Houseplants are having a moment. Personally, I’ve always loved having plants in my home. I’ve grown many different plants over the years, but my favorites, by far, are succulents and Pothos plants.
I love the organic look of adding plants to my decor. They add a softness that you can’t get with any other element in your home. Not only are they a beautiful accent, but they also purify the air in your home as well.
Maybe you have lots of plants in your home and you love them as much as I do, or maybe you think you have a black thumb and you’ve given up on them. No worries, Pothos are one of the all time easiest houseplants to grow. Even if you have sent many houseplants to the trash bin in the past, I’m here to give you some pointers on how you can successfully grow a Pothos and propagate new plants to boot! Yes…you can do this, I promise!!!
Pothos are a lush tropical looking plant with large, glossy, full leaves. Some Pothos varieties have solid green colored leaves while others are variegated. There are many beautiful varieties to choose from and all of them are easy to grow.
Have you noticed how much a 6 inch potted houseplant costs these days? A nice Pothos will set you back anywhere from $15 to $20. Ouch. That’s a lot to spend on a plant, especially if you think you have a black thumb. If you are thinking about a plant or two in each room that can add up to a small fortune in plants.
Maybe you get lucky and a friend gifts you with a cutting but if you are purchasing a Pothos be sure to pick a full, lush plant. The good news is that you only need to buy one; if you are patient you can easily propagate many more plants from just one expensive plant.
Look for one that has many short tendrils. A Pothos’ natural growth habit is to send out tendrils that can grow and grow and grow and grow. We have all seen the long lanky plants where someone refuses to trim the tendrils and instead they are tacked up along the wall, around windows, draped over furniture and pictures. Personally I’m not a fan of the look, I prefer a more compact, lush plant.
When I have a Pothos that has grown a long tendril I know it’s time to give it a trim to keep the plant compact and lush looking. Regularly trimming the tendrils will keep the plant full and dense with leaves. Allowing the tendrils to grow long will result in a thinner, lanky looking plant.
Cut a tendril right below the spot where a leaf is growing out from the stem.
Cutting the tendril at any of the spots shown below, where the leaves grow out from the stem would be a good place to cut.
Once you have cut the tendril from the plant, remove a couple leaves closest to the cut end of the stem, as shown below.
Place stems in water. Make sure the nodules were you removed the leaves along the stem are completely submerged in water.
If you are just starting out with propagating plants from cuttings you may want to consider using a clear container so you can easily see when roots start forming on your cuttings.
I have this pretty white pitcher on a shelf in my kitchen window. Anytime I cut a long tendril from a Pothos plant I place the cutting in this vase. It looks so pretty in my window and it’s in the perfect location to promote root growth. Ample water for the stems coupled with bright indirect natural light will ensure these cuttings sprout roots.
After about 6-8 weeks your cuttings should develop a healthy set of roots like these.
See how the roots develop from where the leaves were removed along the stems and not from the cut ends?
Place rooted cuttings in potting soil.
Give newly planted cuttings a good drink of water.
Water Pothos about once a week during the hot summer months, and maybe about once every two to three weeks during the cold winter months. Just touch the surface of the soil. If it feels dry give it a drink of water. If the leaves look wilted or droopy, it’s an indicator that it’s time to water your plant. Try not to let them get to this point, it stresses the plant. They will most likely come back but they will struggle to thrive if deprived of water for too long.
Yellowing leaves means that you are overwatering your Pothos plants. It’s best to let the soil dry out a bit between waterings.
Be sure to allow excess water to drain off after giving your Pothos a drink. Most plants do best if they are not sitting in water, they don’t like their feet wet all the time. I take my plants over to the kitchen sink and give them a good drink of water and then let them sit for a while to ensure all the excess water has drained off.
Place plants in an area that receives good indirect natural light. A north facing windowsill is a perfect location.
Every few months give plants a feeding with some fertilizer like Miracle Grow plant food, diluted in water.
That’s all that’s needed to grow lush, beautiful healthy Pothos plants. It really is one of the easiest houseplants you can grow. Give them some light, water them when they are dry, and you will be rewarded with a beautiful, lush, tropical looking plant for your home.
Learn how you can easily make this beautiful sisal rope planter to showcase your newly propagated Pothos plants.
If you decide to give propagating Pothos plants a try, don’t forget to comment and let me know if you have success starting new plants, or tag me on Instagram so I can see your new lovlies! Snap a pic and hashtag it #naturewayblog — I love to see what you are up to! Don’t forget to comment and leave a review, or tag me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter!
May I ask a small favor? If you enjoyed this blogpost would you be so kind and like the page? It lets me know what you are enjoying the most. It also helps me focus my attention on creating content that will be most meaningful and beneficial for you, my readers. And don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss out on all the latest that’s happening here at Nature Way. Thank you!
2 thoughts on “How to Propagate Pothos”
Comments are closed.