Spider Plant Falling Over: 7 Reasons & 5 Fixes

Spider plants start falling over mainly due to underwatering, top-heaviness, overwatering, and exposure to direct sunlight.

These are common issues in Spider plants, which can make the plant weaker and result in droopy leaves. If you want to fix this problem, you will need to water the plant, adjust the watering frequency, and support the plant firmly.

So, let’s find out more about it in the following guide.

Why Is My Spider Plant Falling Over?

If your Spider plant keeps falling over, you need to know the cause to fix the problem.

So, here are the primary causes of this issue –

Issues	Signs	Solutions
Top-Heavy Plant	Leggy and droopy leaves	Pruning, Reduce usage of the nitrogen-based fertilizers
Overwatering	Wet soil, Yellow leaves	Adjusting watering frequency, Repotting
Underwatering	Dry brittle leaves, Curly leaves, Slow growth	Watering, Keeping the plant away from direct sunlight
Direct Sunlight	Sunburned or wilted leaves, Brown edges on the leaves	Relocation of plant, Watering
Fungus Or Bacterial Infection	Foul odor, Yellow leaves, Dull-looking plant	Spraying a fungicide, Repotting
Overpruned Plant	Wilting leaves	Relocating the plant to a shaded place, Watering/Misting
Pest Infestation	Discolored leaves, Pests on the leaf surfaces	Spraying a pesticide, Improving airflow around the plant, Providing sufficient sunlight

Let’s understand these plant issues in detail below.

1. Top-Heavy Spider Plant

When the Spider plant turns top-heavy, it automatically leans over on one side.

This happens because of the excess load on the plant system, as the Spider plant is not structurally strong. It cannot support a heavy load, especially from the top.

However, you will only observe this situation in overgrown Spider plants.

So, if that’s the case, consider trimming the leaves immediately. It will help relieve the plant and promote new growth in the future.

2. Overwatered Plant

If your Spider plant is leaning over, overwatering is another major cause. 

For confirmation, you can dip your finger into the soil and see if it feels wet. It will give you an idea about the moisture content in the pot.

Alternatively, you can use a moisture meter for accurate readings. If it shows a high reading, it’s a sign of overwatering in the plant.

Here’s one of my Spider plants that started to lean over after overwatering –

When you water the Spider plant too much, you will see its effects on the leaves. The leaves will lose their shape and lean over eventually.

It happens because of the root root. Since the roots stop working efficiently, they don’t bring nutrients and water to the plant. Therefore, it results in an imbalance in the plant’s internal system.

To resolve this problem, inspect the plant for overwatering, adjust the watering frequency, and address the potential root rot. You may also consider repotting for a better growing environment.

3. Underwatered Plant

When you leave your plant underwatered for weeks, it won’t be easy to keep things going internally. As a result, the plant will fall over and might appear dull overall.

Thankfully, though, the underwatering situation is not as bad as overwatering. You can always revive the plant from this situation. So, act upon it quickly before it gets too late.

4. Exposure To Direct And Unidirectional Sunlight

Other than the watering problems, there might be another thing that can make your plant fall over. And that is the sunlight!

Even though the plants like to grow in natural light, you won’t see many plants thriving in direct sunlight. Direct sunlight is generally harsh, and it’s primarily suitable for trees that grow outdoors.

For indoor plants, you need to provide sunlight with slightly lower intensity. Also, if the sunlight is coming from one direction, the Spider plant can start leaning to one side and depict unidirectional growth. This will cause the plant to tip over.

5. Fungus Attack On The Plant

Fungus attacks are lethal and can damage the plant in many ways.

If your plant’s leaves are leaning over, it could be a sign of such an attack on the plant. Moreover, the fungus often grows on wet soil before advancing to the different parts of the plant.

So, if you see any fungus on the Spider plant, it might already be going through the overwatering situation.

The other thing about this type of issue is that it often takes place during humid conditions. These conditions are suitable for the growth of various fungus species.

Hence, you should consider this factor as well while performing the inspection.

Note: There might also be a bacterial attack on the plant, but you must confirm it through examination.

6. Overpruned Plant

Did you prune the Spider plant recently?

Yes, the plant can experience shock and enter survival mode if you have removed a lot of leaves and runners from it. Generally, when you perform pruning on indoor plants, you should opt for the light pruning technique.

This technique helps in managing the plant over a long period.

On the other hand, the hard pruning method is only suitable for hardy plants. Still, if you think the Spider plant is flopping over because of this reason, it shouldn’t be a concerning factor.

In the meantime, you must take care of the plant and monitor any possible signs of other issues.

7. Pest Attack On The Plant

You can’t rule out the pest attack!

Although there aren’t many pests that attack this plant, the weakened plant can surely attract many bug issues quickly. When the bugs attack the plant, they target softer surfaces like leaves and branches.

Since this plant doesn’t have branches, you will mostly find leaves affected by such an attack. So, do take a look at the leaves carefully.

You should also check underneath the leaves, as most bugs hide and build colonies in such a place.

As you can see, these are the typical reasons for this type of issue in Spider plants.

In most cases, the plant will have issues with watering or sunlight. If you can work on these two issues, your plant will return to life in no time.

In the next section, I have talked more about the ways to revive the Spider plant. So, do take a look at the useful tips below.

5 Fixes To Stop Spider Plant From Falling Over

There are a few things you can do to revive the plant at this stage.

Here’s a list of them – 

1. Support The Plant

First and foremost, you need to support the droopy Spider plant with available tools.

You can use stakes or strings to perform this task. It will help the plant remain sturdy.

If you don’t have any of these tools available, use wooden sticks or pencils to support some of the leaves. Once that’s achieved, you can start fixing the core issues.

2. Water The Plant Properly

Proper plant watering is crucial to prevent over or under-watering.

Overwatered plants should be left without watering for a few weeks while underwatered plants need immediate watering. However, it is important not to let the plant sit in wet soil for long as it can lead to similar issues.

Here are the key things to remember before watering the Spider plant –

• Pot size
• Weather condition
• Sunlight
• Plant size

You will have to water the plant accordingly, especially when you’re trying to revive it from this condition.

Use a moisture meter to check the moisture level in the soil. If you don’t have one, use your finger to check for dampness around the plant.

3. Do Not Keep It In The Sun For Too Long

Next, you must move the plant to a bright location.

Do not keep it in direct sunlight. Find a place to get your Spider plant at least a couple of hours of natural light during the day.

This should be good enough for the plant. More importantly, the leaves will come back to life and not fall over again.

4. Repot The Plant If Needed

As I said earlier, the repotting method can help address many issues in your plant.

It won’t fix the main issue, but it will surely give a better environment to the plant. With repotting, the plant will have relatively dryer and more nutrient-rich soil.

Besides, it will also allow you to look closely at the roots. You can easily identify any root issues when you remove the plant from your existing pot.

Here’s how you can repot the Spider plant –

When repotting, make sure the new pot has a few drainage holes at the bottom. It will help prevent water stagnation in the pot.

5. Fertilize The Plant

Fertilizers are effective when used correctly. However, ensure there are no underlying plant issues before fertilizing.

Fix any related issues first because the plant needs to be in good condition to receive nutrients from the soil. If the plant is already dealing with problems, fertilizing it is pointless.

Examine and fix the problem before fertilizing to revive the Spider plant.

What To Do If The Spider Plant Doesn’t Stop Leaning Over?

It’s quite possible that the Spider plant might not straighten up and continue to fall over even after trying everything.

In such cases, use the following guidelines – 

1. Wait for a week and assess the condition of your Spider plant. Sometimes, it takes a week or two for houseplants to recover from such conditions. 
2. Remove the base leaves from the plant if the above suggestions don’t work. Then, continue to follow the common care practices for the plant.
3. Remove the pups from the main plant and transplant them into a new pot. 
4. Get a new plant from the nursery while trying to revive the existing plant. If the old plant doesn’t recover, you will have a backup plant that can be placed or repotted in its place. 

Note – If your plant looks like my Spider plant, you should definitely get a new one for yourself. 

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