Pothos leaves super close together

12 years ago

As I propagate shoots of my pothos (cut off the last foot or so of longer shoots, root in water, then plant), a few grow normally but most have an odd behavior after they get settled into soil life. Instead of the usual couple inches between leaves, each new leaf will come out very close to the previous one, creating a stunted cluster of leaves instead of a stalk that goes somewhere, like a vine should. I originally thought it was a lack of light, due to where the pot is (each stalk will get more light as it gets taller, but down in the pot light is less), but if I move a stunted stack around to get it in a brighter spot around the pot, it just grows more stunted stalk in a different direction - the last photo in my image shows the twisted mess I end up with if I do that a couple times. And recently I found the same problem with a stalk in a different pot that gets lots of light, so that isn't the problem. Any thoughts on what to do with these things? There is a bamboo lattice-like thing that I want to wind these stalks through, but while two of about eight are growing like mad, the rest are just making these funny clusters.

Featured Answer

MsGreenFinger GW

12 years ago

..and many people worry about their pothos being too leggy, probably they envy you :)
Yours is completely normal and happy as is.

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Comments (8)

teengardener1888
12 years ago
There is nothing wrong, it might actually mean that your plant is really happy.
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plantomaniac08
12 years ago
I was thinking the same thing as MsGreenFinger. Most people are unhappy with their 'Pothos' because the internodes are too far apart. I've never seen them so close together, but I'd imagine it's happy. I spose you could try less light and see what happens? That's what causes the internodes to be too far apart, anyway.

Planto

This post was edited by plantomaniac08 on Thu, Oct 30, 14 at 18:30
kwie2011
12 years ago
I agree - long internodes are due to the plant reaching for light, or sometimes to excess nitrogen (probably other things I don't know about also). Short internodes are usually preferred.

You can get some different growth with your pothos by giving it a moss stick it something to climb. As leaves climb upward, they get larger. As they hang down, they shrink. Apparently, the behavior is pretty common with a number of Aroids. You might like the larger growth.
Helen Spaulding
2 years ago
I wish mine would do that
HU-499396252
2 years ago
Mine look exactly the same! I came to ask the same question as you. I'm a new pothos owner and wondered if it was a bad . Some of mine have 10 Or more stacked on top of each other in one spot
osakawebbie
Original Author
2 years ago
My experience continues to be the same as when I wrote the question nine years ago, with new stalks cut and rooted since then. Some stalks will grow long and others will just stay in a scrunched cluster close to the pot. If the short ones are supposedly healthier, I don't understand why stalks in the same pot would behave so differently.
kwie2011
2 years ago
That looks like very normal growth to me. There have been sections like that on every pothos I've ever grown. I believe those areas are where the plant would branch under ideal conditions, but since most pothos are grown as hanging or trailing vines instead of climbing vines, they rarely branch.