Potos: care

Potos care is easy

Image - Wikimedia / Joydeep

The pothos is a climber that is widely used for interior decoration: it has good-sized, green and persistent leaves. In addition, it does not usually have pests or diseases, and it is not a plant that needs special care. All this makes it a kind of the most interesting for both beginners and experts.

Although it is tropical, it is very adaptable, being able to live inside the house for a long time. So, below we will explain what the pothos care.

How to take care of the poto?

The potos plant is a climber

If you dare to have a poto plant in your home, you have to know the care it requires to make it last. In this way, you will have made an excellent purchase:

Light and humidity

The potos have to be brought into a room with windows. Needs a lot of light to grow, so it is important that the place where we are going to grow it is the right one for it. Likewise, it has to be put away from said windows and from those areas where the light is reflected, otherwise its leaves would burn as a consequence of the so-called magnifying glass effect.

Another important point is the environmental humidity. When it is very low, the plant begins to dry out; because it is interesting to know the degree of humidity inside the house, to know if we have to take action or not. For example, if you live like me on an island, or are near the thing or a river, the normal thing is that said humidity is high and therefore it will not be necessary for you to do anything; but if you are more inward, then you will have to do the following:

  • In summer spray / mist its leaves with rain or distilled water daily, once or twice a day.
  • The rest of the year it is better to place containers of water around the pot to keep its leaves in good condition.

Irrigation

How to water potos? Good water should always be used, that is, rain water or one that is suitable for human consumption. In many places in Spain, the one that comes out of the tap has a poor quality, with a high lime content, so it should not be used for watering, unless it is boiled first and allowed to cool before using it.

The frequency will vary throughout the year, being higher in summer and lower in winter. Because, during hot months it will be watered approximately every 3 days, and the rest once or twice a week.

Pot and soil

The leaves of the pothos are green and evergreen

The pot must have holes in its base. It does not matter if it is made of plastic or mud, but it is important that the water that has not been absorbed can come out. In this way, the roots will remain intact since the risk of rotting is avoided. It also has to be the right size for it to grow. In this sense, if the 'old' pot measured 10 centimeters in diameter, the new one should measure 5-7 centimeters more both in width and height.

As far as the land is concerned, can be filled with universal substrate (on sale here). But we recommend putting a layer of clay beforehand (on sale here) or volcanic clay. In this way, the drainage will be even better.

Subscriber

Another of the pothos care is the subscriber. It must be done during the entire vegetative season of the plant, that is, during all the months in which it is growing, which coincide with spring and summer. With this, it will be possible to grow at a good rate, to be healthier and therefore to live for a long time.

As fertilizers and fertilizers there are several types, we recommend that you use guano or algae extract (for sale here) if you opt for natural products, or a fertilizer for green plants (for sale here). Of course, follow the directions on the package so that there are no overdose problems. These products can be very useful if used well, but they also cause many problems when you add more than the manufacturer has indicated; in fact, the roots can be rendered useless.

Pot change

The transplant will be done in the spring, every 2 or 3 years or so. You have to see if the roots appear through the holes in the pot, and in which case change it to a larger one. If you have a guardian, we recommend detangling the plant, removing it and, when it is transplanted, putting it back in.

It can also be used to cut dry leaves and / or stems with clean scissors. You have to cut to the chase, so you will make it look beautiful.

Pot with yellow leaves: what's wrong?

It is a common problem. If your plant begins to have yellow leaves, it may be that it is thirsty, too much water, or nothing is wrong at all. How do you know?

  • Lack of water: if your plant is going thirsty you will see that the new leaves turn yellow quickly. These are the ones that are furthest from the roots, which are the ones that absorb the water that will then be transported through the vessels (or if you like "veins") to all its parts. But when the amount of liquid is insufficient, the first symptoms are seen in the newer foliage. Besides that, you will also notice the dry land.
  • Excess of water: The opposite happens when you are going thirsty: in this case, it will be the oldest leaves that will have a bad time, because they are the first to receive it. The soil will look very wet, and there may even be verdina or mold.
  • Nothing happens: the leaves have a limited life expectancy, so it is normal that from time to time we see some yellow leaves. But I repeat: some, not many. If the plant is having a bad time, we will see a lot of bad-looking leaves.

To do? Well, if you are thirsty, what we will do is pour plenty of water on it, until the earth is well soaked. And if, on the other hand, it has been watered excessively, it will have to be removed from the pot so that the soil can dry out quickly. We can help you by wrapping it in absorbent paper and leaving it like that overnight. Then, we will plant it again and treat the potos with a fungicide that carries copper (for sale here).

Potos care is easy indoors

We hope these tips help you to know how to take care of your potos. If you still want to know something more, tell you that you can multiply it very easily by cuttings in spring-summer. You only have to cut a stem and put it in water, which you will have to change daily. Once roots grow, plant it in a pot.

Enjoy it.


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