Why Is My Jade Plant Drooping? (Causes+What To Do)

The Jade plants are stunning and easy to care plants. Its thick leaves give it a very promising look and make it distinct from other household plants.
However, the crassula ovata beauty is disturbed when its leaves start drooping down.

But what causes droopy leaves in jade plants, and how can we fix the same? Let’s find out!

Overwatering and root rot is the primary cause of droopy leaves in a jade plant. Root rot often leads to a lack of nutrients and water in the soil, making the leaves weak and limp. Apart from that, inadequate lighting, overfertilization, and pest infestation can also lead to droopy leaves in a jade plant.

Winters are the dormancy period for the jade plants. Commonly, jade plant leaves start curling and drooping during these days due to a lack of proper care.

It is crucial to know why the leaves of your jade plant are drooping to fix the problem and save our plants. So let’s learn more about it.

Why are the leaves on my jade plant droopy?

A jade plant will start drooping due to several reasons, they are:

1. Watering inadequately
2. Improper lightning
3. Poor drainage system
4. Overfertilization
5. Extreme temperature
6. Pests and disease
7. Repotting

We will go through all these causes one by one.

Watering inadequately

The primary cause of a droopy leaf in a jade plant is inadequate watering. Overwatering and underwatering are both harmful to the jade plant, and they will lead to droopy leaves.

Overwatering is a much more dangerous situation than under-watering the jade plant. This is because the jade plants are desert plants; they can survive the water deficiency but can’t cope with watering problems.

Overwatering of the plant disturbs the whole channel of supply of the plant, as it causes root rot. 

The infected roots are incompetent to provide the supplies like water, oxygen, and nutrients to the other part of the plant. 

As a result, the plant becomes weak and starts curling, wilting, and drooping all over.

Overwatering and underwatering may give the same symptoms. To find the right reason, you can upend the pot and gently remove the plant. 

If the roots are dry, white, and odorless, then they are healthy. If they are brown, smell bad, and pulpy, it is because of overwatering.

Solution

We can save the plant from root rotting by following specific steps:

• Trimming the damaged parts of the roots, leaves, and stems.
• Remove the old soil around the plant.
• Repot the plant in dry and fresh soil, don’t use the old soil to carry fungal disease with them.
• Put the plant in indirect sunlight, and let it breathe for a few days.
• Water it carefully after you see the plant is completely dry.

Water is the very essential component for the survival of all living beings. Jade plants are no exception to these. 

Jade plants have water-storing capabilities, and they can stay hydrated even after a week of watering. 

We must respect this quality of the jade plant. The crassula ovata should only be water if the upper layer of the soil is appropriately drying out. 

Watering before this situation may cause problems to your jade plant.

Also read: How often should I water my jade plants?

Improper lightning

Poor lighting will weaken the stems that droop due to the heavyweight of the leaves. 

This is because some parts of the plant get the light, and some remain in scarcity. This situation also makes the leaves smaller, darker and the leaves lose their shiny appearance.

Exposing your jade plant to direct intense sunlight may also cause damages to the plant. 

Direct sunlight causes too much moisture loss, which results in drooping of the leaves.

Providing low light to the jade plant also causes a halt in their growth as it weakens the plant and reduces the photosynthesis process. 

As a result, the leaves lack energy and lose their strength, resulting in curling and drooping. 

Thus we can conclude that both low light and too much sun are bad for your jade plants.

Solution

The jade plant likes to have the proper balance of light. So you can give 4 hours of direct sunlight to the matured jade plant. 

The direct light should not be too harsh on our plant. I prefer direct morning sun for our jade plant.

You must keep the young jade plant in the indirect bright light for at least 4 hours, as it will amplify the plant’s growth. This will also fix the weak stem and droopy leaves problem and help with further growth. 

You can’t help the weakened stems, but the new growth will be healthier and more robust. Keep the jade plant near the window where it can get all these requirements.

Also read: What kind of light do jade plant needs?

Poor drainage system

The poor drainage system is also a strong reason behind the drooping leaves and soggy stems. Poor drainage of the container causes retention of extra moisture in the soil and roots.

This extra moisture invites the fungal disease and root rotting of the plant. As a result, the leaves become weak, droopy, and the entire plant suffers.

Poor drainage unknowingly leads to overwatering conditions as planters do not realize it. A good combination of draining soil helps your plant to grow hassle-free.

Solution

Select the container with a fitting drainage hole. Draining away the excess water is the crucial part of keeping the plant healthy and disease-free.

You can check if the drainage holes of the pot are proper or not. While watering, the excess water should drain within 2 minutes of watering. This means the drainage system of the pot is decent.

Also, use a well-draining potting mix for your jade plant. 75-25 combination of cactus potting soil and pumice works excellent.

Also read: What kind of soil do jade plant need?

Overfertilization

Overfeeding the plant will not boost your plant’s growth. Jade plants are light feeders, and feeding them excessively or frequently leads to over-fertilization.

Jade plants do not prefer overfeeding, and they only need nutritional soil for its robust and healthy growth. 

Unfortunately, while fertilizing our plant, we generally get carried away and add too much fertilizer.

This over-fertilization of the plant leads to excess salt buildup, eliminating the good microorganisms and bacteria in the soil necessary for the plant.

Overfertilization also causes the burning of the leaves and hampers its supply channel. 

Overfeeding often leads to curling of leaves, brown tips, root rot, fungal growth, and droopy leaves. Try to avoid overfeeding the soil.

Solution

A healthy jade plant requires a healthy dose of fertilizer, but an excess dose is always harmful to the plant. So here, quality is more important than quantity.

The jade plants grow slower as compared to the other household plants. So, a few doses in the spring and summer is just fine. Feed them with high nitrogen food by diluting it to half the strength.

You may choose to make light applications monthly in the growing season. However, do not fertilize them during the winter and fall season.

Also read: How often should I feed my jade plants?

Extreme temperature

The crassula has its origin in the African region. It can tolerate high temperatures to some extent, but it can’t cope with the frost. 

Jade is tolerant of dips down to 40°F. However, extreme cold and heat can cause your jade plant to droop.

Jade plants prefer 65°F-75°F during the day, with cooler temps in the evening. Thus, a mild desert climate of 50-55°F at night is ideal.

The extreme heat could also lead to droopy leaves. Therefore, it is recommended to shift the jade plant in the shaded area during the noon and afternoon.  

Solution

The jade plant is a soft succulent plant. It cannot survive in extreme temperatures. Keep the plant hydrated during the extreme heat situation and shift the plant near a shaded area.

Do not pour too much water during extreme cold situations. Try to provide artificial light if the natural light is too low. 

Protect the plant from the cold blows of winter. Overwatering during these circumstances may worsen the situation.

Keep them away from heating sources such as radiators, vents, furnaces, etc. Also, keep them indoors at night during winters.

Also read: Where to keep jade plants?

Pests and disease

Droopy leaves are one of the first signs given by the plant when the pests invade. But, unfortunately, there is no such plant that is fully immune to diseases and pests. 

Healthy jade plants are not prone to disease, and pest infestations are easy to treat.

Some of the pests that invade the jade plant are the mealybugs, scales, spider mites, etc. 

Mealybugs feed on the plant’s juice, and they cover themselves with the white cotton-like thing to protect themselves from the external environment.

Scales are the pest’s lives at the backside of the leaves and eat the leaves forming brown scales on the leaves. 

Spider mites are also very irritating pests that keep on damaging the plant and hampers its growth.

Solution

You can resolve these pest’s problems by following few methods:

• Wiping the leaves with alcohol or neem oil.
• Washing the plant with the non-detergent soap mixture.
• Mixing some diatomaceous earth into the soil.
• Use a horticultural oil or hydrogen peroxide.
• You can also use chemical pesticides, but they are harmful to the plants and may have side effects. 
  • If you still want to use it, be mindful about using it and read the instructions properly on its package.

Also read: Do jade plant attract bugs? How to deal with them?

Repotting

Jade plants grow slowly and have shallow roots. Therefore, repotting them may give them unwanted shock, especially if done during winters. 

In addition, it may lead to droopy leaves, yellowing of leaves, and wilting of plants.

The Jade plant generally doesn’t want to get repotted frequently. But, on the other hand, jade plants don’t mind being slightly root-bound. 

But if the plant is completely root bounded then, it will experience stunted growth.

Solution

Try to avoid repotting the jade plant as it gives traumatic shock to the plant, and as a result, the plant shows the sign by curling and drooping leaves.

If you want to report the jade plant, do it during early spring or summers with dry nutritional soil. 

Let the plant breathe for a few days before watering. Only repot when the roots have overgrown their pot.

Also read: Do jade plant likes being root bounded?

Few tips on growing a healthy jade plant

The Jade plant is a perfect plant for beginners because of its low maintenance and hardy nature.

However, these plants do require some primary care to remain healthy and growing.

One can prevent the jade plant from drooping and grow a healthy plant with few tips below.

• Don’t care too much; else, you may end up harming them rather than doing any good.
• Do not move them around every once in a while. Jade likes to stay in one place. Please place it in a good location, and don’t move it again and again.
• The plant shows the signs when it needs water, and you can see the tiny wrinkled leaves if it wants water. Don’t keep the plant thirsty. Water once the soil gets dry. 
• Unglazed and porous pots are recommended for jade plants, such as terracotta, ceramic pot, etc.
• Try to wipe the leaves periodically, do not splash water over the plant; it can lead to leaf spots.
• It is prevalent to place stones on the soil around the jade plant, but it’s not a good practice. It keeps the soil soggy for a long which can lead to root rot.
• Try using filtered and a little warm water for the jade plant.
• Try to rotate the plant so that every part of your plant gets equal sunlight. This helps in avoiding drooping and legginess.

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Source: NYBG, The University of Arkansas, University of Florida, Phytochemical and Antimicrobial Activity of Jade Plant, CABI, University of Minnesota, The University of Missouri.