellow.
Place the plants in an area with partial shade so the soil stays moist in the planters. Ideally, they should be exposed to the sun for at least three to six hours daily.
4. Pest infestation
Pests can invade your elephant ear plants and drain them of moisture. Sap-sucking pests like spider mites, scale, mealybugs and aphids could weaken the plants and result in yellowing leaflets and fronds.
Spray the plants with warm soapy water every few weeks for pest prevention. If your plants are already infested with pests, use insecticides or neem oil to kill them, including their eggs.
5. Planting problems
Elephant ear leaves turning yellow could be due to problems during the planting process. For example, the roots could be crowded in the pot and not have enough room to grow. This could result in the leaves yellowing, and eventually dying and falling off.
To fix the problem, repot the plants and be sure not to repeat your planting mistakes.
6. Natural causes
The yellowing leaves of your elephant ear could simply be due to natural causes. It is a natural occurrence for the older leaves, usually at the bottom of the plant, to turn yellow; the plant is just shedding its old leaves to make way for new growth.
Elephant Ear Plant Care
Elephant ear plants favor warm weather. Some varieties can survive in the ground over winter, but others need to be dug up and stored for the winter. Make sure that you check the cold hardiness information of the variety you want to cultivate.
Most varieties prefer full sun to partial shade, except for the black magic variety which prefers partial to full shade.
These plants prefer loamy and moist soil with a high organic matter content.
Spacing between plants may vary from two to six feet, depending on the variety you are growing. They should have enough room to spread out.
Plant at around four to six inches deep, when nighttime temperature is around 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Most of these plants grow to be at least four feet wide, so they need a great amount of space.
Plant the elephant ears around two to four feet apart at a depth of four to six inches in fast-draining soil. Smaller varieties may be grown in large containers. If you are growing the plants in containers, keep the soil evenly and constantly moist.
Conclusion
Elephant ear plant leaves turning yellow could be attributed to low humidity or a water imbalance. It could also be due to pest infestation, improper light, planting problems or natural causes.
Image: istockphoto.com / Nattawat-Nat