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Plant problems

Brown leaf tips on plants: causes and fixes

Brown, crispy leaf tips usually mean the edges of the leaves are drying out faster than the roots can keep them supplied. Dry air, uneven watering and salts building up from fertilizer or tap water are the usual causes. You can trim the brown parts off with clean scissors, but they won't turn green again; new leaves come in clean once the cause is fixed.

Check these first

  1. Feel the soil. If it often dries out completely between waterings, or swings from soaked to bone dry, the tips are running short of water.
  2. Think about the air. Heating, air conditioning and sunny windows all dry it out, and thin-leaved tropical plants show it at the tips first.
  3. Look for a white or yellowish crust on the soil or around the rim of the pot. That's salt left behind by fertilizer or hard tap water.
  4. Think about when you last fed the plant. Too much fertilizer, or feeding a plant when its soil is dry, can burn the tips within days.

Most common causes

The causes our guides to 1,479 plants name most often.

  1. Low humidity

    Named for 937 plants

    How to tell: The tips of the leaves turn dry and crispy while the rest of the leaf remains green.

    What to do: Group your plant with others to create a humid microclimate. You can also place the pot on a tray filled with pebbles and water.

  2. Underwatering

    Named for 629 plants

    How to tell: The leaf tips become crispy and brown while the rest of the leaf feels dry. The soil pulls away from the edges of the pot.

    What to do: Increase your watering frequency slightly, but ensure you still allow the soil to dry out. Water deeply until liquid runs out of the drainage holes.

  3. Mineral buildup

    Named for 575 plants

    How to tell: The tips turn brown even when the soil is moist. This is often caused by salts or chlorine in tap water.

    What to do: Flush the soil with distilled or filtered water to wash away excess salts. Switch to using rainwater or filtered water for future waterings.

  4. Inconsistent watering

    Named for 421 plants

    How to tell: The leaf tips turn crispy and brown while the rest of the leaf remains green. The soil feels very dry or pulls away from the edges of the pot.

    What to do: Water when the top inch of soil feels dry to the touch. Ensure you soak the soil thoroughly until water drains out of the bottom of the pot.

  5. Heat stress

    Named for 90 plants

    How to tell: The tips turn brown during periods of intense, direct summer heat even if the soil is damp.

    What to do: Apply a layer of organic mulch around the base of the plant to keep the roots cool. If possible, provide some afternoon shade during the hottest weeks of the year.

  6. Water quality

    Named for 28 plants

    How to tell: The tips turn brown even when the soil is kept consistently moist.

    What to do: Switch to using distilled water, rainwater, or filtered water. Avoid using tap water that contains high levels of chlorine or fluoride.

  7. Sunburn

    Named for 13 plants

    How to tell: The tips or edges of the leaves turn brown or reddish-brown after being moved to a new spot. This happens when the plant gets too much direct, harsh sunlight.

    What to do: Move the plant to a spot with bright, indirect light. Avoid placing it directly in the path of intense afternoon sun.

  8. Salt damage

    Named for 11 plants

    How to tell: Brown tips appear after a winter where road salt was used nearby. The damage often shows up in early spring.

    What to do: Flush the soil with large amounts of water in early spring to leach salts away from the roots. Apply a layer of mulch to protect the soil.

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Plants most prone to this

Our guides rate it likely for 189 plants. Here are 48 of them, A to Z.

Find your plant

Every plant guide links to its own pages on that plant's problems. Find yours in the A to Z:

Other symptoms

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How often do the guides name each cause, across every symptom? See what goes wrong with plants, counted.

The causes on this page are drawn from our plant guides, which are generated with AI from each plant's care profile. They are general information, not horticultural advice. Read about how we build these guides.