Expert: Tracy - 7/2/2009

Question
Hi Tracy,

I just bought a house plant - it has droopy green leaves and a thick bamboo like stalk - there are two of them growing in the pot together. i left the plant in my car today, and the side facing the windshield got too much sun and wilted and the leaves are now a really shriveled dark green and it is smelling funny ! I don't know what to do it is inside now, I gave it more water... help! I am so sad I hope I didn't kill it. The other side that wasn't facing the sun looks fine. Thank you.

Answer
Hello Aaina,
    The leaves on that side of the plant have been sun-burnt. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do to save those leaves and they need to be removed as soon as possible. The rest of the plant should be okay and new growth will soon appear on the side of the plant the leaves were removed from.

Unless the soil was dry, giving the plant more water will not help the plant. In fact it can actually cause it more harm.

When watering plants the general rule is to allow the top 1-2 inches of soil to dry between watering then water just enough for a small amount of water to drain out of the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot.

I recommend using distilled water to water plants. A lot of plants are sensitive to the fluoride, chlorine and mineral deposits found in most tap water. Water softeners add a lot of salts to the water which can also harm plants. By using distilled water you can avoid the problems that can be caused by water quality (most commonly brown leaf tips).

Be sure that the bottom of the pot is not sitting in water because the soil will continue to soak up the water through the drainage holes. This will cause the soil to stay too wet and can cause the plant to develop root rot.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions or need additional information please don't hesitate to ask.
          Thanks
              Tracy