Today, the most widely used lights for professional use are HIDs and fluorescents. Indoor flower and vegetable growers typically use high-pressure sodium (HPS/SON) and metal halide (MH) HID lights, but fluorescents and LEDs are replacing metal halides due to their efficiency and economy.

Red and yellow light is longer wavelength, lower energy light, while the blue light is higher energy. All plants, however, has chlorophyll a, which absorbs most strongly at ~450 nm, or a bright blue color.

LED lights

16-36 inches

The first signs look like thin outlines on the outside of the leaves, so if you catch this quickly you will have a chance to avoid further damage. If some of the leaves start curling up, it might also be a sign that the plant is too close to the light. Good ventilation usually also helps with this issue.

If a plant’s leaves directly touches the lights, it leaves “burns” from the heat of the bulbs. This plant was green and healthy through the vegetative stage under an LED grow light, but the leaves started dying soon after flowering started (even though that distance had been fine in the vegetative stage).

Woody plants under drought stress can have many symptoms including yellowing, wilting leaves that develop early fall color and burning or scorching on edges of leaves. Plants may drop some or all of their leaves and appear dead. Most established woody plants recover when watered.

When plants have too little water, leaves turn brown and wilt. This also occurs when plants have too much water. The biggest difference between the two is that too little water will result in your plant’s leaves feeling dry and crispy to the touch while too much water results in soft and limp leaves.

Symptoms of Too Much Sun

1. Color: Pigments will look washed out and bleached.
2. Burns: Leaves eventually get blotchy burns in white, yellow, or brown.
3. Texture: Over-exposure is often accompanied by signs of desiccation e.g. wrinkled, scaly, or crispy leaves.
4. Click here for more info and example photos.

The best way to revive these plants is to encourage them with a payoff of moisture deep within the dry root ball. Once accomplished, the roots will moisten and grow, where it is dark, cool and wet.

Mulch plants with a 3-to-4-inch layer of organic mulch (woodchips, shredded bark) to reduce soil evaporation and temperature fluctuations, and to conserve moisture. Irrigate slowly so water percolates down into the soil. Do not fertilize unless adequate irrigation is available.

Add some sugar – Believe or not, studies have shown that a weak sugar and water solution made with plain sugar from the grocery store given to a plant after transplanting can help recovery time for transplant shock in plants. It can also be used as a transplant shock preventer if applied at the time of transplanting.

Can leaves repair themselves? No, torn or split houseplant leaves will never heal. But your plant can grow new leaves to replace the damaged ones if you remove them or wait until they drop off.

You can cut out damaged leaves along with misplaced plant shoots. When overzealous stems ruin the plant’s shape, you can use sharp scissors to cut them back to just above a leave-point. All you have to do is cut out the dead leaves, but don’t leave small snags that will die back.

Can I Revive a Dying Plant? The answer is yes! First and foremost, the dying plant’s roots must be alive to have any chance of coming back to life. Some healthy, white roots mean that the plant has a chance at making a comeback.

Try these six steps to revive your plant.

1. Repot your plant. Use a high-quality indoor plant potting mix to revitalise your plant, and choose a pot that’s wider than the last one.
2. Trim your plant. If there’s damage to the roots, trim back the leaves.
3. Move your plant.
4. Water your plant.
5. Feed your plant.
6. Wipe your plant.

Here are few common symptoms and what they may mean:

1. Wilting leaves.
2. Plant/soil not holding water.
3. Yellowing leaves.
4. Roots at the surface or coming through drainage holes.
5. Tips/edges of leaves turning brown.
6. Flower buds form then drop off before opening, or shrivel soon after opening.

Water will help them recover from the trauma and stress. Give your damaged plants about an inch of water or so. When plants experience a freeze, moisture is removed from their tissues. Watering them afterwards allows them to rehydrate.