A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2005 Corn Plant Problems

Please help somebody !!

My Corn plant of over 2 years is suddenly dying a slow death.. all o d a sudden the shoots are softening... the leaves are dying and falling over... I do have a new set of leaves growing out of the dirt ?

The plant is about 2 1/2 feet tall with 2 stalks... in a pot about 14" across... it is located about 5 feet from a window with light-moderate sunlight...

I have no idea what is going on.. i can send pics if somebody is willing to help. but it will be dead in a few days if i don't do anything

Thanks

Ronny

hey ronny, i edited your post to take out your email. we try to keep those of the main pages for safety reasons.

now, about your corn plant. my first thought is that either it is too tall and the leaves aren't getting enough moisture, or it has root rot. have you changed watering practices (or alternately, sources of water)? the other thought is if you could post a picture using yahoo pictures, webshots, photobucket, or one of the other free image hosting services, we could help you better.

Jiffy.. thanks for the quick helps...

Here's my first attempt at this.. whaddya think ?

It's amazing.. i can heal people.. but look at my poor plant...

To add to this ... root rot could be.. there was a period of time.. that I probably completely over watered the plant.. through the hot summer months.. my place gets quite hot..

Any way to save it ? haven't watered it in a bit..
RLB

http://photobucket.com/albums/a260/rlbdc/corn/

ronny, i edited your post so the picture would show. poor plant what i would do, is take it out of the soil completely, wash the roots, being sure to get all the mush that will rise off, off. then dip it in rooting hormone and put it in fresh potting soil (good quality, i prefer miracle gro) in a pot that has good drain holes. water it in when you repot it, but drain any water than flows through. then, don't water it again till the top inch of the soil is dry when you stick your finger in it. also, if you cut one of the tops off, and stick it in the same NEW pot, you will increase your chances of getting at least one viable plant out of it.

keep us posted!

Well..

I did as i was told... and now we just have to wait and see... i sure hope that somehow I can get new offspring coming off the top of the plant.. when I repotted the plant.. there were several shoots making their way to the surface.. so thats good...

but the top looks like it was chopped !! pictures coming at some point..

Thanks for the help.. and if there is more I can do.. please let me know

RLB

sounds like you did it right. you should see some improvement in a week or so. and you may lose the damaged leaves, but there should be new ones coming to replace them!

Hi Ronny,

I don't want to be the pessimist here, but I have seen these symptoms before and the prognosis is not good.

The limp leaves have resulted from roots that are no longer absorbing water. The roots stopped functioning because they were potted in a planter that is much too large. When that happens, the soil does not dry out frequently enough and the roots rot.

It is rare that a corn plant will recover from that. The upper leaf sections in the photo don't look too promising either and may not make it as rooted cuttings.

I hope I am wrong about all this and I hope that your efforts are rewarded.

Sometimes, it is hard to cut off the leaves...it's painful...

but i guessed we have to be cruel to be kind sometimes.

Keep us posted Doc!

Optimism, Love, and Gratitude... A winning combination...

I won't give up on this one.. sad to say I talk to it and play it good old rock and roll music.. i know that always heals me..

Aside from that.. just some hope.. i don't really want to go out and buy a whole new plant..

Will.. The planter is in the same size it came in.. 13" across the top..

What about cutting the nubs off of the top.. or even cutting the whole top off.. taking the wax cap off.. would that promote new growth ?

Just thoughts..

RLB

I've read soemwhere that removing the wax top won't promote new growth from the top.

and yes,i do talk to the plants as well, as i do believe they are afterall, living things!

ronny, i like that sentiment. and, i wouldn't give up just yet. you do have an uphill battle, but i have saved worse with the directions i gave you.

Ronny,

That may be the pot that it came in, but it is nonetheless way too large for a corn plant that size. An 8" or 10" diameter pot is more suitable.

The wax is added to the top of the cane to prevent fungus disease in the tropical regions where these canes are cut and rooted. Removing it will have no benficial effect.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out.