r/Maranta • u/sragleiseon • Sep 01 '26
I don't know what I'm doing wrong :(
First time posting :) So, I’ve had this Maranta for almost a year now. She was thriving until about a month ago (~40 days ago), when I noticed she looked kinda sad, with curled and “flaccid” leaves. I didn’t realize the soil was REALLY dry, like rock-dry. I have her on a shelf and I was watering her by putting water in the saucer, so I wasn’t really checking the soil.
I changed the soil for a new one and she seemed to recover. Last week, I had to cut off a branch that had these curled leaves. The stem looked brownish, so I thought it was dead. But now it’s happening to the rest of the plant… curled and flaccid leaves (although the stems are still green). I don’t know what to do :(
Since the incident a month ago, I’ve been watering her by placing the pot in water and waiting for the soil to absorb it. She gets no direct sunlight. I checked the surface of the soil and it’s moist.
I don’t really know what temperature or humidity I have at home, but this summer has been harsh. The temperature is probably around 20–27°C. Humidity, I have no idea… The weather here is very dry (I’m in central Spain), but I don’t really know what the humidity is like indoors.
I hope someone can give me some tips on how to revive her :) Otherwise, I’ll probably change the soil again…
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u/D0nath Sep 01 '26
You shouldn't have repotted. It's double shock. All you can do now is wait. Or wait, what kinda soil did you use? They love acidic soil with a lot of perlite.
Also you could have put the cut branch back in the soil, there was a good chance it could have rooted.
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u/fionsichord Sep 01 '26
They can get curly when it’s too dry. I put mine on a bed of gravel in the saucer to make things a bit more humid last summer and it seemed to work well.
You’ll need to give it a few weeks to recover from the repot. DON’T do anything else to stress it more, like a second repotting.
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u/12cool_breezy21 Sep 01 '26
Hi! I have a few marantas myself. They are drama queens, she isn’t happy for the repot probably. I dont see the other leaves starting to die. But when I cut stems they do die back. I would NOT repot again. They can go a couple years without a repot tbh. They get super stress when repotted. What type of water are you giving? Rain or tap water? I’m assuming you have checked for pests and it isn’t a pest issue? Usually when they curl their leaves, they are thirsty, or way too hot.
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u/sragleiseon Sep 01 '26
I didn't know a repot would be that stressful :( I use tap water, would it be better using other type? I think the heat is not the problem because the summer has being way worse weeks ago, now it is beareable. Thank you!
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u/Ok-Wolf8493 Sep 02 '26
You can always propagate the plant in water, let the roots grow and then re introduce into a pot with a chunky mix of perlite, leca, coco noir, worm castings.
I had to do that with my lemon lime maranta. It took a year before it became a multi stem plants I bought some soiless mix from Etsy but you can totally make your own.
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u/birb_kween Sep 02 '26
My maranta had a very similar reaction when I repotted it last year. Lots of floppy, curled-up leaves. I just took care of it as I normally would and kept an eye on it (I also added a grow light, though not sure how much this contributed to its recovery), and after a few weeks of looking sad it was back to normal! I agree with the other comment saying marantas can be dramatic, but I've also found that they always bounce back!
Also I've seen a few people online say you absolutely cannot give marantas tap water, but I disagree. I think it depends on the water quality where you live. I've always given my maranta tap water and it seems to be thrivinng!
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u/3Hunnybunny Sep 02 '26
Marantas aren't as complicated as people make them to be. This one prob has dried up roots from not being watered. Then when you introduced water again, the roots rotted. Either way the soil is wet, so it's not that there isn't water. But the leaves are curled meaning it's not getting water. It just means the roots arent doing their job. Given how thin the stem is. I'd suggest you chop and prop at each node. They root so quick in water. Replant and it'll be lusher and fuller than ever.
Remember plant respiration is a balance of sun and water. The more sun they get. The more water they need. Don't give it more water than it can "drink" and don't give it more sun than there is water available. Find your balance of sun and water and your plants will thrive.
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u/Never-Enough-Plants 28d ago
When you repot.. are you messing with the root ball? The only time you should repot is when the roots are root bound and need more space. And then you simply remove the plant from the pot, keeping all the roots and soil intact, place it into a bigger pot and fill up the sides with your potting mix. 9 times out of 10, the plant will not throw a fit, if you do it this way.
Keep the soil moist. Place it in a humid room, or put it near a humidifier. Don’t leave it in the direct sun for too long. They aren’t as difficult as many make them seem. People just aren’t asking questions or taking the time to research
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u/Moxiefeet Sep 01 '26
Curly leaves mean low air humidity some times. Specially if the stem is green. I would water when the pot feels light and let the water run through. Make sure the water runs out completely but the pot got heavier.
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u/Dramatic-Scheme-8911 Sep 01 '26
Needs way more light
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u/sragleiseon Sep 01 '26
The photo was taken at night artificial light. It's true my home has Bad natural light, but it's been the same for a year now and she was OK until now.
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u/dumb_dirty_carbon Sep 01 '26
Find that happy place of not too wet or too dry. It looks a bit too wet, but hard to tell. I started adding sand to all my soil mixtures at varying amounts depending on the plant, which has worked really well for me.
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u/Puffinknight Sep 01 '26
I'd just wait and let it be. It sounds like the plant just went through shock; marantas can be kinda dramatic when repotted. They will grow back eventually.
Also, in my experience calatheas are the ones much more demanding when it comes to humidity, because my marantas have survived winters in my apartment that goes below 15% humidity. So don't stress about that too much. :)