Keep in mind that watermelon peperomia plants don’t appreciate sudden temperature fluctuations, so keep them away from rooms in your house that can be exposed to chilly drafts. This includes drafty windows or doors as well as AC vents because a continuous stream of chilly air will seriously injure your plant and lead it to grow dark leaves.
Additionally, it’s best to keep them away from radiators, ovens, and heating vents because the hot, dry air these appliances emit has a tendency to quickly turn your Watermelon Peperomia’s leaves brown.
Fortunately, temperature swings can be easily fixed by moving your plant to a new location with a stable temperature.
Waterlogged soil can quickly cause brown leaves
Too much water is one of the most frequent causes of brown leaves on Watermelon Peperomia plants. It can be rather simple to unintentionally overwater a plant, and the leaves can be very sensitive to any root system damage. Due to their delicate stems and large, heavy leaves, even little root system injury can cause the stems to become weak and incapable of supporting the attached, healthy leaves.
Your Watermelon Peperomia won’t be able to absorb any oxygen or nutrients since waterlogged soil restricts air circulation in the potting mix, which will soon damage the root system.
You must be certain that overwatering is the root of your Watermelon Peperomia’s dark leaves before you alter your watering schedule. The first step is to remove your plant from the pot so you can carefully examine the potting soil and root structure. If your Watermelon Peperomia is injured, you need to be extremely careful because the stems are significantly more breakable.
Your plant has been overwatered if the potting soil feels wet and clumpy. It may be more difficult to resuscitate your watermelon peperomia if the roots are soft and mushy, which indicates that the problem has probably been there for some time.
How to fix an overwatered Watermelon Peperomia:
1
You must immediately replace any potting mix that has become soggy with new, premium soil. Waiting for the soil to dry out naturally puts the decomposing root system at further risk of harm.
2
To cut off any plant portions that are dying, use a clean pair of sharp scissors. As a result, your Watermelon Peperomia won’t waste energy trying to revive withering roots and leaves.
3
Examine how frequently and how much water you were providing to your Watermelon Peperomia at each watering. To make sure you don’t overwater your watermelon peperomia once more, reduce one of these elements. To aid with this, it’s also important to consider improving drainage.
Underwatering can also lead to brown foliage
While your Watermelon Peperomia will frequently forgive you for forgetting to water it once in a while, it won’t be able to endure going without water for extended periods of time. Brown patches will eventually appear on the leaves due to persistent underwatering. These leaves won’t just have a pale brown color; they’ll also feel quite dry to the touch.
Lift the plant up and feel how light it feels before checking the potting soil to see if your Watermelon Peperomia has been submerged. The roots may appear crispy and the potting soil will be dry and crumbly if your Watermelon Peperomia is submerged (if the problem has been going on for a while).
We advise purchasing a moisture meter to prevent the issue from occurring again. These tiny, really inexpensive instruments show how much moisture is present in the potting mix. Thus, the days of estimating when to water are over. These should help prevent brown leaves on your Watermelon Peperomia in the future by preventing underwatering (as well as overwatering and root rot).
Natural Ageing
Another reason for brown leaves on Watermelon Peperomias is natural aging, which is actually not a problem at all. Your Watermelon Peperomia will want to concentrate most of its energy on the new growth as it develops. This will enable it to have higher, bushier growth and larger leaves. It will sacrifice some of its oldest, lowest, and tiniest leaves for this to happen.
If the rate of browning is slow, there is absolutely no need to be concerned because this is just a normal part of your plant’s natural aging process. Additionally, you want to confirm that the number of leaves going brown is less than the rate of new growth. If this ever changes, there is something wrong with the atmosphere or irrigation your watermelon peperomia is receiving.
These are the most frequent causes of brown leaves on Watermelon Peperomia plants. To prevent the issue from getting worse, you must act soon unless it is a result of normal aging.
Your Watermelon Peperomia is only a few stages away from withering totally if you don’t address any watering issues or temperature extremes right soon. We advise giving your plant a thorough once-over every few days over the coming weeks to check if any new leaves are turning brown or if your preventative actions have already had an impact.
Why is my Peperomia fading in color?
The causes of brown patches on peperomia are now clear to you. You can therefore choose the preventive measure with ease. Here are some precautions to take in order to avoid brown stains on peperomia.
Provide Sufficient Indirect Light
The most contented peperomia plants receive a lot of direct, bright sunlight. If there is insufficient light, their leaves may begin to deteriorate.
If the leaves receive too much direct sunshine, they may become sunburned and become brown.
Placing your Peperomia plant close to a window that is not south-facing will provide it with the sunshine it requires.
Prepare For Hot Days And Cold Days
You probably already know that Peperomia plants can be temperature-sensitive. A Peperomia prefers temperatures between 18 and 27 C (65 to 80 F).
On chilly days, move your plant away from windows and exterior doors to protect it from chilly drafts.
Warming up the entire space with heaters is possible, but you should take care not to place your Peperomia directly in the heated air current as this could dry it up.
Peperomia plants can suffer from hot days as well, though this is less of an issue if they are housed.
Regular Inspection For Pests
Pests are cunning, and we frequently aren’t aware of their presence until it is too late. For this reason, it’s wise to routinely check your Peperomia for pests.
If you find pests early, treating them is much simpler. If you let them linger for too long, you’ll end up dealing with an entire colony.
Even worse, they might infest all of your plants if they get into contact with them.
The majority of insects hide on the underside of the leaves, so pay close attention to that area when inspecting your plants.
Since certain pests can’t be seen with the naked eye, you must instead keep an eye out for their presence’s indicators.
Small brown spots and webs that form around the plant’s foliage are indications of the red spider mite, a frequent pest seen on Peperomia plants.
Cut Off Infected Leaves As Soon As Possible
The best course of action is to remove the browning leaves from your Peperomia plant if you detect them.
If the leaves are infected, removing them will stop the disease from spreading.
Just be sure to remove the leaves using sterile scissors and throw away the contaminated ones afterward.
Getting rid of the diseased leaves also hastens the plant’s recovery. It can focus all of its energy on restoring itself to health rather of using it to heal the brown leaves.
Watering Regularly
The most content Peperomia plants are those that receive frequent waterings. Infrequent watering can lead to water stress, which can lead to a variety of problems, including browning, as is the case with many plants.
When the top one to two inches of soil are dry, peperomia plants need to be watered.
Typically, this occurs every seven to ten days. This varies, though, according to the season, size of the plant, and species of Peperomia.
It’s a good idea to keep an eye on how much water your plant is consuming and arrange your watering schedule accordingly.
Using Healthy Soil Mix
There are numerous pathogens that can cause disease that are found in soil. Because of this, it’s crucial to constantly plant in sterile soil.
Repotting into an old plant’s soil, as alluring as it may be to conserve resources, can harm your plant.
So be careful to use brand-new soil when you repot your Peperomia plant.
Using Filtered Water
Chlorine and fluoride, which are frequently present in tap water, are toxic to peperomia plants. Your plant may get brown spots if it is exposed to these pollutants too much.
You can still use tap water, so don’t worry! Just wait at least 24 hours after the tap water has been left in an open container before watering your Peperomia plant. As a result, the water’s fluoride and chlorine will vaporize.
To complete the task more quickly, you can also use filtered water. Finally, water your Peperomia plant with rainwater if you have a rain barrel or another way to collect it.
Avoid Overwatering
Numerous issues might arise from overwatering. Because peperomia plants don’t need a lot of water, it’s crucial to use it wisely.
It’s crucial that your pot has good drainage so that any extra water may drain away from the roots and prevent your plant from receiving too much water.
Water should be allowed to freely flow into a drainage pan beneath your planter through drainage holes at the bottom.
The soil must have adequate air spaces to allow water to pass through. The water won’t be able to exit the pot if the dirt around your plant is too firmly compacted.
Look for potting mixtures that contain Perlite or Vermiculite to improve the soil’s aeration.
Maintain a consistent watering schedule when you do go to water your plant.
A self-watering system is a wonderful workaround if you struggle to remember to give your Peperomia regular watering.
Should I trim the Watermelon Peperomia’s damaged leaves?
The Peperomia argyreia requires little maintenance. To keep it content, hardly much work is required. After you bring this lovely plant home, quarantine it first. This would stop you from inviting strangers into your home. Check it frequently for any signs of disease or the presence of pests.
Water the soil if it’s dry, and monitor it the first several days. With the surroundings changing, your houseplant can experience some stress. Remove the damaged leaves if you purchased it online because even when something is well-packed, physical damage can still occur.
Lighting Condition
Bright indirect light is ideal for your watermelon plant. Do you intend to cultivate it indoors? Then, in order to promote growth, we advise putting your Watermelon Peperomias in a well-lit area. Place the plant away from direct sunlight, though, since the leaves could burn.
Other succulent peperomia, like the watermelon variety, can thrive in low to medium light conditions at home.
East or west-facing rooms make for the ideal placement indoors. Your plant will receive bright light at noon, but it won’t be overly intense. Place your Watermelon plant away from the window or behind a light-blocking curtain in rooms with southern exposure.
Why are my Peperomia’s leaves losing their color and going brown?
One of the first indications that something is wrong with your plant is peperomia leaves dropping off. It can be disconcerting and a sign of a major problem, but if detected and addressed in time, it can also be managed. We’ll go over some of the most typical reasons why Peperomia leaves fall off, how to identify them, how to avoid them, and what to do about them below.
Overwatering
Overwatering is the most frequent reason why peperomia leaves fall off. Plants called peperomia don’t require much watering. They prefer to be let to dry out in between waterings since they store a lot of water in their leaves. These plants’ leaves may start to become dark and mushy and eventually fall off if you water them too frequently.
Black leaves, leaves that are squishy to the touch, soggy soil, and a heavy pot are all telltale symptoms that you’ve been overwatering your plants. When the earth seems dry after sticking your fingers about two inches into the soil, water your plant. Or you might learn to live with the weight of your pot; a plant in a light container is frequently thirsty. Finally, you can use a moisture probe if you’re having trouble determining when to water your Peperomia. Put the metal prongs well into the earth, and when the reading is red or at the halfway point, it’s time to water your plant.
Drainage Issues
This issue is related to overwatering because it has a similar impact on the plant and can result in the loss of Peperomia leaves. Even if you give the plant a lot of time between waterings, Peperomia don’t like to sit in moist soil since they don’t want to be watered too frequently. Peperomia leaves may fall off as a result of poor drainage and poor soil. This includes utilizing soil that absorbs too much water and not having a drainage hole in your planting pot. If you use compost or soil intended for outdoor usage, it may trap too much water, which could drown your plant. Peperomia require well-draining soil. To aid in drainage, perlite can always be added to potting soil.
Underwatering
Underwatering is a possible cause of peperomia leaves dropping off, despite being less often. We advise against overwatering Peperomia plants and recommend letting them dry out between waterings, but if you let them dry out and then don’t water them for several days or weeks, you risk causing your plant dehydration, which might cause its leaves to fall off or possibly kill it. Is the soil on your plant completely dry? The pot is it lit? This can be a sign that your plant is getting waterlogged.
Hopefully, this has assisted in determining why Peperomia leaves are dropping off. If you’re still not sure or believe there’s another cause, describe what’s happening to your plant and the circumstances it’s now surviving in the comments section below.