10 Causes of Calathea Drooping Leaves and How to Revive It

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Calathea leaves may droop due to cultural faults like incorrect watering, wrong temperatures, improper feeding, exposure to direct sunshine, low humidity, poor quality soil, diseases and pests among others.

Calathea may droop after repotting for a short period as it adjusts to the new growing conditions due to repotting shock. If your Calathea is drooping after watering, it is an indication that the plant is extremely pot-bound and needs immediate repotting.

Calathea thrive in medium to bright indirect light (dappled light), warm and humid conditions and moderately moist, fertile, well-drained, all purpose potting soils coupled with monthly feeding in the growing season. Read more on how to grow and care for Calathea Plants.

If these conditions are not given, your plant may begin to droop. Below are 10 reasons why a Calathea may droop and how to fix them.

10 Reasons Why Calathea is Drooping with Remedies

1. Low humidity

Very low humidity for Calathea will lead to stunted growth, drooping leaves and brown leaf tips. If not corrected it may result in plant death.

How to fix it

Calathea Plants require above average humidity of 60-80%. To increase humidity, set the pot on a wet pebble tray or use a cool mist humidifier. You may grow the plant in a well-lit bathroom, kitchen and other humid areas in the home. Check out these techniques on how to raise humidity for houseplants.

2. Poor quality Soil

Poor quality soil does not drain well and easily becomes compacted or soggy. These will cause Calathea leaves to begin to droop as the plant can not take up water to the leaves and other parts of the plant.

How to fix it

Ensure to grow your Calathea in well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter to prevent it from getting soggy while providing the necessary nutrients to the plant. Most All purpose potting mixes are ideal for Calathea Plants.

3. Pest infestations

Calathea is prone to spider mites, mealy bugs, aphids and scale insects infestations. These sap-sucking insects will cause the plant to become dehydrated leading to wilted and drooping leaves.

How to fix it

Make sure that your Calathea is healthy at all times by providing it with the right growing conditions. To reduce pest infestations increase the humidity as they are attracted to dry conditions.

Keep the plant well pruned by removing dead and yellow foliage at they act as the hiding places for these pests. Cut the leaves with a clean sharp knife or scissors as close to the base as possible.

Seperate the affected plant from the rest of the plants to minimize spread and treat it with an insecticidal soap or neem oil. Ensure to follow the manufacturer's recommendations.

4. Root-rot disease

Calathea is prone to root-rot and is characterized by yellowing, wilting and drooping leaves which is rapidly followed by browning and plant death if not prevented. The disease is prevalent in soggy soil brought about by poor soil drainage.

How to fix it

Carefully, slip the Calathea out of its pot and inspect the roots. Brown-black mushy roots indicate root-rot, trim them off and treat the healthy roots with a copper-based fungicidal solution as directed by the maker.

Disinfect the pot with the fungicidal solution or use a fresh pot to repot the plant in fresh, well-drained soil. Keep it dry for some time before you can resume watering.

To prevent root-rot in the future, ascertain that the pot has a drainage hole and the soil is free-draining to prevent it from getting soggy. Avoid overwatering in the cold season as growth is minimal at this time, therefore, the plant does not require much water.

5. Incorrect watering

Underwatering your Calathea will result in curling, yellowing and drooping leaves and eventual death of the plant. Underwatering implies that there is too little moisture in the soil. If there is too little moisture in the soil, the plant has no water to take up to the leaves. Thus, the leaves droop and may eventually die if the situation is not corrected.

Overwatering causes the soil to become soggy which leads to the death of the roots due to lack of oxygen. When the roots die they cannot take up water and therefore the leaves begin to curl, yellow and droop.

How to fix it

Calathea requires that the soil be kept consistently moist at all times during the growing season. Thoroughly water the plant and mist the leaves immediately and it should perk up in a short time.

Thereafter, water the plant liberally during the growing season until water comes out through the drainage holes. Water again when the top 1-2 inches of soil begin to dry out to maintain the soil moist throught out. Cut down on watering in the cold season to keep the soil slightly moist but never allow the soil to dry out completely. Learn more on how to water houseplants correctly.

6. Improper feeding

Overfeeding your Calathea will cause the roots to die due to fertilizer burn. When the roots die, they cannot take up nutrients and water required for photosynthesis, thus the plant begins to die.

Underfeeding means that the plant is not getting enough nutrients needed for growth, therefore, the plant begins to die. Insufficient nutrients in the actively growing tips causes nutrients to be withdrawn from the older lower leaves which begin to droop.

How to fix it

Feed your Calathea with a balanced, liquid fertilizer once monthly during the growing season to encourage a lush growth. Do not feed in the cold season as growth is minimal and feeding at this time may lead to fertilizer burn. Learn more on how to feed houseplants.

7. Extreme temperatures

Extreme temperatures (either too cold or too hot) will negatively affect Calathea growth. Cold drafts will cause sudden drops in temperature which will lead to reduced growth and curling, drooping leaves. Very high temperatures will cause the plant to become dehydrated resulting in curling and drooping leaves and death of the plant if it is not corrected.

How to fix it

Keep your Calathea away from cold drafts from windy windows and doors, air conditioning units and other drafty areas to avoid sudden changes in temperatures. Do not place the plant near hot surfaces, heating units, hot stoves and other hot places. Maintain an average warmth of 15-26⁰C. Check out this guide on understanding temperature for houseplants.

8. Exposure to direct sunshine

Exposing your Calathea to direct sunlight will cause scorching, wilting, drooping leaves and may result in death of the plant.

How to fix it

Grow Calathea in medium to bright indirect light. Keep it away from direct sunlight and position it in a shaded place or instal a light curtain to protect it from direct sunlight.

9. Being pot-bound

Being extremely pot-bound may cause your Calathea to wilt, droop and begin to die. This is because the roots have filled the pot and there is very little soil to hold water when the plant is watered. If the soil cannot hold enough water, then there is very little water for the plant to take up to the leaves therefore it begins to wilt and droop.

How to fix it

Check the bottom of the pot for a lot of roots growing through the drainage hole and repot the plant into a pot one size larger than the current one or divide it into several sections to propagate new plants.

Thereafter, repot the plant every 2 years at the beginning of the growing season when it becomes pot-bound. Ensure that the pot has a drainage hole and that the soil is well-drained. Check out these ceramic pots with drainage holes on Amazon.

Note that your Calathea may droop after repotting for a short period of time. However, as it continues to take root and adjust to the new growing conditions it will recover.

10. Accumulation of salts & chemicals in the soil

Excess salts and chemicals may originate from watering with hard water or from the fertilizers used to feed the plant. Accumulation of these salts and chemicals in the soil will cause the roots to die. As such the plant cannot take up water to the leaves which begin to wilt and droop.

How to fix it

Water your Calatheas with chlorine-free water only, like rain water as they are sensitive to chlorine and other chemicals dissolved in water.

Flush out accumulated chemicals (salts) from the soil regularly by running a stream of water through the soil. Allow the stream of water to run for some time and repeat the process several times.

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