From my perspective as a succulent, the most common reason my leaf tips turn brown and crispy is because my roots are suffocating. You see, my leaves are designed to store large amounts of water to survive long periods of drought. When you water me too frequently, the soil stays constantly wet. My roots, which need oxygen as much as they need water, begin to rot in this soggy environment. Once the root system is damaged, it can no longer transport water and nutrients up to my leaves. Ironically, the first sign of this "drowning" is often dehydration in the upper parts of the plant. The leaf tips, being the furthest points from the roots, are the first to suffer. They lose their plumpness, begin to shrivel, and turn brown and crispy as the tissue dies from a lack of moisture. This is a desperate signal that my foundation is compromised.
Just like your skin, my leaves can get sunburned. While I thrive on bright light, a sudden move from a shaded spot to intense, direct sunlight can be a shock to my system. My leaves contain chlorophyll to photosynthesize, but they are not equipped to handle an abrupt increase in ultraviolet radiation. The intense light literally scorches the tissue, causing it to die. This damage manifests as brown, crispy patches, often on the tips and the upper surfaces of the leaves that face the sun. This is especially common after a long, dark winter or if I've been recently purchased from a nursery with diffused light. I need a gradual transition, or "acclimation," to stronger light to build up my natural defenses.
You might think that because I'm a desert plant, I love dry air. While I don't need tropical humidity, extremely dry air, especially from heating vents or air conditioners blowing directly on me, can cause problems. This constant, harsh airflow rapidly pulls moisture from my leaves through a process called transpiration. If the rate of water loss from the leaves exceeds the rate at which my roots can draw up water, the leaf tips will dry out first. They become desiccated, turning brown and crispy. This is not a root issue but an atmospheric one. The surrounding air is simply too aggressive in stealing the precious water I have stored in my tissues for survival.
The soil I live in is my entire world. Over time, minerals from tap water and fertilizers can accumulate in the soil, creating a high salinity environment. These salts draw water out of my roots through osmosis, effectively causing a chemical drought. Even if the soil is damp, my roots cannot take up the water because the salt concentration outside is higher than inside my root cells. This leads to a condition similar to underwatering, where the leaf tips and edges burn, turning brown and crispy. This type of damage often appears as a crusty, white buildup on the soil surface or the pot's rim, which is a visible clue to the problem happening below.
Finally, it is important to understand that a certain amount of browning is a natural part of my life cycle. The process of older leaves at the bottom of the plant slowly dying off to make way for new growth is called senescence. As I redirect my energy to growing new leaves from the center, the oldest, lowest leaves will naturally wither, dry out, and turn crispy before falling off. This is a healthy process. The key distinction is that this browning typically starts at the base of the plant and affects the entire leaf evenly, rather than just the tips of the upper, newer leaves. It is a sign of renewal, not distress.
