The Best Way To Promote Growth In A Monstera Deliciosa

Monstera Deliciosa Plant Care

The Monstera Deliciosa plant is a beautiful addition to any home garden. Owning various home plants has become very common in the past few years, and one of the most common houseplants is the Swiss Cheese Plant.

Home gardens provide plenty of natural home décor and a fun hobby. Caring for something as rewarding as houseplants can also encourage better habits. The Monstera requires a moderate amount of managing and can be a great and rewarding plant to care for if you’re new at plant care.

Monstera Deliciosa Quick Guide

Fun Facts:

These beauties are excellent indoor plants but are challenging to keep alive outdoors.

New Monstera leaves will often split off from a pre-existing leaf stem. Splitting leaves requires a lot of energy, causing some leaves to split more than others.

The Monstera Deliciosa is mildly harmful to humans and toxic to pets.

In its native Central America, Monstera plants can produce edible fruit, and its fruit tastes like a mixture of pineapples and bananas

Everything You Need to Help Your Monstera Deliciosa Plant Thrive

Hardiness Zone

Many gardeners use hardiness zones to help them figure out which plants best fit their environment. The measure of this scale shows growers the average annual minimum winter temperature so they can decipher if their plant is fit to live outdoors in their climate. More tropical plants like the Monstera do not do well in colder conditions and need warm, humid weather year-round.

If you live in hardiness zones 10 through 12 of the USDA scale, your Monstera plant can happily live outside. Even though these areas are warm, remember that this plant thrives on indirect sunlight, and too much direct sunlight will burn the leaves. In the US, most of the country is in hardiness zones under 9, so many plant parents will need to keep their Monstera Deliciosa in a pot.

Potting Monstera Deliciosa

When bringing home your new Monstera, you want to make sure you give your new plant time to adjust. Separate your Monstera from any other plants, just in case this plant has fungus or pests. It can take a few days before either of these issues present themselves, so isolating your plant for at least two weeks is the best way to ensure it doesn’t affect your other plants. After two weeks, you can repot and move your Monstera Deliciosa to a permanent spot in your home.

When repotting your Monstera, check to see if the roots are crawling out of its nursery pot. If the roots are overgrown, it’s time to size up your Monstera’s pot. Use a container that’s one to two inches wider in diameter than the pot it came in.

Monstera plants need drainage holes, and they like being cramped. Your plant should have room to grow new roots but should not have a ton of wiggle space in its new pot.

You’ll want to fill the bottom third of your pot with soil and gently set a stake or moss pole in your container for your plant to climb on. Then, you can lower the roots in the container and put soil around them. Pack the soil around the stem or moss pole to ensure it stays upright, and use plant ties to attach the stems to your stake.

Most people prefer using moss poles instead of stakes since moss poles tend to be more aesthetically pleasing and can provide micronutrients to your plant, promoting healthier and larger leaves.

When choosing pots, plants like the Monstera Deliciosa benefit from materials like terracotta and clay. These materials absorb water and allow excess moisture to drain away more efficiently. Monstera Deliciosa owners will need to repot their plant every two years

Light

This plant needs bright and indirect light, but they can live under grow lights too.

Monstera Deliciosa plants thrive in temperatures between 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. If your plant gets too much direct light in warmer months, it could burn its foliage.

If you want to give your plant an extra boost, set it outside at least once a year in partial light. Doing this encourages growth, and natural winds can help strengthen its stems.

Soil

It’s almost always better to make your own homemade soil mix than a store-bought mix. No matter which method you choose, make sure you prioritize peat-based potting media.

This type of plant needs a slightly neutral or acidic pH in its soil. They have to have well-draining soil but need to be moderately moist.

Monstera Deliciosa Watering Frequency

Water your plant with demineralized water or rainwater until it starts dripping out the drainage holes, and then get rid of excess water. You don’t want to put this water back in the plant since the plant already took everything it needs.

Allow your plant’s soil to dry out slightly in between watering sessions. Only water them occasionally in the fall and winter, around every two weeks.

A rule of thumb is to water your plant when the top half of its soil is dry before the leaves start curling or drooping. Monstera leaves also thrive in humidity, so consider misting your plants, investing in pebble trays, or purchasing small humidifiers if your climate isn’t naturally humid.

Pruning

The best way to keep the Monstera under your control is to prune it when it starts growing wild. All Monstera plants grow wild in general, but if your aerial roots are getting unruly for their space, try to tuck them back in their pot. But, if you can’t tuck them, you should trim them down. When too many leaves and stems are on your plant, you should also trim them.

Fertilizer

In order to help your indoor garden flourish, fertilizers have to be a part of your gardening supplies. Fertilizers are great at helping provide plants with all the nutrients they need. For a Monstera Deliciosa, choose a liquid fertilizer with 20-20-20 ratios.

This technique is most effective if you give your plant a diluted fertilizer ratio. Mix 1/2 teaspoon of fertilizer in a gallon of water. Feed your plant this concoction during growing seasons once a week or every other week. Giving your plant this fertilizer and water mixture would replace its normal watering.

Common Problems With Monstera Plants

Browning Tips

If your plant is struggling with browning tips, it’s usually an indicator of a watering issue. The soil needs to be consistently moist and shouldn’t dry out completely in between waterings.
Sometimes brown leaf tips are an indicator of a fungus issue, but usually, these leaves will also have a yellow halo around the brown spots. Remove any affected leaves if this is the case, and wait a while before watering your plant again.

Yellow Leaves

If your plant has yellow leaves, it’s typically indicative of dry soil, and old leaves on your plant will be the first to turn yellow. If your soil is bone dry, give it a watering session and clip off the affected leaves.

Wilting Leaves

Wilting leaves are almost always a watering issue. The most common problem is with overwatering, but if your issue is underwatering, just give it a good watering to provide a fix.
If your plant is overwatered, you’ll need to check its roots for root rot. If you find some, clean the roots, prune off any mushy roots, and repot your plant in new soil.

Conclusion

The Monstera Deliciosa plant is a favorite among many gardeners. Its large luscious leaves provide plenty of pride, but plant lovers also love watching how quickly these plants expand. With a little light and plenty of water these plants will grow to make your home look like an indoor jungle.

A climbing evergreen plant like this one is unruly and can grow into an unorganized but beautiful display.
These plants are pretty easy to care for and don’t require an expert grower to help them thrive. If you want to find similar plants, check out other Monstera Deliciosa variations, like the Monstera Dubia, Monstera Peru, or Monstera Adansonii.