The Yellow Leaves on a Ficus Plant

Ficus trees are a popular indoor plant because they are very low maintenance. However, ficus trees occasionally fall prey to both diseases and insects and several of them cause the leaves to turn yellow.

Insects

Spider mites are a small insect that is just barely visible with the naked eye. They feed off the tree's cells and cause yellow spots to appear on the leaves before turning them completely yellow. Whiteflies, however, suck out the moisture from ficus trees, causing the leaves to turn yellow and eventually drop off.

Diseases

Anthracnose is a disease caused by a fungus and it produces yellow spots on the leaves of ficus trees. Inside the spots, large masses of yellowish spores appear not long after. This disease mostly occurs during the summer months under rainy conditions.

Treatment

Spider mites and whiteflies can be treated by applying insecticidal soap to the infected tree and surrounding soil. To treat anthracnose, cut away any infected parts of the tree and spray with fungicides. It is also best to avoid overhead watering during particularly humid conditions.

References

• University of Florida IFAS Extension: Ficus Production Guide
• University of Florida IFAS Extension: The Fig Whitefly
• Purdue University: Spider Mites on Houseplants