What are Yellow Spots on Bamboo Leaves and How to Fix them?

Join me in this article to find out the reasons for yellow spots on bamboo leaves and all the things you should know about them including fixing the problem.

Yellow spots are the most common leaf spots on the bamboo leaves and despite all of the precautions taken, indoor gardeners may spot them on the leaves (or even stems). What are these yellow spots on foliage? Why do they appear on the leaves? How much are dangerous? How can I fix them?

I’m a plant pathologist who works as a horticulture adviser. Keep reading to find out the best answers. Pest infestations, pathogens reactions, or unsuitable environmental conditions can cause these spots. In this article, I provide you with 4 of the most important factors that can cause yellow spots on bamboo leaves.

In addition to yellow spots, white or brown spots on bamboo leaves are common too. I discussed them in my previous posts. You can read them.

 ➡  You can also hear the audio version of this article.

Yellow Spots on Bamboo Leaves and Tips to Solve it.

Before diving into the what are the yellow spots on your bamboo foliage, please note that the common yellowing of leaves and tip burns are not the subject of this article. If you want to know about them, you must read my post about bamboo diseases photo.

1- Spider Mite Infestations

One of the most common reasons for yellow spots on bamboo leaves. Depending on severity, you may see the symptoms as irregular patchy pale-yellow spots or white strips on leaves. In some cases, the leaf deformities are also reported.

Mites are one of the common tiny bugs on houseplants (and outdoor plants too). so, please grab your magnifying glasses since watching them with the naked eye is hard. They suck the nutrients out of your plant and cause these yellow spots on bamboo leaves.

How to get rid of spider mites on bamboo leaves?

First, wash your plant (infested area) with warm water or a pesticidal soap.

Then, treat your plant with one of the homemade pesticides such as neem oil spray. I discussed it before, please read my previous posts to find out more tips about it.

2- Virus infections

If you spot many tiny yellow spots on bamboo leaves that give it a mosaic appearance, as you can see in the picture, you must consider Bamboo mosaic viruses (BaMV).

Please note that the only hosts of this virus are bamboo plants. So, if you are a parent of lucky bamboo, BaMV cannot cause problems for it. Do you know why? Lucky bamboo is not real bamboo and belongs to Dracaena plants.

Your lucky bamboo may be infected by Dracaena mottle virus (DrMV) or Lucky bamboo bacilliform virus.

How to treat virus infections on bamboo leaves?

The only thing that you can do is eliminate the infected parts (or plants) and propagate from healthy bamboo. Viruses can be transmitted by insects such as aphids, infected trimming tools, or propagation from an infected plant. BaMV cannot be transmitted by aphids.

3: Mineral Deficiency

Mineral deficiency is another reason that can cause leaf spots on bamboo leaves. However, if you remember when I told you about bamboo care, I said bamboo plants don’t need a lot of fertilization. but if you think your plant suffers from mineral deficiency, you must fertilize it.

In my previous posts, I told you about the best fertilizers for bamboo plants and showed you how to make your homemade natural fertilizer.

4: Direct Sunlight

Bamboo plants are like a bright place with indirect sunlight. If it is exposed to direct sunlight, you will see the symptoms of sunburns on leaves. Depending on the severity, you may see yellow spots on leaves or whole leaves turn yellow or even brown.

How to fix Sunburn damage on bamboo leaves?

The burn leaves never get green again but if you put your bamboo in a bright place with indirect sunlight and spray it with room-temperature water, your bamboo will reward you with its new green leaves. Trim the damaged foliage to make an appealing view.

To find out the best place for your bamboo in your house with the best lighting conditions for bamboo plants, read my previous article about the bamboo light requirements.

Conclusion

In this post, I tried to provide you with the most common reasons that can cause yellow spots on bamboo leaves with their images, including pests (spider mites) infestations, virus infections, mineral deficiency, and sunburn.

Which of these factors is the causal agent of yellow spots on your bamboo leaves? Why? if you see the symptoms that weren’t mentioned in this post, inform me below this page and send its images to my email ([email protected]). I will investigate it.