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Thanks for the tips Will. Corn towers 1 and 2 have been moved temporarily to a brighter spot to see if they respond. Despite all of the dropped and brown leaves there are still new growths inside of each stalk so maybe the light therapy will help bring back the green ...they're still trying so I won't give up on them yet! (No digital cam so no photos).If they survive, do you think we can habituate them to live in the stairwell landing again? (i.e. slowly adapt them to lower light). I also read on this site that flouride in water can harm these plants. Not sure if flouride dissipates if water is left standing, or if you even think this can be a problem?

Will drop you a good rating now -thx for the info and prompt help - Gigi

And I hope your friends under the wet coast fair better with their houseplants...we're further north and don't enjoy the micro-climate of the San Juans...the large mountains on the north shore of city of Vancouver means that we are often under thick cloud cover, or fog and when the air lifts over the mountains just buckets of rain falls. Longest continous rain I've lived in here was 56 days straight. Not a kind place for household tropicals (better for mold and algae).



Hi Will - this is a great service you are providing.Thank you.

I have two corn plant stalks with a few clusters each of green foliage. But in the last few weeks the leaves have turned very faded yellow and 'squishy',leaves fall out if touched. New growth is shrivelled brown.  1 of the plants is approx 2ft high, the other 4.5 ft. They've been living together in one pot, approx 12" high and 8" across in our stairwell mid-way landing for about 8 months -- there light is reflected light from a sunnier upstairs room,but this is the pacific northwest so it is often grey/dark and raining. Water: Our house is humid (1970's airtight humid), I've been very conservative with the watering - only when the soil is so dry it looks/feels completely very dry. They live in the same soil that Home Depot sold them to us in. Would be sad
to lose them, please help : (     - Gigi
Answer -
Hi Gigi,

If I had a sad-faced emoticon to post here I would. From your description, I suspect that your corn plant cannot be salvaged unless there is at least some new growth that is healthy.

Corn plants are good low light plants. However, Home Depot and other discounters buy from growers that do not properly acclimate their plants to low light before shipping them. That coupled with the sub-minimal light that you are providing (as near as I can tell from your description) has caused the plant to die back from lack of light.

Your corn plant would have done better right in front of a north-facing window where the light is bright, but still indirect.

I think your watering was probably OK. In general, a corn plant should be watered thoroughly only when the top third of the soil feels dry to the touch.

Humidity levels are not much of a factor for corn plants.

If you would like to email a photo of your plant to my address below, I might observe something else that might give me additional insights.

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

(BTW, I have plant friends on Vancouver Island, in Portland, and on San Juan Island.)

Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

You can E-mail me directly at: [email protected]

If this information has been helpful, please remember to give me an AllExperts rating and nomination.  

Answer
Hi Gigi,

Thanks for getting back to me. And thanks for the great rating!

In your original question you indicated that the new growth was shriveled brown so it was based on that that I read you the last rites! However, if there is healthy new growth and the stems they are growing out of are not at all shriveled, then there is still hope.

Increasing the light to bright, but without sun rays shining directly on the leaves will help. Be very careful not to overwater as ailing plants use very little water.

From your description of the stair landing, I would say that you probably  do not have enough light to keep them alive even after they have acclimated to lower light. Given your almost constant cloud cover, even your low light plants will need to be pretty close to a window at all times.

Dracaenas are fluoride sensitive, but the amount used in drinking water is too dilute to cause a problem. Chlorine dissipates from open surface water, but fluoride does not. Neither should be a concern for you.

56 straight days of rain would send me over the edge! We had 10 days of rain here and everyone was whining like it was the end of the world. There are many tropicals that should be OK in your environment, as long as they are located close to windows. The ambient light that filters through the clouds should be adequate. Ferns may be a good option for you because they don't need much light and love high humidity.

My friend on Vancouver Island has lots of beautiful flowering plants, but I think she is more protected from the clouds and rain than you are. You live in a beautiful area that I would love to visit some day.

Best,
Will Creed
[email protected]