Why are my plant's leaf tips going brown?
Reading the pattern of browning to separate dry air, salt build-up, watering problems and scorch.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 20 min
- Read
- 2 min
Short answer
Brown crispy tips usually mean the plant cannot move enough water to the leaf edge. Dry air, irregular watering and fertiliser salt build-up are the three common causes, and flushing the pot addresses the last one.
Leaf tips are the furthest point from the roots, so they are the first place any water supply problem shows.
Step by step
- Look at the pattern.Crispy brown tips with a yellow halo suggests salt or fluoride build-up. Uniformly dry tips suggests low humidity. Brown patches in the leaf middle points elsewhere.
- Check the watering rhythm.Cycles of bone dry then soaked damage the tips each time. Consistent moderate watering is what prevents it — the damage is cumulative and does not reverse.
- Consider the humidity.Most houseplants come from humid environments. A room at 30% humidity next to a radiator will brown the tips of a calathea or a fern regardless of watering.
- Flush the pot.Water thoroughly until it runs freely from the base, several times. It washes out accumulated fertiliser salts, which is a very common cause in long-established pots.
- Ease off feeding.Over-feeding is more common than under-feeding in containers. Halve the dose and feed less often.
- Try rainwater or filtered water.Fluoride and chlorine in tap water brown the tips of sensitive plants, notably spider plants, dracaena and calathea.
- Check for draughts and heat.A position between a radiator and a door gets both drying heat and cold draughts. Both scorch tips.
- Trim damaged tips carefully.Cut following the leaf's natural shape rather than straight across, leaving a thin margin of brown. Cutting into green tissue creates a new brown edge.
Tips
- Brown tips do not turn green again. Judge whether the fix worked by watching new growth.
- Flushing the pot thoroughly is the quickest test for salt build-up.
- Trim following the leaf shape, leaving a sliver of brown, or you simply create a new edge.
Common mistakes
- Increasing feeding to fix brown tips — Salt accumulation from over-feeding is one of the main causes, so more fertiliser makes it worse. Flush the pot and reduce the dose instead.
- Misting to raise humidity — Misting raises humidity for a few minutes at most and can encourage leaf spot. A humidity tray, grouping plants or a humidifier actually changes the conditions.
If it doesn't work
Crispy tips with a yellow band
Cause: Salt or mineral build-up — Fix: Flush the pot thoroughly several times and reduce feeding.
Tips browning across many plants
Cause: Low room humidity — Fix: Group plants together, use a humidity tray, or move them away from radiators.
Browning with leaf drop
Cause: Irregular watering — Fix: Water consistently rather than in cycles of drought and flood.
Only on spider plants and dracaena
Cause: Fluoride sensitivity — Fix: Use rainwater or filtered water.
Questions people ask
Will brown tips turn green again?
No, the tissue is dead. What matters is whether new leaves emerge undamaged, which tells you the cause has been addressed.
Does misting help?
Very little. The humidity increase lasts minutes and it can encourage fungal leaf spots. A humidity tray or grouping plants together works far better.