Shriveling of leaves in a string of hearts plant is a major pointer to an unhealthy growth of the string of hearts plant.
It could be caused by overwatering, underwatering, inadequate fertilizer application, sunburn, and drought stress.
Whatever might be the cause of shriveling of the leaves of a string of hearts plant, the symptoms are usually the same;
Browning of leaves, drooping, curling, and falling away of the leaves.
Shriveling of the string of hearts plant is usually the last thing that happens before the string of heart plant eventually dies off.
More like a red alert to gardeners and flower owners to either revive the plant quickly or save up to purchase a new one.
Reviving the plant is always the best of the two choices.
Native to Africa, Asia, and South Africa, the string of hearts plant goes by the botanical name, Ceropegia.
It was first called Ceropegia by the Australian scientist Carl Linnaeus in 1737.
The string of hearts plant is called its name because of its string-like stems that hold a long line of broad heart-shaped leaves that vary in color from plant to plant.
The leaves of a healthy string of hearts plant should be heart-shaped and broad, not shriveled and weak.
In this article, we explain the various ways to revive a curled up and shriveling string of hearts plant.
This article is more of a guide than an informative read-through, and we hope you put all of the information here into practice and revive your shriveled string of hearts in no time.
How Do I Stop My String of Heart leaves from shriveling
You already know what is likely to cause shriveling of the leaves of your string of hearts plant.
When your string of hearts leaves are all looking brown, curled up, and shriveling, the following should be done to revive them:
1. Adopt a healthy watering routine
2. Shade the string of hearts plant
3. Carry out routine checks on your string of hearts
1. Adopt a healthy watering routine: String of hearts shriveling is most times the result of too much or too little application of water to the plant.
Stopping the string of hearts plant from curling and shriveling, demands that the water needs of the plant be met.
Develop a string routine of watering the string of hearts regularly. A pattern that does not amount to too much or too little water application.
As you already know, too much and too little application of water would eventually lead to the curling and shriveling of your string of heart leaves.
A healthy watering structure for the string of hearts plant follows the moisture needed of the string of hearts plant in its native environment.
In its native environment, the string of hearts is naturally adapted to stay in hot conditions, hence, it does not favor an excessive application of water.
Watering the string of hearts plant should be done once every fourteen days in a good soak.
Soaking involves dipping the plant pot in a bowl of water and letting it stay for about ten minutes before getting it out.
Once in fourteen days is however not the margin. There could be changes to this routine, depending on how hot or moist the weather is at the moment.
It is necessary to note that in winter and very cold weather conditions, the plant usually takes up a survival position known as dormancy.
Dormancy is a point in the plant’s growth where it stops expanding in size and height.
In this state, It conserves its resources to help it scale through the current harsh weather into a new season.
You are advised to cut down on the water application in periods of plant dormancy.
Failure to do so leads to waterlogging at the base of the plants, which soon causes root rot and fungal diseases.
2. Shade the string of hearts plant: your string of heart is also curling and shriveling because it’s been exposed to too much sunlight and heat from the environment where it is planted or from the position in the house where it is kept.
To stop the leaves of your string of hearts from shriveling, practice the art of shading the leaves.
Grow the string of hearts plants under shades that protect against high intensities of sunlight and wind.
This is because the string of hearts plant does not like too much sunlight as well as wind.
Too much sunlight leads to leaf burns and shriveling while high intensities of wind cause the plant to lose moisture content quickly.
3. Carryout Routine checks on your string of hearts: this is very necessary if you need to stop your string of hearts from curling further and probably wilting away.
Check routinely for water loss, check for sunlight reception, check for the temperature of the plant, check to ensure that the plant is getting enough nutrients from the soil.
Check regularly for signs and symptoms of health improvement or decline in the string of hearts plant.
when improvements are noticed, you should work at ensuring that it is sustained, and when a decline like the shriveling of leaves is noticed in the plant, all necessary steps should be taken to return the plant to its previous healthy state.
Routine checks on your string of hearts plant help you monitor the responsiveness of the plant to steps put in place to save it.
How Do I Revive My String of Hearts?
To revive a shriveled string of hearts plant, you must first be willing to stay patient and consistent until the plant is revived and blooms again.
The following are ways to revive curling and shriveled string of hearts plant.
1. Expose the string of hearts plant to bright indirect sunlight rather than leaving them indoors all day long.
It might be that your string of hearts is in need of quality sunlight and you’ve only been keeping it locked away like Rapunzel in your indoor castle
2. Water your string of hearts consistently when shriveling begins to appear.
The important word there is consistency. Your inconsistent watering pattern was the reason it got this shriveled.
If you must revive the plant, you must decide to pick a watering plan and stay consistent with it until the plan is revived.
3. Apply fertilizer to the potting mix to improve the structure of the soil. It could be that your string of hearts is deficient in nutrients like nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorous.
Apply fertilizer to the potting mix from time to time to help improve the nutrient components of the soil.
Fertilizer application should take the format of once every month until the string of hearts plant is revived again.
4. Change the plant pot if the plant has outgrown the pot size.
Check the root ball of the plant and be quick to change the plant pot as soon as the current pot has gotten too little to contain the new growth.
Leaving the string of hearts planted in a plant pot smaller than the root balls eventually leads to the string of hearts shriveling.
What Does an Over-Watered String of Hearts Look Like?
You can identify that your string of hearts plant is overwatered when it shows the following symptoms:
· Leaves begin to change from the usual bright green to yellow and light brown
· The leaves appear wrinkled shriveled and begin to droop
· The leaves of the string of hearts plant curl up and detaches from the stringed stem
· There appears on the roots, fungal infestations, and root rot.
How Do You Treat Leaf Curls Naturally
Treating leave curls naturally in the string of hearts plant connotes the use of natural techniques to revive the string of hearts shriveling.
There are no hard and fast rules to treating the string of hearts plant naturally.
It involves changing the conditions in the plant, suspected to be the cause of the curling and shriveling of the leaves.
To treat a string of hearts shriveling, pay attention to the soil and check regularly that the soil is receiving the right moisture content from the atmosphere.
Also, ensure that the plant pot mix has enough nutrients to support the growth of the string of hearts plant.
Use compost manure rather than inorganic fertilizers to repair the soil structure and pH level.
Should You Mist Your String of Hearts?
Misting a plant involves sprinkling water above the plant to induce the feeling of rainfall in the watering process.
You should mist your string of hearts plant only when it is in good health conditions and the leaves are turgid enough to withstand the weight of the water droplets.
Do not mist the string of hearts planted when it is shriveling or curling up.
This is harmful to the state of the plant at the moment and might enhance its wilting.
Conclusion
The string of hearts curling and shriveling is a state in the growth of the string of hearts plant that calls for extra attention and care.
Good gardening demands that a gardener is able to reproduce all the conditions of survival of a plant in his garden to match the same conditions the plant is used to in its natural habitat.
For the string of hearts plant, it requires an adequate water supply, bright indirect sunlight, good soil mix with the right nutrients in the right proportion, and a good temperature.
