African violets are my favorite houseplants since they bloom several times a year under proper care routine. These houseplants produce small purple, pink, white, or blue flowers with velvety green foliages.
African violet leaves turning yellow might be due to inappropriate watering, incorrect lighting, pest infestation, and nutritional deficiencies. We recommend inspecting your houseplant to determine the exact cause and fix it.
Determining the exact cause of yellow African violet leaves can be a daunting experience. We wrote this article to help you identify the reasons behind the African violet leaves turning yellow.
Reasons for African Violet Leaves Turning Yellow
Yellow leaves on African violet plants occur due to several reasons. Let us now dive into the discussion to find out more about the reasons for wild violet leaves turning yellow:
Inappropriate Watering Routine
Incorrect watering practice is the leading cause of yellow African violet leaves since they cannot tolerate water directed at them. The water droplets on the leaves will result in the formation of yellow spots.
African violet leaves are also sensitive to cold or hot water. The ice or hot water will make the fragile cells collapse and the leaves will become discolored. There is no cure for this African violet leaf problem.
How to Fix Inappropriate Watering Problem
We recommend watering your African violet plant under the leaves or from the bottom to prevent yellowing leaves and necrotic spots. Remember to use room temperature water to minimize leaf cell damage.
Incorrect Lighting
African violet plants need light to produce energy or food and form flowers. But these houseplants do not thrive well in an area with direct or dim sunlight. Insufficient sunlight will cause yellowing leaves.
Direct sunlight exposure will also make your African violet plant struggle. The houseplant will begin to wilt gradually with browning leaves. Correcting the lighting problem at the early stages will help revive the plant.
How to Fix Incorrect Lighting Condition
Relocate your African violet plant to the southeast or west window. The region usually receives bright indirect sunlight to facilitate better growth. If the room does not receive natural light, install artificial lights to solve the issue.
Nutritional Deficiency
Proper fertilizer application will make your African violet bloom and become bushy or thrive. Potting soil with limited nutrients could be the reason for yellowing leaves.
Besides that, too much fertilizer application will make the leaves turn yellow and brown in the long run. Strictly follow the fertilizer label instruction when feeding the plant.
How to Fix Nutritional Deficiency
Fertilize your African violet plant every 4-6 weeks during the spring and summer seasons. The nutrients will foster the production of bright green leaves and lovely blooms.
Remember to flush the potting soil every three months to avoid excess salt accumulation. It will also help prevent African violet leaves from turning brown.
Plant Diseases
Botrytis blight is another leading cause of yellow African violet leaves. It is a fungal disease that is quite contagious.
The plant disease will make the flowers and leaves on your African violet plants fade or turn yellow. The condition occurs due to excess water and high humidity.
How to Fix Botrytis Blight
The golden rule is to isolate the plant from other houseplants since botrytis blight is contagious. Be sure to treat the houseplant with fungicide and prune the affected leaves from the plant. Reduce indoor humidity level and watering frequency.
Pest Infestations
African violet plants are vulnerable to aphids, scales, and mealy bugs. These tiny creatures usually suck nutrients from the foliages by piercing.
Frequent piercing and venom injection cause yellow spots on the leaves. These ring spots spread out to make the entire foliage yellow.
How to Fix Pest Infestations
We recommend isolating the plant from other houseplants and spraying it with neem oil every week at night to eliminate the pests. Develop the routine of inspecting your African violet while watering for pests to prevent massive infestation.
Old Age Problem
Sometimes African violet leaves may turn yellow due to the aging effect. It is an inevitable problem since aging is a natural phenomenon.
How to Fix Yellowing Leaves Due to Aging
Provide ultimate care to delay the aging process and yellowing leaves. Be sure to cut the old foliages to encourage new growths and healthy leaves.
Root Rot Problem
Root rot occurs is another possible cause of yellowing leaves among potted African violet plants. The root issue occurs due to prolonged exposure to wet soil condition that inhibits aeration.
Root rot happens as a result of overwatering and improper soil drainage. The wet condition invites fungal growth that might kill your houseplants. Your African violet leaves will also turn brown and become mushy.
How to Fix Root Rot
- Remove your African violet from the pot.
- Rinse the root system and trim regions with brown patches.
- Transplant your houseplant into the pot with drainage holes and well-draining soil.
Low Humidity
African violet plants thrive in regions with high humidity. Plant owners need to replicate this humidity level in their indoor space to encourage healthy foliages. Low humidity can cause yellowing leaves among African violets.
How to Fix Low Humidity
Use an electric humidifier to boost indoor humidity and prevent your African violet leaves from turning yellow or brown. We do not recommend misting the leaves since this routine will encourage botrytis blight infection.
Related Questions
Why Are My African Violet Leaves Turning Light Green?
Exposing your African violet to too much sunlight will result in the formation of light green foliages. Light green foliages could also be due to placing the houseplant sun facing window sills.
Should Yellow Leaves Be Removed from African Violets?
Removing yellow leaves on your African violet will help maintain healthy growth and redirect energy to other growing regions. It also helps improve the general appearance of your African violets.
Why Are My African Violet Leaves Growing Straight Up?
African violet leaves curl up due to low lighting. The condition makes the houseplant grow longer and upwards to reach sufficient sunlight.
Will Yellow African Violet Leaves Turn Green Again?
Treating yellow African violet leaves is impossible. We recommend cutting the leaves and providing ultimate care to encourage new green leaf growth.
Why Are My African Violet Leaves Turning Brown?
The possible causes of brown African violet leaves are direct sunlight, extreme temperature stress, under-watering, and lack of humidity.
Why Is My African Violet Leaves Losing Color?
Exposing your African violet plant to direct or dim light will result in discoloration. Direct sunlight exposure will scorch the leaves and dim light will cause yellowing leaves.
Why Are My African Violet Leaves Turning Pale?
Too much direct sunlight can cause your African violet leaves to turn pale. We recommend growing your houseplant in a spot that receives bright indirect sunlight.
Conclusion
African violet leaves turning yellow are due to nutritional deficiency, incorrect lighting, inappropriate watering, lack of humidity, plant diseases, and pest infestations. We recommend inspecting and examining your houseplant to identify the exact cause.
The golden rule is to remove the yellow leaves on your African violet and discard them. Besides that, isolate the plant from other houseplants to prevent the yellowing leaves issue from spreading.
We hope this information helped resolve yellow African violet leaves. Feel free to share your experiences with yellow leaves on African violet plants in the comment section below.
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