How To Take Care Of Your Indoor Pothos

One of the lesser-known facts to the indoor gardeners about pothos is that it is also known as the devil’s vine or devil’s ivy because these plants are almost impossible to kill.

tips on how to take care of indoor pothos
Image: atap.co

In actuality, these flowering plants are native to Mo’orea, French Polynesia, and usually prefer temperate regions, but now they have acclimatized themselves to regions of tropical and sub-tropical rainforests.

Editors Suggestion: If you also have a great interest in growing bamboos and ferns indoor, you will love to read about articles on how to care bamboo plants and how to care for ferns.

The Epipremnum aureum species can now be found worldwide including Southeast Asia, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Australia, West Indies, and Hawaii.

These plants have a range of nicknames through the world, which includes hunter’s robe, golden pothos, money plant, ivy arum, Solomon Islands ivy, silver vine,  and taro vine.

How does the Pothos look like?

Pothos or money plant can be grown up to 20 meters long and the stems can become up to 4 cm wide in diameter. The leaves are the most beautiful part of these plants as they are broad, flat and heart-shaped with a combination of deep green and light yellow.

Because of the vibrant color of the leaves home gardeners prefer to keep them at home which certainly enhances the beauty of their interior decoration.

Though the plants are very hardy in nature, to grow them more beautiful and structured, you need to maintain a well balanced caring procedure.

Are pothos plants toxic for humans?

No, Pothos plants are not toxic for us. But according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the plant is toxic to cats and dogs. The presence of insoluble raphides can cause oral irritation, vomiting and swallowing difficulty if consumed by pets.

Caring Procedure for your Pothos

If you are planning to buy a pothos for your interior or exterior decoration then you must consider buying a healthy plant from the nursery. As for buying an unhealthy one will not benefit you in any way and also there will be no point of caring for it.

You can clearly understand if a plant is healthy from the broad green and firm leaves, firm but not rigid stems, and the roots, which should be firm too. Another important thing is the absence of any white or yellow spots on the leaves which are signs of disease.

After selecting and buying the plant comes the choice of a planter.

1. Choosing the Planter efficiently

Now before selecting a planter, you have to keep in mind that Pothos have deep roots and they need large containers. A small container will do for a small plant. But while the plant will go bigger you have to repot it.

So to exclude the trouble of repotting, I will recommend you to buy a deep container. Certainly, the container must be durable and have drainage holes which will drain the excess water.

You can buy ceramic planters, but they do better in clay or terracotta pots. You may even opt for self-watering planters as they will look far better than traditional pots and also give you the leverage of watering by itself.

2. Placing the planter in the correct place

As the pothos need enough soil, certainly the planter is going to be heavy. So you have to place it in such a place where you do not need to move it that much. Bathrooms and offices are the perfect places for pothos.

They thrive in low-powered light, and indirect sunlight. Keeping them under direct sunlight will affect them badly.

Also, you must keep in mind that the place is airy and the temperature is not too cold. Pothos are incapable of growing in cold temperature or it will result in yellowish leaves that will soon come out from the stem.

They can survive in comparatively hot weather but not under direct sunlight. Also, keep them in a place where you can water them frequently.

3. Using a weeding trowel

As the plant is in a container, the soil may not get the chance to mix with oxygen properly.  Also watering regularly clumps the soil. By using a weeding trowel, you can occasionally dig the soil so that the soil can mix with the air, light, and water properly.

4. Watering the Pothos

The most difficult part of pothos care is watering. These plants are very picky regarding the amount of water, and just want their soil to be moist. They do not like too much or too little water, so you need to figure out how often to water them.

You have to touch the soil and feel the moisture of it. The dirt should be clinging to your fingers when you touch the soil but not water. So basically you have to make a mixture of soil and water. Check out how you can take care of soil

That is why drainage holes are so important because they drain the excess water out. Excess water in the pots will result in rotten roots for which the plant will not die but the beauty that comes from the leaves will obviously get affected.

As excess water stuffing will indirectly result in the immature falling of leaves.

5. Do you need to use any fertilizer or not

Like other in-house plants, you do not need to give any fertilizer. As they can acclimatize with any situation. They naturally grow very slow so fertilizing is not at all necessary.

6. Trimming the plant and shredding the yellow leaves and stems

Though pothos barely gets infected by any disease, preventive measures should be taken. When you see that any yellow leaves or stem is there with the main plant, cut it down.

By separating the yellow parts from the plant, you ensure that the plant is safe from any disease.

Also if you see spots in the leaves, cut those leaves from the stems and look for any insects affecting your plant.

Trimming is very necessary for the beautification of your plant. Pothos grow straight and large. But if it faces any light or temperature issue then probably it can grow in the direction of the light, creating an indecent structure.

So trimming will help you keep your plant beautiful and your visitors amazed. Do not forget to solve the light and temperature issues though. Also, trimming helps in the healthier growth of the plant.

7. Repotting if required

Usually repotting is not necessary if you have already planted it in a deep pot. But if the plant grows out of bound and the planter is unable to hold the plant then you must repot it.

Repotting is also recommended once in a year for keeping the plant healthier. While repotting trim the secondary roots in shape carefully without hurting the primary root.

Or you can separate the plant in different parts carefully from the root and plant them in different planters. In this way, your plant will get many lives and you will get many decorative plants.

Overall you can say that planting a pothos will be very cost-effective for you. All you need is an adequate planter. It also does not require frequent watering just misting the soil is enough. But in return, it will give you beautiful, vibrant green leaves that will enhance the beauty of both your outdoor and indoor decoration.

by | Updated: November 19, 2016



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