It needs a totem, they like to climb

It is on a totem, it was on a totem when i bought it and i have left on the same one, literally took it out of the box and just let it carry on. It immediately put out a brand new big leaf but hasnt put another one out since in the 6 months i've had it, miserable grumpy plant that is beginning to wind me up!!

Have you fertilized it?

Yes, I forgot to mention that the plant keeps trying to send up new shoots from the base of the stem instead of growing from the top of the plant where the next big leaf should come from, as it produces these new shoots at the base I remove them to encourage the main plant to grow but nothing from the top, just more shoots from the bottom.

Let the base shoots grow , maybe more foliage will help the top take off . THis is not an easy species to grow , I have finally got a top to grab onto a tree on my garden . Now to just get a P.gigas to start climbing .

Why on earth would you take off shoots?
Leave them ON, man! Don't ever remove new growth from a plant that's obviously struggling. That's like taking food out of the mouth of a baby

You dont think removing the new shoots will encourage the main stem to continue growing?

I think you might be right bihai, I think i DO meddle too much, and worry too much about the darn plant. hoe-hum!!!

I used to do that too. Then I got smart and let Chaos Theory take over. The plants all do a lot better now, LOL.
I tried in vain to train a small Philodendron "Strawberry Shortcake" up a totem. It just wouldn't do it. Finally, I just gave up. I left the totem in place, and forgot about it. Then one thing or another happened, and for some reason the philo got covered up from casual site and I forgot about it. Months later, I noticed an "unknown" philo climbing up the wall. It was the SB Shortcake, now really big, doing its thing. Chaos Theory of Gardening.

Funny thing that, all of the plants that i never pay any attention to except watering ocassionally are thriving and taking over he greenhouse but the ones i keep fussing over just want to be left alone i think, like the song goes "too much love will kill you!"...LOL

Thanks for the tips.

Hey, has anybody ever heard of Philodendron "miniature selloum"? Photo in Graff's Exotica. Am I the only person that has one? Looks like a regular selloum with every leaf curled under 'like a dead spider'. But it is by NO means....... a miniature plant. chumleyrobert@html.c

What has this above post/reply got to do with the growth rate of a Philo. Melanochrysum ?