Ask the Expert: Help with my Schefflera, please!
Actually, I was told that my plant isn’t a traditional Schlefflera, but in the same genus.  It has a long, skinny trunk (I guess you could call it), and then the leaves bloom out at the top — like a tree.  Anyway, almost as soon as I took it home, it started losing leaves at a pretty alarming rate.  At first, it was close to the front door, so I moved it somewhere else to avoid the cold draft (but still in a place with plenty of light).  Then, I discovered (quite late) small moving black bugs on it that were later identified as aphids.  By this point, the plant had lost almost all its leaves.  But there were signs of growth, so I used an insecticide spray on it, and it seemed to come to life again.  However, I guess my plant is bug prone because I eventually found these white, fuzzy things on it that were identified as mealy bugs.  I used another lighter soap mixture/spray on it, and the bugs “seem” to have been contained (though I guess you can’t be sure).  But my plant is in rough shape again, and now, for some reason, all the new buds are not blooming into leaves like they did before.  Instead, they are drying out and turning black.  I should mention that I also never really got the watering thing down.  I have one of those soil moisture gages, and when I stick it in, it’s always moist.  As a result, I don’t water it at any kind of regular interval, but, rather, I wait until the gage says it’s dry — as I was told to do by the people I bought the plant from (though this sometimes takes up to two weeks or more).  Do you have any idea why this might be happening?  I would appreciate any suggestions.  Thank you! Scott

Plant Expect Reply:

Watering is a crucial element in keeping your Schefflera healthy.  When plants are under water stress (either too much or too little), they become susceptible to insect invasion, fungal problems and all around decline.  Don’t rely on your water gauge. Water guages are fine except sometimes they don’t always tell the whole picture.  The soil needs to be moist throughout not just the top inch.  Stick your finger in the soil up to your second knuckle in a coouple places. This will give you the best indicator as to the moist of the soil.  If the soil is dry, saturate the soil not just the top.  If it is wet wait a couple of days and check again.  Once you have the watering straightened out, treating the insects and other problems will be easier.

Your plant probably had insects when you brought it home.  That happens occasionally.  You probably didn’t notice because the insect were in a different life stage – eggs, larvea etc. It often takes a couple of treatments to get rid of all the insects.  It sounds as if you have taken care of them.

The new problem may be insect damage just now presenting.  It could be a result of a fungal problem.  I would trim off any damaged or disease buds and then give the plant sometime.  It usually does take about two weeks for water damage to present itself. It usually takes a couple of weeks for the plant to recover from water problems.

In the meantime, take a magnifying glass and look for spider mites on the plant or thrips in the buds. If you see either, you will need to treat the plant. As for fungal issues, look for lesions on the leaves or on the stems of the plant. If you see either, the Schefflera will need to be treat with a funigicide.  However, most fungicides cause a phototoxicity in Schefflera so it will be a little more tricky to treat.

If you aren’t sure what is going on, send me some photos of the plant from diferent angles and parts of the schefflera and I will try to figure it out.