Monstera Deliciosa, commonly known as The Sweese Cheese Plant has gained quite the celebrity status on social media, and for good reason. It’s Instagram’s number one houseplant and we’re totally in love with her looks. From the patio to the living room, to the dining room, monsteras are beautifully displayed everywhere. Today I’m sharing a few easy tips on how to care and properly propagate your monstera houseplant.
Before we delve into how to care for a monstera let’s first talk a little about this fabulous plant. There’s no denying that Monsteras make a statement. Besides living in fancy pots, they can be seen on pillows, bathroom decor and in beautiful wall art. Unlike other popular greens, Monsteras lend a classy, tropical vibe to any space thanks to their large, sometimes enormous, fabulously serrated leaves. The variegated monstera is absolutely gorgeous and I can’t wait to get my hands on one!
How to care for a monstera…
- 1. POTTING Plant your monstera in well-draining indoor potting soil. Use a pot with drainage holes and with enough depth to add a stake, trellis, or moss poles so that the plant can cling onto and climb.
- 2. LIGHTING Monsteras can survive in low light, but they’ll grow much better and develop large, robust leaves in bright, indirect sunlight. If the leaves turn yellow then they are getting too much light.
- 3. MOISTURE Monstera plants don’t need a lot of water and they don’t like to be too wet nor too dry. The soil knows, so when the soil looks dry give them some water but do not soak.
- 4. PLANT FOOD Monsteras don’t typically need fertilizing but adding a little fertilizer to your water during the spring and summer encourages new growth and good root health. I add a little Indoor Plant Food liquid to the water every couple of weeks during the summer to give it a boost.
- 5. PRUNING Monsteras are known for their growth! Pruning is important to make sure it doesn’t grow out of control and also helps ‘shape’ the plant. Repot only when necessary, maybe every couple of years, and cut back new growth when you don’t want the plant to get any bigger.
- 6. LEAVES Keep monstera’s leaves beautifully clean and shiny. I like to mist Houseplant Leaf Shine every couple of weeks on all of my plants. This not only cleanses and shines the leaves but also protects them from insects and bacteria.
How to propagate a Monstera Plant in water…
These plants propagate exceptionally well as long as you cut in the right place! The best time to do this is during the spring or summer when monsteras tend to grow the most.
Cut off a stem with leaves that has a node. A node is the part of a plant stem where flowers, branches and leaves first start to grow. Basically a tiny baby root, as it were. If you find a node with an aerial root on it, (a longer, grown out node) even better, see below.
When cutting, do it just below the node/s, about half an inch, so that the node is on the stem you cut off. This is the part of the stem that will sit in water. DO NOT SUBMERGE THE LEAVES, they will rot! Also, when cutting make sure to use clean, sharp shears to get a good clean cut and to avoid bacteria.
Immediately place the cuttings in a jar of fresh tap water. You don’t have to change the water but you do need to add as necessary. Place the cuttings in an area where they can get plenty of bright, indirect sunlight. You should see some new roots in about a month or so. When you see them grow out, it’s time to transfer them into the soil. You will have successfully propagated new monstera plants to add to your collection.
I’ve had this monstera plant for a little over two years and in that time she’s grown so much and has gotten very full. This is the perfect opportunity to trim her and cut stems for propagation. Doing this will help maintain her size and shape while offering new babies.
I was able to snip off four hearty stems for propagating. They’re now sitting on my piano getting plenty of light. Next I will repot the plant because the roots are very cramped. As soon as that happens it will get more energy and grow even more.
Sitting in my piano room, which faces northeast, is a great location. My monstera gets plenty of sunlight which helps with growth and encourages the leaves to split, her signature look. Monsteras do not like direct sun, so if you start to see yellow leaves it means it’s getting too much sun and should be moved to another location. For the purpose of this blog post I put her directly in front of the window to show off her fullness.
Hope you find these tips handy for propagating your monstera, or any other node based plant for that matter. Most viney plants follow the same process for growth. Remember to get yourself stakes in order for them to cling onto otherwise you risk the stems flopping over and break.
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