Houseplants: Huge Elephant Ear is Yellow

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artisun Sebastian, FL November 19, 2009 07:48 PM	This is a fairly new plant to me & found that the leaves actually cry with tears when over watered & a few leaves did die. I fed it a few weeks ago (at the same time as my corn plant ...see prior posting which is now in trouble too.) & have watered it since without it having tears but this is the 2nd huge leaf that has yellowed & died & the rest of the new leaves are translucent & delicate. In fact, the large front leaf's edge (front on the right in the photo) is starting to yellow also. View Larger
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 12:54 AM	Artisun- I bet if you post this picture with explanation of problem on the aroid thread you would get some help. Bubba1
RachelLF Rural Retreat, VA November 20, 2009 01:37 AM	Hi Artisun, your Elephant ear plant is an Alocasia and it's not un-common to see some plant's cry after watering them. It's called Guttation. In all reality, your plant look's healthy with the exception of the yellowing leaf shown which could be for a number of reason's such as overwatering, pot-bound, insect's or just an older leaf. I would not be too upset at the moment of the condition's of your plant unless the yellowing of leave's get's more abundant and rapid. Rachel
plantladylin (Zone 9b) November 20, 2009 01:38 AM	I see Artisun is not a paid subscriber so would not be able to access the Aroid forum which is for paid subscribers only. Here's some information I found a year or so ago when some folks were discussing their "crying" plants. It's called "Guttation" and apparently is normal in some plants. http://www.plant-care.com/crying-plants.html Yellowing and falling leaves can be a normal occurrence, or can be from over watering or possibly too much fertilizer or a number of things. As for the translucent leaves, I'm not sure. I think I read once that bacterial infections can yellowing leaves but don't really remember for sure. I'm curious ... have you removed the plant from it's container to look at the root system? To my eyes, the pot looks a bit small for the plant, but it could just be my old eyes. Hopefully someone else will pop in here with advice.
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 01:43 AM	Then how did he access this forum?
plantladylin (Zone 9b) November 20, 2009 01:53 AM	This is one of the free forums. At the bottom of this page: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/ it says forums with the little asterisk * are available to paid subscribers only.
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 02:11 AM	Oh. I didn't know people who were not members had access to any part of the garden.
plantladylin (Zone 9b) November 20, 2009 02:19 AM	Yep, there are many free forums but it's well worth the cost of a subscription to be able to access so many more! I know it's the best money I ever spent! By the way, your name made me smile, makes me think of my nephew's dog "Big Bubba". View Larger
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 02:25 AM	Which makes me laugh, because my Bubba would DEFINITELY NOT like your Bubba! My Bubba is my solid white, long haired, very large white cat. I call him my big fat white boy. When I got him, I was at my parents house. My mom and I brought him home. He came right out of the cat carrier like he owned the place and walked up to my father. My dad scooped him up with one hand and said, "Hey! Bubba!" And he's been Bubba ever since.
kqcrna Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 02:26 AM	Cute dog! This is news to me to about unpaid members too. So can a non-member read all pages on all forums, without posting? Or only on the free, open forums? Karen
artisun Sebastian, FL November 20, 2009 03:20 AM	Hi everyone! (including all Bubbas) I do hope that I'm not upsetting anyone as I so appreciate access to each of your invaluable knowledge & genuine caring. Taking a look at the roots & a larger pot does sound like an excellent idea. Should I be removing the yellow leaf or let it turn brown first? As you can see by the name of this forum, I'm a beginner & I thank you for your help & most interesting info about "Guttation".
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 03:22 AM	I like to cut the yellowing leaves off of my elephant ears. Usually when I do it soon makes a new leaf.
bubba1 Woodward, OK (Zone 6a) November 20, 2009 03:24 AM	Oh. Forgot to say! You might want to join us! It's only $20 a year. You can pay for it all up front or every 3 months. Then you would have access to every forum.
RachelLF Rural Retreat, VA November 20, 2009 03:25 AM	You can do whatever you prefer with that leaf. Rachel
ecrane3 Dublin, CA (Zone 9a) November 20, 2009 05:24 AM	On the subscribers vs non-subscribers question: Non-subscribers have total access to the "open" forums (which are the ones in the link posted above that don't have an asterisk--all the "beginner" forums are open, as is the ID forum and a few others). In those forums they can read everything, post new threads, respond to posts, etc. For the subscriber-only forums (the ones with an asterisk), non-subscribers can typically read the first post in each thread, but they can't see the rest of the responses and they can't post anything.
plantladylin (Zone 9b) November 20, 2009 04:10 PM	Thanks ecrane3 for explaining that ... I wasn't real sure what non-subscribers could and couldn't see. bubba1: Your "Bubba"sounds like a handsome guy! Isn't it funny how they come into our lives and take over. My husband and I are down to one cat in the family now (from 5) since the old ones have all gone to kitty heaven. I want to adopt a dog in the near future ... miss having a canine in the household! artisun: The very first thing I do when I bring a plant home is un-pot it, check the roots for health and mass to see if the plant needs a larger pot. Many times they are extremely root bound from sitting in the nursery pot for a long time. I'm thinking your EE may need a bit larger pot too. I always cut yellowing leaves from my plants ... just for the aesthetics, they look better to me without yellow or brown leaves.
cheryljm Oakhurst, CA December 1, 2009 04:43 AM	I know I am getting in on this one late but I have some Alocasias and would like to know more about this problem. I noticed a vent on the floor next to the plant. Could the heat from the vent be causing the problem?
RachelLF Rural Retreat, VA December 2, 2009 02:58 AM	If you create a warm and arid dry climate for any alocasia or colocasia plant, your plant's will be a direct target for spidermites. You can alway's aid this type of environment with humidifier's or an in-door water fountain of type or by simple adding some type of container's filled with water near the plant's but .......I would personally move any of these plant's away from a direct heat source. There are alot of other plant's that do not thrive as well when placed within a few feet of your type of heat source as well. Editing my post to ask: Which Alocasia's do you have? Rachel This message was edited Dec 1, 2009 10:02 PM

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