Question
I have a really nice Schefflera plant that I have had for years. I just moved to a new apartment two and a half months ago. I water him about once a week to every one and a half weeks, whenever the soil seems a little dry- like I have been doing for years. Well, in the last couple of weeks every day when I come home I find some of his leaves on the floor. He has new leaves growing so I believe that he is still healthy, he looks really nice still and I have not found any pests on him. He never has lost his leaves like this before. He is in a 12 inch pot, he is about 17 inches tall and spans about 21 or 22 inches wide (although I have his branches tied together so he may be wider. I have repotted him before because his trunk likes to grow in a circular manner, however it has been about two years since the last repotting. The light is about the same as he has always been getting and yes, now I have city water. Just moved here from the mountains. He did have city water about 3 years ago when I first got him and he did fine with that for about 3-5 years. I think that he is about 6-8 years old. Why are his leaves faling off? The whole stem that holds them is falling off too! Help me please if you can!  

Answer
Rachel,

I would not repot till spring. Repotting should always be done between April 15th and June 15th when the roots are actively growing. Now as the days are getting shorter plants slow down growing for a bit and get semi dormant. In my experience leaves falling off of scheffs are because of less light and/or too much water. It may seem things are the same but even slight variations can make a difference.

Move him to sit directly in front of a south, west or east facing window and keep the drapes or blinds open all day so he gets as much sun as possible. Also let him dry out till he feels very dry and light weight between waterings. When you do water him do not leave him sit with water in his drain tray for days. He should perk up fast and stop dropping leaves with some sun and less water. Good luck.

Darlene