PLANT PROBLEM FINDER

What’s wrong with your plant?

Choose the symptom you notice first. Plantiva will help you narrow down what to investigate, what evidence to look for, and what to do next.

Start Diagnosis

01

Observe before you act.

Leaf color alone cannot tell you whether a plant needs more water, less water, pest control, or a root inspection. Pattern, moisture, physical evidence, and recent change matter.

  • No account required
  • About two minutes
  • Works entirely in your browser

Step 1 · Choose one starting symptom

What caught your attention first?

Choose the clearest symptom. You can restart at any time if another pattern fits better.

HOW IT WORKS

A symptom is a starting point.

01

Start with the pattern

Where the symptom appears—and whether it is local or plant-wide—helps separate normal aging, exposure injury, and broader stress.

02

Check the root zone

Wetness, dryness, drainage, and root structure are different clues. Wet potting mix alone does not prove root rot.

03

Look for direct evidence

Webbing, insects, honeydew, spreading lesions, or structurally deteriorating roots carry more weight than a vague symptom.

04

Change one thing carefully

Results prioritize checks and low-risk actions. Monitor the response before stacking several treatments or care changes.

WHY SYMPTOMS OVERLAP

One symptom can point to several problems.

Yellow leaves can relate to persistent wetness, a dry root zone, root stress, low light, normal aging, or pest pressure. Wilting can happen when roots are very dry, but it can also occur when persistently wet or damaged roots cannot function normally. Brown tips may involve uneven moisture, salts, heat, dry air in sensitive plants, or root stress.

That is why the finder combines pattern, conditions, recent changes, and physical evidence instead of turning one leaf color into one diagnosis.

BEFORE TREATING

Check in a useful order.

  1. Identify the plant when possible.
  2. Note where symptoms appear and whether they are spreading.
  3. Check moisture below the surface and review drainage.
  4. Reconstruct recent changes in water, light, temperature, location, or products.
  5. Inspect leaf undersides, stems, and new growth for direct pest evidence.
  6. Change one non-urgent variable at a time and watch new growth.

COMMON SYMPTOMS

Eight practical starting points.

The V1 finder covers yellow leaves, drooping or wilting, brown tips or crispy edges, curling or distorted leaves, sudden leaf drop, soft or mushy tissue, spots or discoloration, and visible bugs or pest signs.

Each path asks only the questions that help distinguish its main possibilities.

ROOT INSPECTION

Inspect roots when the evidence justifies it.

Overwatering describes a watering behavior. Persistent wetness describes the growing condition it can create. Root rot should refer to confirmed deterioration or disease—not wet mix, dark root color, yellow leaves, or drooping alone.

Root inspection is more useful when decline continues in wet mix, drainage has failed, the crown is soft, or roots are structurally mushy, sloughing, collapsing, or breaking apart.

IMPORTANT LIMITS

This tool narrows possibilities. It does not replace diagnosis.

Different problems can look alike, and more than one stress can occur at once. The finder avoids naming a specific pest, root disease, or leaf disease unless your answers include compatible physical evidence.

For rapid decline, spreading symptoms, valuable plants, or uncertainty after the basic checks, contact a local extension diagnostic service or qualified plant professional.

Read the complete plant diagnosis guide

REVIEW SOURCES

Built around extension guidance.

The decision paths use conservative principles from university extension and integrated pest-management resources. Plant identification and species-specific care still matter.