The most frequent reason you see my leaves wrinkling is a simple cry for water. My plump, juicy leaves are my water storage units. When I have enough, they are firm and turgid. When my soil has been completely dry for too long, I must use the water reserves in my leaves to survive, causing them to shrivel, soften, and wrinkle. This is my primary way of communicating my need for a deep, thorough drink. Please check my soil. If it is bone-dry several inches down, it is time to water me until it runs out of the drainage holes, then let me drain completely.
Paradoxically, your kindness in watering me can also cause my leaves to shrivel, but for a very different reason. If my soil does not drain quickly or if I am watered too often, my roots are suffocating in constantly wet conditions. They begin to rot and die. Once my root system is damaged, it can no longer absorb water, no matter how much is in the soil. This creates a situation where I am desperate for water but unable to drink it, leading to dehydration and shriveled leaves from the bottom up. This is a serious condition that often requires you to unpot me, trim away the rotten roots, and repot me in fresh, dry, well-draining soil.
As I grow, my root system expands to fill the space you have given me. If I become severely root-bound, there is very little soil left in the pot to retain moisture. After you water, it drains through so quickly that my roots cannot absorb a meaningful amount, or the dense root ball simply repels water. This, again, leads to dehydration. The wrinkling will be consistent even shortly after watering. If you see a dense web of roots circling the inside of the pot, it is time to gently repot me into a container only one size larger with fresh soil.
While I am a resilient plant, extreme environmental stress can also cause my leaves to suffer. Intense, scorching direct sunlight for too many hours can literally cook my leaves, causing them to burn, scar, and shrivel. Conversely, a sudden drastic change, like being moved from a sheltered spot directly into full sun, can shock my system. Additionally, if the air around me is extremely hot and dry, I may lose moisture from my leaves through transpiration faster than my roots can draw it up, leading to temporary wrinkling until I can adjust.
Sometimes, a small amount of leaf wrinkling or shedding on my lower, older leaves is a normal part of my growth process. As I focus my energy on producing new growth at the top or even flowering, I may consciously withdraw resources from my oldest leaves. They will slowly wrinkle, dry out, and fall away to make way for new progress. This is typically a very slow process and only affects one or two leaves at a time, not the entire plant at once.
