Philodendron plants although pretty easy to care for, are not exempt from getting yellow leaves from time to time.
Although leaves may turn yellow and drop over time due to old age, there are a few reasons why they could be yellowing that are caused by growing conditions.
Common reasons for Philodendron leaves turning yellow include overwatering, pests, nutrient deficiency and the wrong type of light.
So let’s get right into it to see if we can pinpoint which of these problems is affecting the plant.
Overwatering and yellow leaves
Overwatering really is the number one cause of yellowing leaves on a Philodendron plant and can be an easy mistake for beginners to make.
Philodendron plants like to remain at least slightly moist but this can be mistaken and gardeners may actually be overwatering instead of providing the right amount.
Brown leaves on a Philodendron are also an indicator that there has been some overwatering as well.
In general you will only want to water when the first inch of the soil has dried out completely since it takes some time for the lower soil to dry out.
This will make sure that the soil is moist but not always soaked.
Otherwise you run the chance of root rot occurring which will damage the roots, cause yellowing of the leaves and your plant will die eventually from this.
So if the leaves on your Philodendron have turned yellow or mushy, soft or are drooping then you need to take a look at the roots.
If the roots have turned brown or fall apart easily then it’s time to save your plant because you have rot.
First remove all roots that have turned brown or mushy, keep all firm white roots, rinse these remaining roots thoroughly and repot the plant.
Also make sure you are using fresh well draining soil as soil that has poor drainage can also cause yellow leaves since you will have standing water as well.
Pests cause yellow leaves
All types of pests can invade a Philodendron such as aphids, mites, mealy bugs and more, which will feed on the leaves and take their nutrients.
This can cause yellowing of the leaves or yellow spots since they dehydrate your plant and you may see the leaves drop from this at worst.
Pests can also cause Philodendron leaves to curl if you’re having that issue as well you can check out that article.
Pests need to be taken care of immediately since they can do some serious damage to plants.
If you notice white leaves or spots, holes, sticky leaves or bumps on the surface, then odds are you have a pest issue at hand.
A good solution for this is neem oil spray which can get rid of most pests on contact and weekly spray can help keep them away.
Just be sure to isolate this plant in the meantime and only use the neem oil at night to prevent the leaves from getting burnt.
For a more complete guide, check out my post getting rid of bugs on Philodendron.
Wrong type of light
Philodendron plants really only like to get partial sunlight rather than full sun as direct light can damage the leaves causing brown spots, leaves to turn yellow and even red leaves on the plant.
On the other side of things, not enough light will cause weak growth and yellowing of the leaves due to lack of light just like most plants.
You have to find that middle ground by making sure this plant isn’t getting much or any direct light and is also not sitting in complete darkness.
If growing indoors, place this plant a few feet away from pretty much any window to ensure it’s getting proper light.
I say a few feet away so the suns rays don’t shine directly on the plant but it will still get plenty of indirect light.
Nutrient deficiency
Although not as common, the reason you have yellow leaves may be due to a lack of nutrients which could be caused by old soil or not enough fertilizer.
It’s not as common though because Philodendron plants don’t actually need to be fertilized all that often and a few times a year will be just fine during the growing season as more than that can cause more problems that not.
So if you think any of the other reasons listed above are not the cause then think about changing the soil or fertilizing for once if you haven’t done so before.
Natural causes
Lastly, if you are sure it’s none of the above that’s wrong then it could just be natural as leaves can turn yellow and drop from your Philodendron with age.
When this is the cause then it will only be the lower leaves which are older and it should only be a few at a time here and there and not all at once.
Just let them do their thing in this case.
Can yellow leaves return to normal?
Odds are you will not see any of the leaves return to their normal color even when the problems have been fixed.
So you can just remove the leaves which will help the healthy leaves grow more efficiently and then wait for fresh growth to occur.