Question
in the summer I have a watering system that I put out side and sit my plants under. When I came back from vacation one week. The plants had a buildup on them took down the mister,and the plants leaves started to die and fall off or turned yellow. They seemed hard to the touch not flexable like normal. I have a very big rubber plant and used milk to wipe the leaves that didn't do much, I continued to keep doing it, it helped some but the calcium is still there the other plants with small leaves I couldn't do . So little by little the leaves die,but new ones are finally growing..... can U help from 1 plant lover to the other  :)

Answer
Maxine,

Wiping the plants leaves with milk is also not good for the plant. It will leave a film of milk sugars and calcium from the milk also. I have watered my garden and my bonsai trees with overhead sprinklers on timers with hard water for several years and it has never caused a problem. Overhead watering can create a perfect environment for fungal attacts and I suspect that may be your problem. You may have powdery mildew or another fungal problem. In any case the plants are indoors now and there aren't any fungicides that I reccommend using indoors because they can cause health problems. What I do reccommend is that you spray the plants with Lysol spray (it is okay to use the generic). Hold the can 12-18 inches from the plant and make sure you spray the fronts and backs of all the leaves. Spray the affected plants twice a week for 4 weeks and it should solve the problem. If you have more questions feel free to write again. Good luck.

Darlene