Yes! It was cold, oh no ! I live in Minnesota, so it was taken from a building to heated truck & then to my house, but it was in the cold briefly :(

I used the same soil to transplant a few other plants, including an oxalis I also took home from work instead of it being tossed (on a warmer day)...and they are all doing well.

Is it because it was outside briefly? I feel so bad I didn't think of that.

Is it still possible it will recover? I feel bad if it's irreparable! Better it stay a trash can & be pulled at by kids than die in my attempt to save it! :(

That could be part of why it looks unhappy. I wouldn't beat yourself up about trying to do something good. If the stems and roots are still firm, it should grow pretty new leaves & soon look even better. I'd let it dry near a bright window & send good vibes toward it. Good vibes from here!

Thank you! Should I cut off the leaves if they never recover?

Freezing temps, too?!? Sheesh, no wonder it's grumpy. (Just kidding) Be patient, it'll recover.

I don't know what it's called, but many businesses have two front doors with a small room in between them that acts as a climate buffer zone separating the nice comfy inside, and whatever extreme temps are outside. There is a local Mexican restaurant here with a giant chinese evergreen in that little room, like two feet away from the front door. It constantly gets BLASTED with freezing air all winter... people standing there with the front door open, smashing into it all the time... It's been in the same place in the same depleted soil for years, yet it somehow keeps growing. That one is acclimated to abuse. Yours is not, so it might act angry for awhile.

Yes, removing those leaves would help the appearance, once you see which are damaged. Once a leaf has turned brown, it can't recover.

Jpciii, I'd love to see a pic of that plant if you get a chance to take one sometime!

Is there a hole in the bottom of that pot?

Yes.

Definitely take all those curled leaves off the plant, the stem can't take up enough moisture to support them all. It won't hurt to take off all but a couple of leaves at the top, ags are survivors. The fewer leaves it has to support, the less stress on the entire plant.

Were there any roots when you transplanted it? If so, what did they look like? I don''t like the way the stems look on the lower 3/4s, that brown color doesn't look normal. Feel the stems, are they mushy, rubbery? If they're firm that's a good thing.

You could cut the stem where it broke halfway through and put that top piece in water, it should take up moisture and firm up, and will probably eventually root. If this works, as a last resort and all else fails, you can do the same thing with the other stems.

Russ

Good call, Russ, last paragraph about the broken stem. I'd meant to say about the same thing you did about it, but failed to get it done.

Are you the same Russ on FB plant ID group yesterday, looking at the giant purple thing that folks thought was Wisteria, Petrea, Jacaranda & Bougainvillea? Headed that way to see how the conversation has gone over night...

Wasn't me Tiffany, I don't know zip about woody plants. But I do like bougainvillea's so much that I bought a book about the different varieties. I've pretty much given up on growing anything with thorns though, and boug's are some of the worst.

What's FB?

Blytheinspired, would you mind posting a picture of one of the good leaves, flattened out if it's curled? I'd like to see if I can identify the variety of your ag. This is just curiosity and has nothing to do with trying to save the poor thing.

Russ central Fla

TY. FB = Facebook.

Oh yeah Tiffany, duh... shoulda known that!

Russ

Thank you both. Stems are firm, all the way down to dirt. I cut off quite a few curled leaves & will be patient.

Here is a pic of a leaf:

If that pic doesn't help I can take another without my hand in the way.

Oh! And roots looked good when I transplanted it - I will find the snapped stem & get it in water.

And when I trimmed the curled leaves - I found new leaves starting already!

Very encouraging - although the pictures are crooked & blurry :/

You get the point.

Thanks everyone for advice - I will post updates as the plant improves. ;)

Blytheinspired, I was hoping to identify the ag, simply out of curiosity as I'm an ag collector. Let us know if you see any decline and we'll come up with more solutions. We'll keep our fingers crossed that you pull the ags through.

If a good leaf emerges that is green and looks normal, if you send another pic maybe I can tell you what it is.

Russ

Me again! Lots of new growth shooting from the harshly trimmed plant - but I'm pleased it seems to be bouncing back.

My new question - it's producing lots of blooms? I've counted 5 or more. Wondering if I should let the blooms run their course or cut them to force more leaves?

Thanks!

Wow, what a recovery! Good job. I've had mine for over 12 years and it's never bloomed before.

I've had another for 8+ years that never bloomed either, so I'm wondering if the bloom is just because it is kinda starting over with growth?

blytheinspired, blooming does take a lot of energy away from growing, producing leaves, etc. Personally I would cut them off close to the stem, let it put that energy into continuing to recover and get stronger. Getting seeds is the only reason I could argue to leaving the blooms alone, and in my experience most hybrids don't produce viable seeds.

It'd be interesting to know which ag you have, perhaps you could post a closeup of the front of a leaf.

Blooming might be simply the onset of spring, or maybe it's because of it's 'near death experience'.. :) If ags aren't blooming, I'd say the most likely cause is that they're not getting enough light. Ags are very good low-light plants, one of the best, but blooming probably takes more light than they're getting. That said, I can't explain our patient here in the pics with it's wild blooming spree.

Very glad to see it doing so well. Someone in another thread wasn't able to save theirs.

Russ, central Fla.

Well done!! Excellent save!

Agreed, Russ, the non-bloomers are probably in insufficient light. It's normal for Ags to bloom every year. I leave them on & enjoy them. They don't last long.

Thanks for help, all, I will post more pics as it recovers.

Interesting that bloom is about light as well (duh)...the other Chinese evergreen is literally a few feet distance from the window. A small room to begin with, as can be seen by the crowded plants. I'll give my other guy a space closer to the window!

I think your ag might be Maria Christina. This isn't the best picture but does it look anything like this one? Your leaf is too wide to be Silver King or Silver Queen, which I thought it was originally. Maria Christina has a similar pattern and color but leaf is wider.

Russ

Hmmm, the picture didn't stay with the text. I'll try to post it tomorrow.

Russ

Interested to see if that is the variety!

Trying again to post pic of Maria Christina. If not, I'll take pics of my own plant and post tomorrow.

Russ

Nope. Okay, manana.

Russ

I had trouble trying to upload pics yesterday too. Seems OK this morning.

Well done. It's very leggy, next spring you could cut the tips with 6 inches of stem and root them. I would cut the base stem about 4 inches above the soil line so the new growth would be lower and more attractive in the pot. You could discard the middle piece of stem or propagate that as well. This is often scary for those not familiar with propagation, but it's quite easy to do.

I originally thought this might be Maria Christina, but it's not. It is Silver King if it has solid green petioles (stem that attaches leaf to trunk), but if they're spotted with light green then it's Silver Queen which is much less common.

Russ

Excellent! TY for the fun, inspiring update!

I wouldn't consider this leggy, (excess distance between nodes,) just that it has lost its' older leaves. Cutting is an option, if it appeals, or adding a shorter companion, or just continuing to enjoy as-is.

Thank you both, I enjoy that it survived after the initial peril. I'm nervous to cut it now, but perhaps by spring I will be bold. :)

Russ1023- I'm very interested in the post about cutting and rooting. I accidently broke off the top of two stems a couple of months ago, the tops in water have rooted fine, and I am ready to replant them, but the stems that were left in the pot haven't done anything. They seem sturdy still, and green, but no leaves seem to be forming from the bottom through the soil or from lines where I would expect buds to come out. I have watered and fed as I always did. What should I do to make them grow? They were growing fine until I moved a bookshelf and dropped a book on them . Other plants in the same pot are peace lilies and they are doing well also.

Hi catburke, the base stems probably haven't produced new growth because they're still in slower growing winter mode. Even in the house they feel the lower light levels. They will start growing again when they 'feel spring' with higher light and temps are warmer. This especially applies if you're in a northern state, if you're in a deep south state you should see action soon. Don't worry about this, as long as the stems are firm they will jump-start at the appropriate time.

The new growth won't necessarily come from beneath the potting mix. If there's a lot of stem above the mix, growth may come from the top two or three nodes. If this is the case, personally I would cut the stems back to just two or three nodes high. This will force growth at a lower point rather than having an unattractive tall stem with top-heavy, bushy growth at the top. You'll also have a much better chance of new growth from under the mix, which makes for a nice bushy potful.

Regarding those pieces of stem left over from the 'surgery', you can easily root them if you want more plants. I'll tell you how if it's something that interests you, otherwise just discard them.

Do you know the variety of the aglaonema you have? If you don't, post a pic of some leaves with the petioles (leaf stems) and I'll try to ID it for you.

Russ

An afterthought catburke, I would leave those rooted tip cuttings in water until well into spring, making the transition to soil mix will be more difficult now. Ags can live indefinitely in water, so leaving them alone for now is not an issue. If you have some liquid fertilizer you can put a few drops in the water, if not don't worry about it.

I wouldn't try this personally, but I've even seen plants of A. modestum used as an aquarium plant, underwater.

Russ

Catburke, you mentioned 'lines where I expect buds to come out'. If you look closely at those lines, you should see a small, slightly raised bump just above every line. These buds are usually formed at opposite sides of the stem as the tip grows, and remain dormant until the top is severed.

OK, I'm done now.

Russ

Here's my repotted Chinese evergreen and they look puny. Low light, low water. Did I hurt them in the repotting? I can't figure out what to do to help. Do they need more light? Fertilizer? It's been like 8 months since I repotted and there are new leaves but then they dry up and droop instead of putting on lots of leaves and growing. It looks stunted...?

help!

"Okay guys. Joining this thread if anyone is still connected."

First-I think you'd get more responses faster if you posted your question as a new topic instead of reviving an old one. Just a quick tip~

About the plant-

"Low light"

Exactly how low? Just because aglaonemas (chinese evergreens) tolerate low light doesn't mean they prefer low light. In low light they can survive, but in bright indirect light they can thrive. That doesn't mean direct sun however-putting the plant in front at an east facing window will offer just the right amount of light. The brightest location possible without direct sun indoors will work perfectly.

Do the pots have drainage holes?

one pot has drain holes, the other does not. and they look the same.

they've been sitting right where i took the pic and that is the amount of light they've been receiving all summer.

btw i added to this to this thread so i could keep track of what was already written...if you prefer i start another, i can.

Which direction is the light coming from? An east-facing window, north etc.

When you say "low water", how often is that? When do you water, and how much water do you use?

What soil did you use to repot the plants?

"Did I hurt them in the repotting?"

Do you remember exactly how you repotted them? Like the process of how you did it?

Sorry about all the questions, but I (and others) need as much info as we can to figure out what's wrong and to set your plant back on the right path.

East facing window, no direct sunlight on the plant.

I only water when the top soil layer feels dry.

These were clupping ping made and rooted in water and transplanted back into the same pot they came out of. It sat empty in the basement while I waited for them to root. I had divided the plant with the main plant going into another pot and the new rooted plants going back into the original pot. So it is old potting soil.

Definitely something wrong with the roots, I would dig a stem out and see what's going on. I think they've either lost their roots, perhaps from overwatering, or they've been kept far too dry.

If the roots are gone, you might be better off putting the stems back into water this time of year. Are you in a southern tier state or up north?

Russ

We are in Kansas. Roots look fine. Think I need to feed it. Could the soil be depleted? Or repot into fresh potting soil? Soil is moist. It's just the lack of growth.

Your pot may be too big. Some of the leaves look waterlogged. Perhaps repotting into a smaller pot, and cleaning off all the dead leaves.

I wouldn't fertilize or repot this time of year, but if you do fertilize you might cut the recommended strength to 1/4. You're right, the roots look okay but could you tell if it was root-bound with roots throughout the entire pot? I don't think this ag is in too much trouble right now, what concerns me the most are all the dead, dried leaves. That's usually an indication of watering issues. I would try waiting an extra day or two before watering and see if it perks up.

If it's rootbound, based on what I can see in the pic you could unpot in the spring and trim the rootball down to an appropriate size for the amount of stems and foliage on top, and put it in a smaller pot with fresh mix. It may take off after that.

Russ

Whether or not you should/shouldn't fertilize during the darker months depends on how you water. If you water so you're flushing the soil regularly, you should fertilize all year long. If you're using a soil that doesn't allow you to flush the soil whenever you feel like it for fear of extended periods of soil saturation limiting root function or wrecking root health, and you're watering in sips to prevent those issues, it might be the least of two evils to water in sips and forgo fertilizing, but it's not a good choice. Better, would be setting in place a plan that allows you to both flush the soil and fertilize at intervals during the fall, winter, and early spring.

If it was my plant, my plan, and it's good to have a plan you can stick to, would be to nurse the plant through the winter and repot next June into a soil that allows you to water so you're flushing the soil whenever you feel like it. That will give you plenty of time to learn enough about soils so you can repot into something that will work FOR you, instead of against you. Most of the problems that bring growers here looking for help are actually soil-related.

FWIW - I flush the soil of my plants EVERY time I water, and I actually fertilize EVERY time I water with a weak fertilizer solution all winter long. I'm not saying that because I follow that regimen you should too; but, I am saying that the way I grow is so easy it's hard to get it wrong unless you work at it.

Also, if you're using a soil that allows you to water correctly, there's little worry about over-potting or moving your plant to a smaller pot. With the right soil, you could use a 55 gallon drum full of soil and in it plant the smallest of seedlings w/o worry about root health due to 'over-potting'.

Al

Wow the recovery of that aglonema Was awesome ! thanks for posting !