Umbrella plant leaf drop...help

Discussion in 'General Gardening Discussion' started by eddybaby, Feb 26, 2025.

  1. eddybaby

    eddybaby Gardener

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    My lovely 40 year old Umbrella plant is shedding lots of leaves, yet producing new shoots. As you can see it's almost 6ft tall. I repotted it about two years ago and removed a cutting which is thriving but also loosing the odd leaf. Any help or advice would be appreciated. TIA 20250226_132108.jpg
     
  2. waterbut

    waterbut Gardener

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    Stuck in a corner it may be stressed due to a lack of light and to cold. It also might like to be misted occasionally.
     
  3. pete

    pete Growing a bit of this and a bit of that....

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    Lower leaf loss is probably normal although as long as they go yellow first.

    It probably is growing upwards in to darkness, if you see what I mean, which is not really how plants would grow in nature.
     
  4. eddybaby

    eddybaby Gardener

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    Hi waterbut. Thanks for your advice. The corner isn't so dark...see attached pic....but it's been in this corner for 25 years and nothing has changed. Thanks again 20250328_110812.jpg
     
  5. eddybaby

    eddybaby Gardener

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    Hi Pete. Thanks for your reply. Yes they are turning yellow/grey before dropping. It's not so dark ...see attached...and producing new shoots. Thanks again 20250328_110812.jpg
     
  6. JennyJB

    JennyJB Head Gardener

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    In nature they are trees, so it's natural as they age to drop lower leaves and carry on growing at the top. Yours looks perfectly healthy to me, it's just not a baby any more.
     
  7. JennyJB

    JennyJB Head Gardener

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    It's also normal for the young one to loose a leaf now and then, but make sure it's in the right conditions - bright but not direct burning sun, not too cold, humidity in the air, allow the water to drain through when you water it and discard any excess that collects in the saucer, and allow the soil to get fairly dry between waterings (don't drown it/keep it standing in water at the bottom of the pot). And avoid places where people/pets brush past it - that's often overlooked as a cause of damage to houseplants.

    In terms of the light where the big plant is, could the plants outside the window have got bigger at some point in the 25 years and made the corner more shady? It looks as if there's been some recent pruning.
     
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