Aloe vera plants are highly sought-after for their aesthetic appeal and medical properties. Although aloe plants usually are simple to care for, you are not alone if you have noticed that yours has begun to droop. This is a common issue with aloes. Hence, reviving your plant should not be a difficult task.
The drooping leaves of an aloe plant indicate various issues that keep it from flourishing. Overwatering, improper drainage, underwatering, illness, pests, heat shock, transplant stress, inappropriate lighting, or pot-bound are all possible causes of root rot in a plant.
Why does my aloe plant not stand up?
Your aloe vera plant might undergo different issues that eventually weaken it. Explore the most common reasons that might be hindering the health of your aloe vera plant.
Overwatering
The most frequent cause of a wilting aloe plant is overwatering. First, you should check whether the plant is getting too much water since this might cause its leaves to droop and wilt.
Fungus thrives in damp conditions. Place your finger into the mud and feel for dampness. You may have overwatered the aloe even if the soil is damp. This might infect the roots if you overwater a plant. Experts recommend using a fungicide in case of root rots to mitigate further damage.
Aloe leaves that have developed soak spots are another indicator of overwatering. The leaf will be extremely mushy and wet, owing to the plant’s extra moisture.
Develop an appropriate watering strategy for your aloe plant to solve this issue. You should not water the plant until the soil has dried up. Soak the soil if it is dry. Wait for it to dry out before re-watering.
Drainage Is Lacking
Improper drainage happens to be a detrimental factor for aloe vera plants. Your aloe may be suffering and withering because it lacks sufficient drainage due to overwatering. Place your aloe vera plant in well-draining soil and ensure that the pot’s bottom has a drainage hole.
Underwatering
While overwatering is a typical problem with aloe plants because of their low water needs, underwatering may adversely affect any plant. Withering and drooping of the aloe vera leave clearly indicate the scarcity of water. However, aloe vera plants can stay with less water, even though it is rare.
When your aloe plant’s soil is entirely dry, you need to water it. Re-watering is necessary after the soil has dried thoroughly.
Disease
Aloe plants, despite their low-maintenance nature, are susceptible to disease. Look out for a few fungal and bacterial illnesses. A few among them are:
- Aloe Rust: Fungal illness and aloe rust may affect the plant due to excessive moisture in the environment and low-temperature levels. The plant doesn’t thrive under these harsh circumstances.
- As the adversity escalates, you will see yellow dots that turn into brown ones. In this condition, make sure the aloe plant doesn’t receive excessive water and remains at a proper temperature.
- Rot at the Base of the Stem: A fungal illness known as basal stem rot may arise if the plant is overwatered. This is very harmful to the plant’s health and may need cutting to preserve healthy parts of the plant.
- Fungus-Caused Soft Rot: A bacterial illness causes the aloe plant’s leaves to become wet and droop. There is a good chance that your leaves are withering and drooping because of this. If the aloe vera plant is sick, you need to take immediate care. It is essential to act fast if you see that your aloe vera plant is drooping or showing signs of illness. During any of such conditions, it becomes a priority to determine the source of the issue and fix it.
Pests:
Pests may infest aloe vera plants, making them vulnerable. When these pests feed on the plant’s leaves, it might cause the leaves to fall off prematurely or turn brownish and even die. Aphids may cause a leaf to die and droop by sucking the plant’s sap.
Acute Thermal Shock
Changing temperature levels is another factor that might cause an aloe vera plant to droop. For example, plants may suffer from a temperature shock if you carry them to a different location with a drastically different temperature.
Take care that the temperature range does not fluctuate too much since the plant performs best when you ensure stable temperature around.
To minimize a shock to the system, gently acclimatize your aloe plant to its new surroundings. To help it adjust to the latest temperature, let it stay in the room for an additional hour each day.
Stress From A Transplant
The roots of an aloe plant can’t grow large enough to sustain the plant if you place it in a container that’s too tiny. Instead, new issues of transplant stress arise when the plant struggles to adjust itself in a new habitat.
Your aloe vera plant calls for careful transplantation to minimize stress and needs to be in a pot of the correct size. Replant the aloe vera in an area similar to what it was before you removed it. This will save it from further trauma.
Aloe plants, in general, are pretty adaptable and hardy. Unless you introduce it to an entirely new environment, it should handle the transition well.
Lighting Error
An aloe vera plant needs six hours of direct sunshine each day to grow. There should be an airy window (ideally south-facing) near the plant to ensure that it receives appropriate sunlight, even if you keep it indoors.
Gradually expose the plant to an additional hour of sunshine each day until it becomes used to it. Aloe vera may burn if not properly preserved.
The Pot Is Not Large Enough
Small containers may hinder your aloe vera’s ability to spread its roots well which should be big and strong enough to support your plant. If this happens, it might cause the plant to become unstable and gradually droop.
A good rule of thumb is that the roots should take up approximately two-thirds of the container when you initially plant an aloe vera. This provides them with space to expand. To increase the pot size each time, you have to re-pot a plant.
Ways to Stop Aloe Plant From Falling Over
Proper Lighting
The best lighting condition comes from a window facing west or south. Low-light aloes tend to get leggy.
55 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (13 to 27 degrees Celsius) is the ideal temperature for aloe vera to thrive. Most houses and apartments in the US have moderate temperatures for aloes to grow.
Using a balanced houseplant formula blended at half strength, fertilize only in the spring and summer months (no more than once a month).
Watering
- Watering is the most challenging component of aloe vera’s care, although it is not rocket science at all! Despite its thick leaves, the aloe still needs enough water since it is a succulent plant thriving in dry conditions.
- Allow the top third of the potting soil to dry out between watering sessions to avoid overwatering your plant. If your plant is placed in a 6-inch pot, for example, wait until the top 2 inches of soil are completely dry before going for another round of watering. (Check the soil’s dryness with your finger.)
- Water your aloe plant every 2-3 weeks in the spring and summer and less often in the autumn and winter. During autumn and winter, it’s a good idea to water the plants less often and wait for about twice as usual between watering sessions (as compared to your summer watering schedule). So, for example, if you water every two weeks in summer, you’ll need to water every four weeks during winter.
- Excess water may leak from the pot’s bottom while watering. Allow the soil to soak up as much of this water as possible. Wait 10-15 minutes, then drain the rest of the water from the container.
Repotting
If your aloe plant is looking tired, you may be able to save it by simply moving it into a new container.
However, for the plant to stay upright, it needs deep roots, which it cannot get in a shallow container. Therefore, to ensure that your aloe is appropriately supported, you should replant it in a larger, more substantial container.
Taking Aloe Vera Offsets and Replanting Them
- You can use extracted offsets, or “plantlets,” from mature aloe vera plants to grow a new plant from scratch (technically a clone of the mother plant).
- Use shears and scissors to remove the offsets from the mother plant. There should have at least one inch of stem.
- After a few days of resting out of the soil, the offsets will have developed a callous over the cut, protecting them from decay. During this period, keep the rest of it in a warm, indirect light environment.
- Using a regular succulent potting mix, plant the offsets once they have established callouses. The soil must be able to drain.
- In a bright spot, place the freshly potted aloes. A week before watering, keep the soil slightly dry.
Conclusion
You may grow aloe in every room of your home since it is so adjusting. If you give your aloe enough sunshine and not too much water, it will still flourish.
You should notice if your aloe is drooping, even though these plants do not perish easily. Fortunately, you have some simple solutions to save it in the worst cases. With this guide, you should be able to help your aloe vera plant retain the best health conditions.