For many years, aloe plants remain an uncommon choice for home gardens. However, recently, there has been a surge of interest in these veggies due to their benefits.
Not only do they provide several remedial properties, but they are also excellent for nurturing your health. As a result, more and more households are trying to cultivate aloe plants under their own roofs.
That being said, aloe plants are not exactly the easiest to take care of. Sometimes, you may wonder why are the tips of my aloe plant turning brown or what causes it. Worry not, as the article below will help you solve these problems!
Why Are The Tips Of My Aloe Plant Turning Brown?
If you spot several brown markings at the tip of aloe plants, chances are the surrounding environment is not suitable. Too much or too little watering are the primary causes of browning aloe plants.
In some cases, it boils down to excessively high or low temperatures, improper fertilizers, plant diseases, or pests.
What To Do When The Tips Of My Aloe Plants Turning Brown
Trying to fix the browning requires an accurate reading of what causes it in the first place. Here are the most popular solutions based on the culprit.
Underwatering
If you do not water aloe plants enough, several symptoms will be visible. First, the tip of the plants turns to a rather unappealing shade of brown. Then, the leaves will harden and thicken, as there is no moisture to keep their plumpness.
Over the course of a few days, should the underwatering continue to happen, these leaves will shrink in size, and the browning will spread wider.
To prevent your plants from dying, proceed to water them right away. But first, make sure to check and see whether the soil is completely dry.
You will need to water it thoroughly and from all sides. Wait for a few minutes until all the excess water drains out from the holes at the pot’s bottom.
Overwatering
If overwatering is the reason behind your aloe plants’ tip turning brown, you can expect to feel the leaves being squishy as well. A closer look at the roots of your plants may also reveal rottenness. Should this be the case, you have to remove the plants to another pot as soon as possible.
Consider using a pot with drainage holes so that water does not accumulate inside. From there, gently remove the rotten roots and squishy leaves so that they do not affect the healthy ones.
After the repoting is done, let’s review your watering skills to not repeat the same mistakes.
As aloe vera is a succulent plant, you only need to water it once per week during hot summer months and once every two weeks when the winter comes.
When watering, you should focus on the soil only. Try not to spray excess water on either the leaves or the roots. Before each watering session, dig your fingers deep inside the pot to ensure the soil has dried up.
High temperatures
When the temperature increases significantly, aloe plants tend to go through a phase of shock. This results in browning tips and shriveled leaves. Exposure to excessive heat can also lead to sunburns, tampering with the amount and quality of aloe vera content produced.
Therefore, it is best that you keep your plants indoors or anywhere shady enough. The recommended temperatures for these greens range from 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, so try not to exceed the threshold.
If possible, you can leave aloe vera for a few hours in the sun and bring them back later.
Low temperatures
Similar to heat shocks, cold shocks are also a common cause of browning aloe’s tips. Another sign alerting of the low temperatures is the drooping, as your leaves cannot stand upright.
If you think your aloe vera is suffering from the cold, consider moving their locations. Stay away from windows, fans, or air conditioners.
Even better, you can scatter straw around the base of your aloe plants to protect them should the weather become too unbearable.
Improper fertilizer
Aloe vera does not require too many artificial nutrients to grow and thrive. Occasionally feeding them with fertilizer is good, but overdoing it and you will have tons of chemical salt eating up the plants from inside.
As a result, the leaves will quickly turn brown and smell decadent.
So, what to do when you are in this situation? First off, you will have to drench the soil to remove any accumulated fertilizer. Next up, keep the fertilizing frequency at once annually.
And it is only for growing, half-strength plants! If the aloe vera is in good condition, there is no need for intervention.
Plant diseases
Sometimes, fungi can be the culprit behind browning leaves and tips. If you believe these troubling diseases are at fault, you may have to remove all the leaves to prevent them from spreading.
That being said, not all infected plants can be saved. If spotted and treated too late, you may have to throw them away.
Pests
Bugs, flies, mites, and fungus gnats are a nuisance to aloe plants. If they bite or chew on the tips, you bet that they will turn brown in no time. Even worse, the pests can suck out the sap and kill off the plants.
Luckily, you can ward off these uninvited guests by spraying pesticides over the aloe plants.
Conclusion
Next time, if someone asks you, “Why are the tips of my aloe plants turning brown?” you can tell them confidently it is because of the moisture, temperature, and health conditions of the plants. All you have to do is to fix the environment and ta-da! Your aloe vera will be back as new!