The annoying houseplant problem an expert says can be solved with one simple move

When indoor plants start looking stretched with long or tall stems and little foliage, it means they've gotten leggy.

While on the surface this might seem like the plant is healthy because of how fast it's growing, that's actually not the case.

Leggy houseplants are stretching out because they're not getting enough, or in some cases too much, of what they need.

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One of the main causes of leggy houseplants is insufficient light, according to Lucie Bradley, an expert gardener at Easy Garden Irrigation.

"Unfortunately this 'stretching' makes the plant weaker and more vulnerable to pests and diseases," she told Dengarden.

"Over watering, over fertilising, insufficient pruning, or incorrect growth for the time of year can also contribute to more leggy houseplants."

However, it's important to keep in mind that some plants have a stretched or leggy appearance anyway so check the variety of plant before taking action.

Spider plants and peperomias can look stretched naturally. In contrast, pothos, philodendrons and fiddleleaf figs aren't naturally stretched and are prone to legginess.

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Now that you've figured out whether your houseplant is actually leggy or not, there are ways to fix the problems that cause a plant to stretch.

For houseplants stretching or leaning a particular way the best fix to ensure the entire plant has adequate light is to regularly rotate the pot.

"Simply rotating the plant, making a quarter turn every time you water your plant is usually sufficient to counteract it growing towards the light and it will appear even on all sides and growth will be more balanced," Bradley said.

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To enhance lighting in general Bradley recommends purchasing an LED grow light if you can't move your plant to a spot with more natural light.

As for watering, the old finger test is a good to do before you water plants. It involves sticking your finger into the soil about an inch and if the soil feels moist the plant doesn't need any water, but if the soil feels dry then it's OK to give the plant a drink.

If you're overwatering you can look at whether the plant is draining well enough or even repot the plant so that you can check for root rot.

To prevent over fertilising a plant, which is another cause of leggy plants, keep in mind fertiliser is needed more when there is a lot of growth happening. For example, houseplants grow slower in winter so they don't need extra nutrients as often during that time.

Neglecting to prune plants also makes them look leggy and by trimming them back you can encourage a bushier shape.

Houseplants can be pruned at any time of year but they will grow back slower outside of spring so don't worry if it's a while before they bounce back.

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"Using sharp clean snips or secateurs to remove the tips of houseplant stems will encourage the plant to put on new growth lower down the stem where there are nodes," Bradley said.

"At the same time you can remove any damaged or dead leaves so your plant won't waste its energy on those and can concentrate on producing healthy new growth."

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