Hi everyone,

I have a Strelitzia Nicolai which isn’t doing too well. Most of the leaves are turning yellow/brown, some of them having spots. This happened last year as well. After a while, I cut them off, and they eventually regrow.

The plant is on a hydroculture with a water meter.

I don’t think its due to overwatering. Once the meter indicates zero, I wait 4 days before refilling to the “optimal” level on the meter.

I also don’t think it’s because of a lack of sunlight. The plant stands in our “veranda” (sorry for the Dutch term, no good English term seems to exist). Plenty of sunlight. In the winter, the temperature never drops below 16. In the summer it almost never drops below 20.

The plant receives a fertilizer for hydroculture plants roughly every 6 months. Last time was about 2 months ago.

Any thoughts on what could be going on? I’ve had this plant for 4 years, and only been struggling with it the last 2.

  • KarinSpainkEnglish
    1•1 year ago

    Can you explain this part of your post?

    Once the meter indicates zero, I wait 4 days before refilling to the “optimal” level on the meter.

    That sounds like it’s dry for four days? Have you tried watering it immediately once the meter hits zero?

    • @savjeeOPEnglish
      1•1 year ago

      Yes, the drying period is 4 days (as instructed by the webshop were I bought the plant). This is the meter I’m talking about: https://th.bing.com/th/id/OIP.NzHyAG40mQN0yw8_u-N62AHaHa?pid=ImgDet&rs=1

      The idea is that there’s always some water in the bottom of the pot that the meter doesn’t indicate. The 4 days should help to dry that out completely before a refill to prevent root rot.

      Do you think it might be related to insufficient watering? I can definitely try refilling it directly.