What causes leaves to turn yellow? How to treat it?

Yellowing of leaves is one of the common physiological disorders of plants, which may be caused by a variety of reasons. Before prevention and treatment, it is crucial to understand the cause of the disease and take appropriate solutions to restore the healthy growth of plants. So what is the reason why leaves turn yellow? How to treat it? Let’s learn more about it below.

1. Insufficient light

Plants need ample light for photosynthesis, and if trees grow in a shady environment, the leaves may gradually turn yellow. The solution is to move the tree to a sunny location or add additional lighting.

2. Soil is alkaline

Most plants prefer a neutral or slightly acidic soil, and there are very few plants that grow in alkaline soil . Therefore, plants that grow in alkaline soil for a long time usually develop poorly and are prone to yellow leaves. The solution is to condition the soil regularly, such as adding some vinegar when watering, adding some ferrous sulfate when watering, etc.

3. Improper watering

It is mainly divided into water yellow and drought yellow. Yellowing of the leaves is caused by over-watering. Its characteristics are that there is no obvious change in the old leaves and the young leaves turn yellow. Water should be controlled immediately at this time; yellowing due to lack of water and drought is characterized by the old leaves turning yellow first from the bottom to the top. If the water shortage lasts for a long time, the whole plant will turn yellow or even die. Water should be applied immediately at this time.

4. Improper fertilization

If too much fertilizer is applied, it will easily cause overnutrition, and the plants will not be able to fully absorb nutrients, which will cause fertilizer damage and the old leaves will become dry, yellow, and fall off. Long-term lack of fertilizer, especially lack of nitrogen fertilizer, will cause malnutrition of the plants, resulting in weak branches and leaves, thin and yellow leaves, etc. Therefore, when applying fertilizer, you must follow the principle of "applying small amounts of fertilizer frequently" and the concentration should not be too high. Once too much fertilizer is applied, you should stop fertilizing immediately and increase the amount of watering.

5. Temperature discomfort

Too high or too low temperature is not conducive to the growth of plants and often causes yellow leaves. Therefore, we must pay attention to temperature changes in time, keep warm and prevent cold in winter, pay attention to cooling and shading in summer, and create a constant and comfortable growth environment for plants.

6. Infection by pests and diseases

When pests and diseases infect plants, they will destroy the plants' photosynthesis and nutrient absorption capabilities, causing the leaves to turn yellow. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive investigation of plant diseases and insect pests to ensure timely detection and control.

Generally speaking, the yellowing of plant leaves is mostly due to the above reasons. However, in actual operations, comprehensive analysis and diagnosis should be carried out in combination with the specific symptoms and growth environment of the plants in order to take effective prevention and control measures.