My Snake Plant Leaves are Yellow and Broken (Reasons and Fix)

The snake plant is a gorgeous houseplant that is appreciated for its glossy and big foliage. This indoor decorative plant can provide an unavoidable exotic look to your place with a minimal maintenance routine.

However, consistent negligence in their caring regimen could invite some harmful issues in your favorite plant.

Broken leaves (Quick Read): Your snake plant leaves could get broken because of physical damage or extreme weather and low humidity. And no you snake plant split leaves won’t heal on its own but you can cut the leave and propagate to root and produce new leaves.

Cut yellow leaves of snake Plant: Don’t cut the leaves until it has fully turned yellow. And yes your plant won’t spend energy on making the yellow leaf green again. Fix the yellow leaves under lying reasons like root rot, overwatering, and low-quality potting soil. Repot and water only when half of the planter has turned dry.

Unhealthy leaves are the inevitable outcome of such calamities. So, here we come up with the validation of two commonest problems of a growing snake plant, along with their possible remedies. Let’s take a quick look at them-

Table of Contents

Why My Snake Plant Leaves Are Broken(Splitting)

Reasons:

Some common causes of splitting or broken snake plant leaves are as follows-

Improper climate, when you put your planter in a spot with extreme cool or hot temperature and low humidity
Physical harm, when you mishandle your delicate snake plant and harm any of its stems, leaf or root unknowingly
Nutrient deficiency is when you don’t feed your plant properly with the right fertilizer and your plant is suffering from a lack of micro or macronutrient issue
Unsuitable circumstance, due to drastic changes in the weather or moving your planter to various places within a short period
Overwatering, when you water your plant deeply, unnecessarily, and before the soil turns dry
Untreated pests’ issue, when you don’t treat any pest or bugs issue from your plant instantly, after detecting them

Solutions:

The best conceivable solutions to these issues should be-

To avoid overwatering, follow a proper watering schedule attentively. Try to water your plant only when the top surface of the soil turns dry completely
To manage climate issues, never place your plant in a spot where the temperature is below 55° F or above 85° F. In addition, use an artificial humidifier to keep the humidity level always high
To avoid boron or micronutrient deficiency, use organic matter to feed your plant frequently. Try to be attentive to the pH level as well, because too much acidic or heavily alkaline soil provides the same broken leaves issue in your plant shortly.
To treat pests and bugs issues, be updated about your plant regularly, and trim off any infected part from your plant immediately, once you find any infestation of this nuisance.
To handle drastic circumstance change issues, try to place your planter away from the drafty locations of your house. You should also keep your plant away from high-traffic areas and prevent them from becoming extremely dry during their entire growing session.
To keep your plant safe from physical harm, always handle your plant, especially, the leaves very carefully, while repotting or replacing them from one place to another. Try to remove that section immediately, once you accidentally harm any part of your plant unwantedly.

Why My Snake Plant Leaves Are Turning Yellow?

Like splitting or broken leaves, yellow leaves are one more typical problem you encounter within snake plants. The main attraction of this plant is its exclusively striking leaves.

They grow in a sword-like shape in the deep green shade, which is variegated with yellow and white striping. The beauty of such foliage will vanish when we find them in a single pale yellow shade instead of these color variations! Any gardener will show his/her interest in solving this issue asap.

Hence, here we go with some useful hacks in this regard about this issue and its proper handing methods through our below discussion-

Reasons for Yellowing Leaves:

Excessive Sun Exposure:

Snake plants couldn’t stand direct sunlight through open sun exposure. If you keep your plant under bright and direct sunlight without any shade, it will soon start losing its colors and turn yellow shortly.

Improper Watering:

Despite being a low-maintenance houseplant, you must be particular about its actual water needs. A snake plant neither tolerates overwatering nor underwatering. Water your plant when it seems thirsty by showing dry soil surface and applying a moderate amount of water only at a time.

Root Rot:

The watering issue often leads to root rot in your plant due to soggy water. Sometimes, infected roots or damaged roots also drive this rotting issue in your growing snake plant. If you don’t cure and repot it immediately, it will turn the leaves of your plant yellow soon.

Infestation of Insects:

Some common insects of snake plants like aphids, spider mites, mealy bugs, etc. not only bite leaves but also suck the essential nutrient from the sap of the plant. Thus, your plant will soon start losing its actual color and turn yellow entirely.

Spread of Diseases:

This yellow leaf problem also occurs when you use infected soil or planter or unsterilized tools for the plantation. Some harmful fungal or bacterial problems could initiate due to this kind of disease.

Nutrient Deficiency:

Nitrogen, magnesium, and potassium, are three major compounds, this plant seeks to thrive well through fertilization. If you don’t fertilize your snake plant yearly, it will soon suffer from micronutrient deficiency.

Over Fertilization:

Overfertilization is as bad as under-fertilization for your snake plant. If you feed your plant unnecessarily, especially during the winter, it will cause nutrition buildup in the roots and stems, which later turn the leaves yellow over time.

Improper Planter:

If you sow your snake plant in an oversized or extremely narrow planter, its root won’t get enough space to spread. Root-bound or congested roots often cause unhealthy yellow leaves in a snake plant.

Imbalance pH Level:

A snake plant is very specific about the perfect pH level of the soil it grows. So, if you use too acidic or too alkaline soil to grow a snake plant, it will grow yellow leaves instead of proper variegated foliage.

Transplant Shock:

One more common cause of yellow leaves on snake plants is transplant shock. If you repot your plant often without a proper schedule and don’t handle the roots carefully during the process, it could face transplant shock unavoidably.

How to Fix:

To deal with these issues and keep your snake plant from the problem of yellow leaves, try these smart tips responsively-

Keep the planter away from direct sunlight and place it in a spot with the sun with partial to full shade
Water your plant only once a week and that with only ½ -1 inch depth at a time
Make sure your plant has a healthy root system, by keeping the soil vermiculated enough
Do not allow any kind of pest or bug infestation on your plant ever by staying updated
You can give your plant a good rinse once a week with proper home remedies to ensure the process
Use fresh soil mix and full sterilized garden tool to be safe from any kind of fungal or bacterial infestation
Feed your plant with a balanced slow-release liquid fertilizer in a 20-20-20 NPK ratio 3-4 times a year
Choose a planter made of clay with proper drainage holes and only 1 size bigger than the root balls
Maintain a slightly acidic pH balance for the plantation soil that must be between 6.1- to 6.5
And dont often transplant your growing snake plant until it completely overgrows its current planter.
Also, try to give a close look once you transplant in a new planter. This will help you to recognize any minimal issue if it occurs after the transplantation.