Are you wondering how to save peperomia from root rot? If so, then you are in the right place!
You can get some solutions that you can apply and save your plant. There are many things that you can do to control the root rot.
Here are some of the steps that can help Peperomia from root rot:
- Examine the roots and cut the affected mushy parts of the roots, not the whole roots.
- Repotting the Peperomia can save it.
- Trim the affected leaves of the plant.
- Use a suitable container and focus on proper drainage.
- Use a suitable soil mixture for repotting.
- Develop a watering schedule and avoid too much watering.
- Provide indirect sunlight to the plant.
Read on to identify, prevent and save your root rot-affected peperomia plant.
Contents
What Is Root Rot?
Understanding root rot is essential. It helps you understand more about the health of the plant.
Root rot is:
- A disease that affects the roots of a plant.
- The affected plants are growing in the wet soil.
- The plants’ rotting roots would not receive the oxygen they need.
- There could be a fungal infection that can cause root rot in plants.
If a particular plant’s roots start to rot, it will die. It’s crucial that you identify the symptoms in the early stage to start doing something about them.
If you know the symptoms and some ways to deal with the whole situation, then it would be great!
Peperomia Root Rot Symptoms
If your Peperomia develops root rot, then the plant might not survive.
On discovering the root rot, it’s possible you might think of throwing the plant away but wait! If it’s not too late, there is still a chance to save your plant.
You can look for the following symptoms:
- The leaves of the plant might seem discolored. You can identify it since the color of the leaves would appear different.
- You can see that mold is developing on the roots. The key here is to catch the issue early before it’s too late.
- The roots and stem might appear brown or mushy. When dealing with such plants for some time, you will have some idea of what healthy roots are like. Now looking at such roots, you would know something is wrong!
- The leaves would appear more droopy than usual. You can spot that the leaves are turning lifeless and dropping.
- To identify the symptoms of root rot. focus on the roots if you think leaves are looking lifeless. You should also keep an eye on roots when leaves are decreasing in size.
Thus, it’s vital that you keep an eye on your Peperomia plant. Doing so would help you catch the problem before it’s too late.
When you can detect the symptoms at an early stage, there is a lot that you can do. After all, it’s about the health and well-being of your favorite plant!
Causes Of Peperomia Root Rot
Knowing the relevant causes is wise. It’s always good to know since it can help you do something about it.
Knowing the causes can alert you about the plants’ root rot. When you get the Peperomia plants for the first time, it would be best to learn how to care for them properly.
Overwatering
The root rot in Peperomia is due to overwatering, leading to a fungal infection. Pythium is the name of this fungal infection.
If you have recently acquired the plant, you might not know and could be watering it too much!
You have to see if you are overwatering the plants. When you are overwatering the plants, it can cause fungal growth. Such an environment is suitable for fungal growth.
If you have other plants lying next to Peperomia, you should change the place so you can remember. Never overwater the plants! Be sure how much watering is enough.
Apply a simple rule here, go with the dryness of the soil. Plus, every other week, you can water it.
So if you have the plants and plan to go on vacation, you don’t have to worry much about it.
Poor Drainage
Another reason for the root rot in the Peperomia plant is poor drainage. When the water is not drained, it can create an environment for the growth of the fungus.
You might not know, and the drainage won’t be suitable for the plant’s roots. Because of the fungal growth, the roots would become mushy.
You can monitor the plants’ health and check if the drainage is okay.
When you get the pot for your plants, you must see if there are holes for proper drainage.
Plus, you have to check the size of the pot to know whether it would be appropriate for your plant or not.
Pathogenic Infection
Some pathogenic infections can cause your plant’s roots to rot. You can tell the difference by observing the mushy leaves and the root.
You have to be proactive if there is an infection or a chance.
You must be careful if an underlying infection affects the plant’s roots. In any case, the pathogenic infection won’t be suitable for the plants.
Size of Pot
It’s possible that you might not be using the pot of the right size for your plant. It shouldn’t be too large or too small. You don’t want to put the plants in the pot of the wrong size.
Use the Goldilocks principle from the story of three bears and the pot that’s right! But, it might do better when the pot is a bit small size.
The size of the pot matters since it would be like a house of the plant. You would expect to give a suitable house for your Peperomia plant.
But it’s essential to keep the health of your plants in mind when selecting the pot.
Low Temperature
You have to keep the plants at the right temperature. Depending on your plant type, it would be wise to find suitable temperature conditions. You can aim for 55-80 degrees Fahrenheit.
You have to be aware of the relevant temperature conditions of your plants. When you are getting plants for ornamental purposes, it’s wise that you know how to care for them!
When you get Peperomia, read the instructions on how to care for it. Gather relevant information. It can help you provide the right conditions for the growth of the plants.
Watering In the Dormant Period
You don’t have to overwater the plants when you are watering them. The plant’s roots will start to rot if you are overwatering. So you have to be careful in watering these plants.
If that’s the case, you should know how much watering is enough! You can keep an eye on the dryness of the soil.
Water the plants according to the soil dryness. Or you can try watering it every 7 to 10 days, depending on what’s ideal for the plant.
How To Treat Peperomia Root Rot
It’s possible that now you have seen that something is wrong with your Peperomia plant. It can be root rot! So you might be wondering how to treat it!
There are different things that you can try to treat root rot. You should also keep an open mind that it’s possible that the root rot might be beyond control in some cases.
Worry not; there are some tips you can try:
Repotting
You can focus on reporting the Peperomia plant. But, at this point, it is crucial for you to keep in mind that it would be pretty fragile.
You have to wait for the plant to recover so that you can fertilize or water it. As mentioned before, keep an eye on the soil and then water it. The leading cause of root rot is overwatering of the plants.
You can examine the roots to see how much of the plant is not in good condition. It’s also possible to cut back the root area that’s affected.
Using scissors, you can cut the roots. Plus, you can also cut some of the affected leaves.
You can also dip the plant’s roots in a fungicide solution to eliminate any fungi on the plants.
Thus, repotting can help in controlling the issue to some extent. You are trying to save the remains of your Peperomia!
Using Appropriate Soil Mix
When repotting the Peperomia plants, you must use the appropriate soil mix. Since you are transplanting the plant, you must be extra careful as it would be fragile.
You can use:
Local potting soil, orchard bark, charcoal, local compost, and Smart Naturals potting soil.
You can also use a mixture of peat moss and coarse sand. It will increase drainage capacity. So, there will be no stagnant water, and your peperomia will remain safe from potential root rot.
If you are providing the right soil mix for your plant, then it would be great for growth.
Watering After Repotting
When you have to water the plants after repotting, it would be wise to do it based on the dryness of the soil.
If there is an issue with the watering, you can keep a close eye on your plant’s health. You can observe if the leaves are changing!
At this point, you are pretty aware of the fact that the roots were already affected.
Now you are trying your best to save your plant. You can see how long it takes for the soil to start drying.
It’s possible you might use water too little or not at all! In any case, keep an eye on your plant and see how it is doing
Care After Repotting
It’s essential to care for the plants after repotting. Because the roots are delicate, you would focus on caring more about them.
You must remove the plant from the current pot to the new one.
You can use a suitable soil mix for repotting as it would be great for the care of the plant. After repotting, you have to keep an eye on the soil so that you can water it.
Propagation
You might think about propagating when you cannot save the plant by repotting it.
The good news is that it’s easy to propagate. You can use the procedure that you find suitable.
It’s possible to propagate by leaf cuttings or by stem cutting. Depending on the type of plant you have, you can select the method of your choice.
When propagating the plant, you are putting the stem and the leaf cuttings in its own container.
After some time, it’s possible that you might see a plant sprouting.
When the plant is dormant, it’s better to leave it alone. There are a few essential things that you should keep in mind! Plus, you should also select your preferred cuttings.
How To Prevent And Control Peperomia Root Rot
Seeing your plant dying in front of you can be pretty painful. You might think about what’s wrong with the plant or what’s missing in the process.
Knowing what you can do to prevent and control the Peperomia Root Rot is wise.
Avoid Waterlogging
Overwatering can cause waterlogged soils. Thus, when you are giving too much water to the plants, it’s like giving a chance to fungi to grow!
And you don’t want that for your plants. Thus, it’s essential to avoid waterlogging.
Watering Schedule
You have to see your frequency of giving water to the plants. You might give water to other plants in your house, and thus, you might do the same with the Peperomia.
But, it is vital that you understand that for this kind of plant, you must be extra careful.
Too much watering of the plant can lead to root rot, and you are not aiming for that.
As explained before, you can develop the watering schedule based on the dryness of the soil.
You can see if it works for you to water the plants every 7-10 days. But it would also depend on what type of Peperomia you get for the house.
Appropriate Soil Mix
Using the right soil mix is essential to caring for your plants. When you get the plant for your house, it will look great! But you have to be careful with the soil mix
The pot that you arranged for the Peperomia should have drainage holes.
Such drainage holes would be necessary for the plant. You can mix perlite or sand or the soil mix mentioned above
In any case, the purpose is to provide the best conditions for your plant to be as healthy as it can be! You have to try your best on your part.
Ensuring Care Requirements
You should be providing enough care to the Peperomia plants. Consider the following:
Light Requirements
Make sure you are fulfilling the light requirements. The plants would survive better in indirect sunlight.
Fertilizer
You might be thinking about giving fertilizer to the plants. It can do without it, but since you would be aiming for care! You can provide the fertilizer to the plant once a month.
Examine Roots
If you think that the plants look different than usual, examine them. Or if you feel that the leaves are not of their usual color, then it would be a good idea to examine the roots.
If the roots are mushy or appear rotten, you must act fast. There might still be a possibility to save the plants from root rot. You can cut the affected roots.
FAQs
Why is my Peperomia dying?
If you think your Peperomia is dying, you must see its cause. It’s possible that you might be overwatering or underwatering the plant. Thus, it’s vital that you make a watering schedule and stick to it.
By looking at the symptoms of the plant, you would know whether you are overwatering or underwatering
The leaves of the plant may appear dry and wrinkled. The soil would be too dry too!
But, if you are overwatering the plant, the roots might rot. Hence your Peperomia might start dying.
Does Peperomia need sunlight?
Medium to bright light is vital for the maintenance of Peperomia. So the morning light would be appropriate for the plants.
Even filtered light would do! Insufficient light won’t be ideal for the plants.
The plants would do better in the indirect bright sunlight. It’s essential for you to keep in mind that you should avoid keeping the plants in direct sunlight. Avoid it, especially during the summer.
Why do Peperomia leaves turn brown?
The leaves might turn brown if the Peperomia plants are not getting enough light. And leaves can have brown spots if they get burnt because of the excessive sunlight again.
It’s crucial that you are providing enough sunlight to the plants. But not direct sunlight so that they would remain healthy.
Wrapping It Up
It is essential to closely monitor your peperomia if you have overwatered.
Because it poses a significant threat of being affected by root rot, you can focus on repotting the plant or its propagation to save it from root rot.
After repotting, you have to provide extra care to your Peperomia plants.
After all, you are the one who is taking care of such unique plants that look great for ornamental purposes.
Such plants are also a suitable addition to your home decor. Thus, it’s wise you are taking good care of those!