You finally got your hands on a Pilea Peperomioides (yay!) and now you’re wondering what every little tiny thing is?  Join me for Pilea Peperomioides: Troubleshooting Q&A

Your Pilea Peperomioides questions answered on Clever Bloom. White spots, brown spots, curling leaves...everything you want to know! #pilea #pileapeperomioides #houseplants #plantcare #chinesemoneyplant

 

Hi, I’m glad you’re here!  I received so many questions from all of you after my last Pilea post (How to care for Pilea Peperomioides) where my dear friend Morgan shared her expertise on the subject.  That post is so Amazing!!  But today I’m going to answer some of your questions and help you troubleshoot some of your problems.  A lot of these questions I wondered myself.  After some research, talking to my plant friends and getting to know my plants I was able to come up with these answers.  Here we go! (I’m just going to call it Pilea from here on so it’s less typing for me.  Ha!)

Your Pilea Peperomioides questions answered on Clever Bloom. White spots, brown spots, curling leaves...everything you want to know!

Q&A

Q.  Some of the leaves on my Pilea are starting to curl, why is this happening?

A.  Curling leaves can happen.  It’s happened to me.  Your plant is not dying but there are a few things you can do to help this.  In some plants, curled leaves can indicate the plant is drying out but I believe with Pileas it’s the opposite.  Make sure you are not over watering.  Let the soil dry out and then give it a thorough water.  In addition, make sure it has enough filtered bright light.  Find a good combo of water/light for your plant.    Curled bottom leaves can mean too much water and curled top leaves can mean too much sun. You can also check for bugs just in case.

Q.  Some of the bottom leaves are yellowing and falling off, what’s wrong with it?

A.  Don’t worry!  This happens to most plants.  It’s probably a combination of things but it seems to be age.  I can have an otherwise healthy plant and the oldest leaves (the bottom ones) will yellow and eventually fall off.  As soon as it happens, new ones will start to grow.  If they start to yellow, they will not recover.  You can either let it fall off on it’s own or you can pluck it off.  It’s a bummer when it happens but it does seem to be normal.

Q.  What are the white spots under the leaves?  Do I have bugs?

A.  I don’t think you have bugs (although you should check just to be sure).  The leaves have stomata (pores) which allow for gas exchange.  Water vapor is released through these pores as well.  I believe these white deposits are a sort of mineral deposit when the water vapor is released.  I started using distilled water and they’re mostly gone.

Q.  I’m getting brown spots on the leaves, what could it be?

A.  Brown spots could be a few things.  In my case, I believe I had over fertilized and over watered.  Over fertilizing is basically a chemical burn so don’t over do it!  Pilea don’t like to be wet so let the soil dry out before doing a thorough water.  This has been “best practice” for my 2 Pileas (from different sources).  Brown spots could also be too much direct sunlight (sun burn).  They do need a good amount of light but it should be bright filtered (although they can tolerate low light levels as well).  You could also have bugs.  Check very closely for creepy crawlies.

Q.  My leaves are drooping, is this normal?

A.  Pilea sort of have that “hang loose” look but if you notice a substantial droop it probably just needs to be watered!  If you water regularly then check to make sure you aren’t over watering.  Over watering could cause root rot and drooping leaves could be a characteristic of root rot.

Your Pilea Peperomioides questions answered on Clever Bloom. White spots, brown spots, curling leaves...everything you want to know!A few other things to keep in mind

  • All Pilea Peperomioides are different.  I have two from two different sources and they both act very differently.
  • Get to know your Pilea’s needs.  They will differ due to environmental factors.
  • Don’t over water!  This is the number one problem with most first time Pilea parents.  They don’t need as much water as we think.
  • If your Pilea was shipped, it likely had some stress and it will need some adjustment time.  Don’t worry, with proper care, it should adjust fine.

Answers to other questions

  • Unfortunately, I do not have any Pilea for sale.  I have two that have not produced any babies yet.  I will probably not sell any ever (unless I have a large amount).  I have many friends who have been trying to find them and will give them away first.  But you all will be the first to know if I do have any available.
  • I currently do not know where you can get one.  I always check Etsy and eBay and see them pop up from time to time.  I will always post any available on my IG so follow along!
  • If you do have Pilea and need directions on how to ship them I have directions here.
  • This is the fertilizer I use for my plants when I’m doing a large amount of plants at once.  But I use the Miracle Grow Pump Plant Food for individual plants as it has a pump, makes it super easy!  Follow directions on the bottle.  I do once in Spring and once in Summer.
  • I currently have one Pilea in a glazed 4″ pot and one in a thrifted stoneware mug that I drilled a drainage hole in.  They NEED drainage!
  • I use this indoor organic potting soil and don’t use additives.
  • I water mine about once per week.
  • I do give it artificial light in the winter.  This is a kit with a lamp and bulb.  I use this bulb brand but do not have this lamp.
  • I spritz them a few times per day.  Since they’re small I use these small glass spray bottles that make a fine mist.  It helps to raise the humidity.

Your Pilea Peperomioides questions answered on Clever Bloom. White spots, brown spots, curling leaves...everything you want to know!

I hope I was able to answer some of your questions today.  If you need help or have any other questions, leave a comment.  I’ll be happy to answer what I can or refer you if I can’t.  Congratulations on being a proud Pilea Peperomioides owner!  Best of Luck!

Here are some of the products I use:


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  1. Thanks so much for this post! I just got a pilea and I was worried about the droopy leaves– however, it did spend 4 days being shipped! I had to repot it since the postal service did a number on the box. it lost a couple tiny leaves but I’m trying to let it adjust before I start freaking out and this definitely helps 🙂

    1. Grace,
      How is your Pilea so far? I just got my Pilea baby last week and today I found the leaves turn black edge. 🙁 if you have any advise, please help. Thank you.

      Larp

  2. Hi Erin,

    I have a Pilea cutting that has been growing beautifully since February. The newest 2 leaves though have seemed to tear as they’ve grown. They’re not fully unfurled yet, but I can see the leaves have broken/cracked a bit in a certain spot. Do you have any idea as to why this might be happening?
    Thanks!

  3. Hi Erin! I was lucky to get a pilea from my aunt last November. It’s been growing well in my SW facing window, but recently some of the leaves have been getting very pale — like almost white! Some are a bit yellow as well, but the white surprised me. It gets a couple hours of direct sunlight — maybe this is too much? I will also try watering less and make sure the soil is totally dry before watering again…Let me know if you have any ideas! Thank you!

    1. So i have a first generation pilea plant. She has grown tall and produces multiple babies, but my bottom leaves keep slowly falling off. The leaves themselves don’t turn brown nor curl, but the steams next to the trunk turn brown amd and eventually fall off. Why is this?

      1. I don’t know if you ever found a solution to this as this is the exact same problem I have! I can’t find any advice on this!

  4. Hey! I’m following this really cool account on Instagram, it´s called Pilea.lovers and, apparently, there´s this company: piep.co which is going to start selling Pileas in the US!!!!

  5. Where can I purchase one of these plants? I have been looking for one for over two years now. I am dying to have one.

    1. I actually found mine at Pike Nursery last weekend. I couldn’t believe it. They were $29.99 ea. Wow, but they all looked happy & healthy. They were all in 4 in pots. So maybe a Pikes near you.

  6. I recently order one from Amazon.
    The delivery was amazing
    Small and nice fresh plant packed in beautiful box
    Thank you so much for all information

    1. Sa e here. Delivered dec. 21, 2018. Love my new baby! Who is already pushing up 2 new sets of babies! 2 leaves have turned black on edges. I simply cut them off and she is beautiful!

  7. Hi there! I got a pilea from a friend in July, who had already potted it but the top soil didn’t look so great. I watered it whenever the soil seemed dry. It sprouted two leaves almost simultaneously and then stopped. I was concerned about the dirt it came with so I repotted it with succulent soil mixed with perlite and sure enough the root ball was concentrated in one place and hadn’t spread. The roots were kind of orange but I repotted anyway in the new mix. The plant doesn’t appear to be dying but it also has shown no growth for the past month and a half. I feel like everywhere I’ve looked, people’s pileas grow so quickly, so I feel like something is wrong. Should I cut the roots and stick it in water to start over? Thank you!

    1. Hi Genevieve!

      I can’t give you a specific reason why your pilea isn’t growing very fast (or growth has paused). I can say, it has happened to me before. It’s not an immediate cause for concern. A few things to look at:
      1. Make sure you aren’t overwatering.
      2. Pull the plant out of the soil and just make sure you don’t ave any pests.
      3. They need lots of light!
      4. You could fertilize if you haven’t lately (past 4 weeks)
      5. Make sure the roots have room to grow in the pot.

      Also, Pilea will change with seasons. I just had a ton of new growth on mine and then a few weeks later, a bunch of older bottom leaves just fell right off. It can happen.

      If your plant seems otherwise healthy then I wouldn’t worry too much about slow growth.

      Good Luck!

  8. Hi! I bought a Pilea a few weeks ago and the bottom leaves keep turning yellow and falling off. Since I got it 5 leaves have fallen. I water it once a week and keep it in a southern facing room about 7 feet from the window. Is it just aging leaves or should I move it closer to the window? Thank you!

    1. Your Pilea should not be getting any direct sun. I keep mine near the windw but not where the sun can ever touch it.

  9. So,after a bottom leaf yellows and drops off,will new leaves form only above that area or will they form at or below the area of leaf drop? (I don’t want to end up with a bare stalk like a topiary!)Thnx!!

  10. Hi Erin, I have a beautiful full grown mamma plant that will not stop producing babies! Right now I have 5 babies that I would like to sell but I live in Sweden. Do you have any friends in Sweden looking for a pilea p?

  11. Hi everyoneI’m desperate! I can’t find any info online…I’ve had my pilea for several months now, re-potted a few months ago as it grew too big for the pot it was in and it produced new leaves – and it’s still producing new ones.
    But a few days ago I’ve noticed one of the leaves turned half black and, stupidly, ( I don’t know much about plants) I thought it was because of the contact with a leaf of aloe vera as when I discovered the black leaf, that was on direct contact to it. So I moved it to a different position, making sure that it was not touching any other plants. But yesterday I found out that another leaf is turning black from both sides and it’s all puckered and soft :'(
    Also both the black leaves developed a sort of white-spots, mildew-like on the dark areas.
    Can anyone advise? Please!
    Also, any suggestions for a good fertilizer here in the UK?

    Thanks
    Elisa

    1. Are you allowing your plant to dry between waterings? If not you may need to check the roots for root rot and do a complete change over of dirt.

  12. Hi Elisa,
    Wow .This was very informative post you shared on this page with the outstanding steps to eliminate the dryness from the Sensitive skin of body in a seven days and increase the beauty of skin by using the hemp seed oil daily according to the period of a time after the recommendations of a doctor and remember the instructions of a doctor which help you to eliminate this kind of skin dryness ,My suggestion is you must go to a doctor one time in a week for starting of proper treatment of eliminating dryness appeared on the Sensitive skin of body for increasing the beauty of skin in a summer season due to the effect of sun rays,keep it in your mind don’t work in the light of sun because the heat of sun with the dust particles of sun rays increase the rough dryness and cracks with lines on the skin due to the demaged of skin layers cells after the working of some time you notice the color of skin become black and cracks with lines are increased on the Sensitive skin of a body this is also a effect of skin cancer . So take care of skin and avoid to work in a light of sun . you also use a mask on the face if necessary to work in the light of sun and also use carrot in the food salad .
    Thanks.

  13. Hello! I harvested a few babies from a mother plant at the end of autumn which I then rooted in water. I’ve planted them in soil but over time each leaf just goes spindly at the base of the stalk and drops off. Is this because I tried to propagate at the start of winter? I definitely haven’t over watered and I can’t think what else might be wrong! Any help would be much appreciated!

  14. Hi everyone! We have pileas for sale in two sizes that can ship anywhere in the US – the bigger plants already have multiple babies. Check us out – plantplantplant.com – would love your feedback and happy to share any tips we’ve gathered on growing these 🙂

  15. Hi and thank you for this article. Great information. I got my Pilea at a garden store last weekend. It’s in a 4 in plastic pot. There are roots coming out the bottom. Should I transplant it now or wait awhile? And should I add perlite in addition to the sand to the soil?

  16. I was shocked! I walked into my local Ace and they had dozens of plies for sale! A good size too for only $15! So if anyone is near Takoma Park MD, the Ace in Old Town is selling them! Just thought I’d share:)

  17. if i believe ive over fertilized my Pilea (fertilized last night and this morning a couple leaves have brown spots) will my plant die? or should I just let it be?

    thanks in advance,
    Alex

    1. If you think you over fertilized it then you might want to repotit with new soil since the fertilizer lives in the soil.

  18. Hello,

    My oldest Pilea is really big now, and in stead of new leaves on top, it has started to grow new cuttings in the crown of the plant.

    Do you have any idea why it would do that? what do you think is the best thing to do? It looks really funny now and have small flowers. I want it to be like a tree, but i dont know if i should cut the new cuttings of. I can send u a photo so u can better understand.

    1. Pilea s can be “tree like” but they are a plant so you may not get the look you want. If it’s producing babies then it’s healthy and that’s great! You can propagate the babies and then more of the nutrients will go to the mother plant!

  19. Hello, thank you so much for this! Your page has been the most helpful in giving pilea advice. I am a new pilea parent and I don’t want it to die!

    2 questions;

    I notice little gnats by it sometimes, is there a way you suggest getting rid of them that’s safe for my plant?

    I recently bought plant food spikes (https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Gro-Indoor-Plant-Food-48-Spikes/dp/B0019QEB86/ref=sr_1_1?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1531254093&sr=8-1&keywords=miracle+grow+plant+food+spikes) Do you think these will be safe for my pilea? Plus, were you saying you only feed it once a season?! I was told once a month–is that too much?

    Thank you!!

  20. My plant is yellow help. I don’t know if I’m over or under watering it. I water it once a week but the soil always seems pretty dry. What should I do?

    1. Did you find out what the problem was? Mine is going through the same. The soil seems always to be very dry but I’m scared of overwatering.

  21. This post has been super helpful thank you! I totally overwatered mine when the leaves started to turn… but hopefully rotating sunlight can help her survive! Mine was shipped to me through mylunarly subscription box but they get theirs from bloomscapes so if youre looking for a pilea try them!! Im hoping my brown thumb keeps this baby alive!!

  22. Never have I read any information on this plant about ” does this plant actually bloom ?”Its all about locating a plant, care ,issues price,sharing or trendy

  23. Hi, I just got a Pilea from Etsy and when I opened my package almost all of the leave stem were broken due to transport!! I’m so bummed out. I put it in water right after and I’m holing I can save at least ONE! But it’s looking rough.

  24. Pilea CAN be grown from seeds! I received seeds from
    Wish a few weeks ago. I wet some paper towels and placed the seeds on the wet towels, placing them in a
    ziplock plastic bag. I now see tiny green leaves popping
    up all over the paper towels! Yay! When they grow a
    bit larger, I plan to place them into a tabletop terrarium
    (Walmart, about $7). BTW, I ordered a pilea from Amazon for $12. They sent me TWO plants! They were
    sent in a sturdy box so there were very few broken stems. And the large of the two plants has babies all over! I really lucked out.

  25. When someone writes an post he/she retains the plan of a user in his/her brain that how a user can be aware of it.

    So that’s why this post is great. Thanks!

  26. Hello
    My piles is sick. It developed a mould-like substance on the topsoil of the pot and I took the easy route of removing the top cm of soil. It has come back. I moved it to a shader spot and all the leaves have gone brown-I may have overwatered it. I never added fertiliser. This post makes me wonder if its just the mineral deposits you discuss…. I think I should just repot it completely but am worried about stressing it more now there are no leaves at all. (it had 6 or 7 leaves so wasn’t that big) any advice appreciated, thanks.

  27. I have ordered plants by mail from Pistils Nursey in Portland, OR. The first plant I ever ordered was a Pilea and it was GORGEOUS! Arrived in Alaska in the middle of February in tip-top shape.
    They put heaters in the shipping boxes and package plants eith great care. This is your place to find your Chinese Money Plant (pilea!!!)

      1. I have it outside but under a roof. It does not receive direct sun light.
        My house is a bit dark and I think the little plant won’t be happy indoors. May be I shoul try moving it indoors
        Than you!

  28. Hi my Pilea has been producing translucent new leaves that are curly. I can’t see any bugs etc…these leaves have then been browning an so I have removed them. I water sparingly and have just fertilized in a bid to help. No change. Any ideas? The plant looks healthy otherwise.

    1. Anytime I hear “translucent” I automatically think over watering. But if you say you aren’t, I’m not sure…You can always email me a picture and I can take a look!

      1. Was there ever a solve to this? I have the same problem: curly leaves, new leaves are translucent, and its dropping leaves all over the place (they are green when the fall). I drench once every two weeks or so, and it lives on my desk at work, so office lights only. It’s been healthy for 2 years and all the sudden it’s just falling apart.

  29. Hi there!! Thank you so much for sharing that. I love this plant and has quickly become a favorite!!

    One of my new favorite things to do is grow plants in different vessels with just water… I haven’t tried with this plant and I would hate to kill one!! Any idea?
    Thanks in advance!! 🙂

  30. Hi there,
    I am very new to the plant world and just got a Pilea from a friend a few weeks ago. It was very small and she gave it to me in a cut out bottom of a PET bottle. I didn’t even know they are so rare and special (this makes me feel even more stupid for killing it).

    I had it near my window and I probably both over and under watered it. Unfortunately the whole plant (including the stalk and leaves) has gone completely brown and shrivelled up. It seems like it has died.

    I’m trying to save it so I moved it to a sunnier more humid spot and probably watered it even more cause I was worried it was thirsty. I then figured it might need more oxygen so I repotted it into a bigger flowerpot with drainage. It seemed way too easy to pull it out of the soil and I didn’t see any long roots.

    I will now stop watering it so much and wait and see. Probably I’ll also buy a medium fertiliser but I’m worried it won’t come back to life.

    Can that happen so quickly? Does this sound like it is dead? And what else can I do to save it?

    I feel rediculous cause it’s supposed to be a very easy plant to take care of. Any advise appreciated.

  31. Help please! looked at every question but didn’t see my problem mentioned by anyone! I bought my Pileas a year ago and just now. From Trader Joe’s. The older ones dropped almost all of their leaves and one died. The survivor didn’t grow in bright suffused light, so I put it on a winter sunny window sill thinking its remaining very tiny leaves might get larger. No, it did grow but the leaves remained tiny. The new ones have dropped almost all of their leaves. I’d kept one inside it’s plastic wrapper to let it transition. Then removed the wrapper, misted—and many of the leaves dropped anyway, but not all. Why does the older survivor have such tiny leaves on the main stem and all offsets? How can I get it to grow normally? Will the one that dropped most of its leaves fill out in bright suffed light? I don’t over or under water! Help!!! Jud

  32. For those looking to buy Pileas, Trader Joe’s are currently selling them for under $8 per 4″ pot. I live in Southern Calif. They look very healthy and beautiful. I just got mine last week. I would not risk buying online. But I noticed tiny white spots under the leaves. I’m wondering if they are fungus. I washed each leaf with soap and water using wet paper towel… very carefully because the leaves easily breaks off the stem. Then I rinse them individually, being careful not to put soap on the soil.

    My question is, should I spray with organic fungucidal spray?

    Also, I sprayed the leaves with organic leaf shine to boost luster. Will that ruin the plant? Pls reply right away so I can run to Trader Joe’s and buy a backup in case I ruined these. They run out of plants so quickly.

    Thank you.

  33. Thanks, I saw the white spots under the leave and thought it could maybe be bugs. Now I am pleased and relaxed to know it’s not. Merci ❤️

  34. Hi, hope you can help. I have had my Pilea for a year ish and she sprouted lots of babies! I removed the babies from her and repotted them and they are doing well but she is acting strange. Her new leaves that grow from the middle are coming through a dark purple colour, and she has started growing more little babies that are also purple. I repotted her with different soil once i got the babies could this be a reason? Thankyou in advance

  35. I bought a baby pilea and when I transported home the leaves fell. All had been green and perky until then. The root is still there and looks alive — is there a possibility it will grow back? Or is it dead

  36. Hey! I’ve got a slight problem with my pilea and i haven’t been able to find anything online about it so I was hoping someone would be able to help

    I got it a few months ago and it’s been growing like crazy but i looked this morning and there is some strange brown irregular spots on the underside of 4 – 5 of the leaves. They almost look like scabs, and I’m not sure what it is or what’s causing it

  37. Thanks for all the helpful advice on caring for my Piles. My question is what should I do when it flowers? Should I remove the blooms, like I do with a coleus or just leave them?

  38. My baby got too much sun and now it’s brown and sad. I moved it to a better home but I’m wondering if there is anything else I can do to help it along? I really hope it’s revive-able it’s still such a baby!

  39. My plant is both drooping (under watering) AND turning black (over watering it).. but it also keeps sprouting new little baby plants, so it’s obviously healthy enough to keep growing. Not in direct sunlight. I am confused if I am over watering it, under watering it, or just in general killing it. Haaaaalp.

  40. Some of my bottom leaves are turning a lighter green but still have dark green veining. Do you have any suggestions of what it could be or how to remedy it so. It doesn’t affect the rest of the plant? Thank you!

  41. Hi, my plant is weird, it looks healthy and I have lots of new growth but the stalks grow to a certain height and the just drop off! No discolouration, everything looks healthy just the stalk comes away from the main root like it has been cut off! Any clues as to what this may be?

  42. My Pilea leaves have become super soft, any ideas what’s wrong? The soil is dry, teetering on moist seems maybe a little droopy too

    1. I received a propagated pilea plant from a friend in fall. It took time to acclimate but then was growing great (several baby leaves). Now, it’s winter. The babies have stopped coming and I’ve noticed a patch of brown scarring will form on the oldest leaf (plus it turns lighter green) and falls off. I’ve lost 4 leaves this way now (out of only 12 leaves total) within 4 weeks or so. Any ideas on what the issue could be?

  43. Hello. I have a Chinese money plant that was exposed to a lot of light. It’s growing fine but the lower leaves have yellow spots. If I remove them will new leaves take there place on the lower stock? I don’t want to remove the fullness of it.

    1. The bottom leaves of a Pilea peperomioides tend to yellow and fall off periodically. It’s very normal, So don’t worry too much. You can pull them off but new leave will always only grow from the top middle OR there will be baby plantlets that can grow from the bottom.Leave will not regrow in the same spot.

  44. While transporting my new pilea home, a couple of leaves fell off the stem, so now I have a couple of bare stems on the plant. What should I do?

    Thanks

  45. My pilea has lots of white dots on the top of the new leaves like it’s missing colour. Those leaves are also curling and crinkling up and this problem seems to be spreading to the more mature leaves in the centre as well. Would you be able to tell me what’s wrong with my pilea and how I can fix it? Thanks

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