Sticky ficus leave can be a polarity of pest or overwatering . Here ’s how to discover the causal agency and institute your ficus back to health .
Dean Schoeppner
Sticky leave-taking on yourficuscan be alarming — peculiarly when they ’re accompanied by more leaf drop than common . But by name the ground for sticky leaves ahead of time on and taking action , you could rescue your works and impart it back to wellness . Here are the common causes and treatment programme for sticky ficus foliage .
Credit:Dean Schoeppner
Causes of Sticky Ficus Leaves
Environmental Stress
When the moisture andhumidity levelsin a ficus ’s environment change , it can start recede body of water from its leave ' tips — a mental process called guttation . The works ’s lifelike sugars make this moisture sticky . If you ’ve recentlymoved your genus Ficus from outdoors to inwardly , or if the stickiness is accompanied by yellow leave and a deficiency of novel increment ( sign of overwatering ) , guttation may be the grounds for your plant ’s pasty leaves . Because the wet releases from the leaves , it will often drip onto the floor too .
Almost all plants can undergo the sort of folio " sweating " know as guttation if they ’re overwatered , but it ’s especially uncouth on philodendrons , elephant ears and ZZ plant life .
Common Pests
Sap - eating pests can also be the case of sticky ficus leaf . Scale , mealybugs , and spider pinch all create a sticky waste on leaves called honeydew . Here ’s what to look for to determine which insect may be make the problem .
• Scale : The tiny , intemperately - shelled louse experience asscalelook likelittle gray or brown bumps . They can often be mistaken as part of the plant , but will add up off if you skin your fingernail across plant leave .
• Mealybugs : If you see little white-hot cottony spate on your ficus , you ’re probable dealing withmealybugs . These pests are related to scale , but have soft shells .
• Spider mites : So petite that you ca n’t normally see them , spider mitesare well identified by the small web they make on houseplants . granular - feel leave and branch , as well as yellowing , dusty - count leaves , can be a augury of a spider mite trouble too .
How to Treat Sticky Ficus Leaves
Once you ’ve discover the culprit for your ficus ’s sticky leaves , you may pop out handling to write it . Note that if pest are causing the trouble , it ’s crucial to isolate your ficus to check that the insects do n’t pass around to other plant .
•Guttation : If you determine guttation is the cause of your ficus ’s sticky leaves , it ’s reasonably leisurely to cover . Scale back your watering(letting soil dry thoroughly before lacrimation is a effective rule of quarter round ) . When you do water , check that your plant life is allowed to drain exhaustively .
•Scale or mealybug : Prune away any leaves that are badly invade . Then purchase a houseplant insecticide at the garden center , and apply it according to the label . constitutional horticultural oil spray work better for musical scale , while grievous bodily harm spray andneem vegetable oil spraysare better for mealybugs . you’re able to also dab the dirt ball individually with a Q - tip dipped in rubbing alcoholic beverage , but that can be an overwhelming task on declamatory plants .
•Spider mite : If the problem is spider mites , take the genus Ficus out of doors and lave it soundly ( tops and derriere of the parting , all branch , and the tree trunk ) with a strong blow from the garden hose . wanderer mites are so tiny and vulnerable that a harsh blast of water will kill more than 90 percent of them .
