If you are a proud owner of a Zebra succulent or Haworthia Fasciata, then you no doubt like to take care of this popular plant to the fullest.
With that said, if your Zebra plant has yellow leaves, then you definitely have a problem on your hands and your care taking skills are not where they should be.
Now that might seem alarming, and it can be but not all the reasons are that serious and only require a simple fix.
So here are 5 common reasons why your Zebra plant has turned yellow and what you can do about it.
Zebra plant is getting too much sun
You may think that Hawrthia Fasciata requires a ton of sunlight, and you are partly right but the type of light this plant needs is indirect light.
You don’t want to be giving the Zebra succulent too much full sunlight or else the color of the plant will most certainly start becoming a pale yellow color.
A sign that you are giving this plant too much sun will be crispy brown tips on the leaves which is one of the first signs of sun stress, accompanied by yellowing leaves on the Zebra plant.
Solution
Try moving this succulent to a spot where indirect light will be much more common or if you can’t move the plant you should consider using some good shade cloth.
After all of this is said and done, you should see your Zebra plant return to it’s normal color.
Too little sun
On the other hand, you don’t want to keep your Zebra plant in a dimly lit location as this can also cause yellowing leaves on the succulent.
Instead try to provide at least 5 hours of bright but indirect light on the daily so you can be sure your Zebra Haworthia is getting the required amount of light to stay healthy.
Otherwise not only will your Haworthia Fasciata turn yellow but you also run the risk of your succulent etiolating.
So provide the required light at all costs and you don’t have to worry about this being the cause of a yellowing Zebra plant.
A good quality indoor grow light can seriously help if you’re lacking on light when growing indoors.
Overwatering
Overwatering is certainly one of the most common ways to turn your Zebra plant yellow as rot is no joke when it comes to succulents.
By overwatering you run the chance that you will get rotted roots, which will cause the plant to become super inefficient at supplying water and nutrients from the soil all the way around the plant.
Overwatering can simply be caused by watering too frequently or by using soil that doesn’t drain well, leaving water to stand around and do virtually nothing in the process.
Most people will also make the mistake of watering Haworthia Fasciata more in the summer and less in the winter but the opposite should be done for this succulent.
This is because this Haworthia becomes partially dormant in the summer and is more of an active grower in the winter.
Solution
So if you do indeed have root rot then you should remove all dead roots, keep any healthy ones and repot this succulent in some fresh soil that drains nicely.
From here wait some time before watering as you want some healthy roots to grow first before giving this plant a drink.
Also next time you should just water the soil when it’s completely dry to the touch.
Zebra plant is underwatered
Now on the other side of the spectrum, you can just be underwatering your Zebra cactus which causes leaves to become dehydrated and turn yellow.
People also make the mistake of overwatering their succulent, finding out they have been doing this and then completely avoiding water.
This will only leave your Zebra succulent dehydrated and unhappy.
Instead, stay somewhat consistent with your watering and water fully each time you do so, don’t mist this succulent or only water partially.
Pests are causing yellowing leaves
Lastly, there are some pests that can turn your Zebra plant leaves yellow and these include mealy bugs and spider mites.
Mealy bugs will slowly but surely dehydrate your leaves making them turn yellow like mentioned before and spider mites that will leave yellow spots where they have bitten through the leaves.
Solution
For both of these annoying pests you should use standard pest control for succulents to remove them from your plant.
I highly recommend using some quality neem oil spray to rid of these pests as this way of doing so is super easy compared to other ways of managing pests.