I have some friends who swear up and down that they have a brown thumb. Every plant they take in dies a long, slow, horrible death. Sometimes it's because they forget to water enough (and even more rarely, too much). Usually when I ask them what happens, they say they don't know.
tl;dr- Buy a good liquid plant food and add it to your plant water as directed. Sometimes you need to re-pot your plants in new soil. Ask at your local garden centre what they suggest. Sometimes your plant has outgrown its pot and needs a slightly bigger one, but if you don't give food to your plant it will likely never get to this point.
If you actually want to learn something about it, read on...
What plants get from sunshine, air and water- Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen
Carbon- Plants use the energy from sunlight to convert CO2 (carbon dioxide) into carbohydrates which are the plant's energy storage and transportation.Hydrogen- Water provides this element, which obviously plants need to stay hydrated. It also helps form carbohydrates (carbon+hydrogen+oxygen=carbohydrates), and the ions help the plant drive photosynthesis.
Oxygen- Plants produce oxygen, but they also require it for some internal processes (as mentioned above, for carbohydrates, plus others).
What plants get from commercial fertilizers- Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium (NPK)
Nitrogen- This is what plants are probably lacking the most. It's used for almost everything the plant needs- amino acids, proteins, chlorophyll (the green-coloured things that help with gathering sunlight). While there's lots of this element in the air, most plants can only gather it through the roots, and once a soil has been depleted it needs to be added back in. In potted plants it's a closed system with very little to support the necessary micro-organisms that do this in the wild, so that won't happen on its own. Hence fertilizers.Phosphorous- Plants use this element to build their DNA and cell membranes, and transport energy, amongst other things. You will find it in highest concentrations in seeds and the growing parts of plants. It is usually provided by the decomposition of plant and animal matter (especially manure), but since you probably shouldn't be putting manure on houseplants...
Potassium- This element is used in the formation of carbohydrates and proteins, and helps plants regulate internal hydration (water storage and use), as well as assisting with photosynthesis. This is the 'K' in fertilizers, from the Neo-Latin name Kalium, itself derived from 'alkali' which comes from the Arabic 'al-qalyah', meaning plant ashes (go, go, alchemy). In English we call it Potassium, because of the way it was first derived- from 'pot ash', or the ash left over from burning wood and leaves (still something good to add to your garden). Even animal cells need potassium to function properly.
Some houseplants need special mixes with the right amounts of each (like African violets). Again, garden centre staff will probably be very helpful with this.
Other stuff plants get from soil- Macronutrients and Micronutrients
Macronutrients- macro means large. The three biggies are Sulfur, Calcium and Magnesium. Sulfur is used to build amino acids, drive photosynthesis, and some other major systems. Calcium is used differently by plants than by animals with bones, but it's still necessary. Magnesium is in every cell in every organism.Micronutrients- micro means small. These are trace elements that plants need, but not in very large amounts. Iron, molybdenum, boron, copper, manganese, sodium, zinc, nickel, chlorine, cobalt, aluminum, silicon, vanadium, and selenium. In the 'wild' these things are provided by the soil and made available by things like bacteria and fungi, and unless the soil is under pressure by intense cultivation it will renew itself naturally. (If you see a broccoli at the store that has a hollow stem it's suffering from boron deficiency).
If you're using a regular, commercial fertilizer and your plant is still having issues, try swapping out some of the soil by replanting it, possibly into a slightly larger pot. In any case, the new nutrients that come with the soil will be helpful. Or, you could try top-dressing (sprinkling on the soil) with a bit of compost or triple-mix, and then watering it in.
Good luck!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_nutrition
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