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Pothos plant care for a beginner

6 years ago

Hi all!

First post from a beginner here, looking for some advice. We have a pothos plant hanging from our living room ceiling next to a street-side window that we potted in a pretty small pot (9" diameter). It was pretty healthy for that past few months with 4-5 very long vines, until we saw some yellow leaves as well as some with holes in them, so we decided to remove it from the pot and add some fresh potting soil (blend of peat, sphagnum peat moss, and perlite) to the existing soil (along with a splash of fertilizer liquid) which had a lot of thicker bark in it.


However, now its showing more wilting, has a case of "hat-hair" where the top is not bushy, and some of the vines/leaves are getting lighter in color. Given the fact that the pot has to stay the same size (to fit in the hanging piece), should we prune some of the vines? Does that make a difference? We know we shouldn't touch it TOO much so just wanted to get any opinion on how to manage, e.g. keeping the vines short or watering it less. We currently water it once a week. Thanks!




Comments (10)

  • 6 years ago

    Sometimes leaves on a plant yellow because they are blocked from the light by the other leaves. Do you rotate the plant every few weeks?

    Luis Ordonez thanked callirhoe123
  • 6 years ago

    Sorry, but the care you're giving it is not recommended. One is best changing the soil completely, not just topping off the top. Also adding new soil, why also add fertilizer? Redundant & unnecessary.

    Am guessing top is flattening 'cause of some drainage problem. Is the original soil hard to your touch?

    What is this about knowing not to touch it too much? Says who? Sorry, but correcting problems in care/culture is important.

    Could water be collecting inside the bottom of the outer pot?

  • 6 years ago

    It eventually rotates as we dont keep track of what direction it hangs from whenever we bring it down.


    Karen, we know we are not caring for it correctly, this is why I'm coming here for advice. The original soil was hard to my touch, it was more like the forest ground (bark/sticks/etc) while the new soil was soft and homogeneous. There was no water collecting at the bottom of the outer pot.


    Does having long vines require a larger pot for the roots to grow? We weren't sure if we should cut them at all.

  • 6 years ago

    These look beautiful! Thanks for the tips, will try to get it more sunlight, and will make sure not to overwater. Will double check the drainage at the bottom as well. Unfortunately at the moment the leaves are turning more yellow :(

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Sorry to hear that, I continue to think it's a drainage problem.

    I asked about the soil being hard to your touch. If so, that can indicate water isn't penetrating into the rootball; the water goes around it, never actually getting into the central leaf material, hence its flatness or 'hat hair' as you suggest.

    If mine, I'd take the entire thing down, unpot it all, remove the old mix & mix up the new mix, repotting the whole thing. Wait a day to water in.

    The pot doesn't need to be bigger to grow long vines. Once you resolve the drainage problem, you could take some cuttings & pot them back into the middle to make it look more full & lush.

    I'd suggest you take cuttings anyway, as I suspect uncorrected, the plant's likely to get worse, sorry.

    Luis Ordonez thanked Karen S. (7b, NYC)
  • 6 years ago

    Are you by chance watering in the hanging pot and letting it sit in the drain water? It looks tricky to take out and water, but sitting in water isn’t good either.

    I have a couple of these and get the occasional yellow leaf but don’t worry about it, just pluck it off. Mine are not hanging but on the table top. I don’t like the long vines and keep them trimmed so It stays bushy. Just a matter of preference.

    Just my two cents.

    Luis Ordonez thanked socks
  • Luis Ordonez thanked tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
  • 6 years ago

    They need to have strong light or else the leaves become very sparse along the stems. Are you watering so that water runs out the bottom of the pot, or is it with just enough water to moisten the soil with no water exiting the pot?

    Luis Ordonez thanked tropicbreezent
  • 6 years ago

    Thanks all for the resources and information! We followed Karen's advice and repotted, and we found that the soil towards the bottom of the pot was packed in super tight, possibly causing a drainage issue. It looks a bit healthier now (removed a bunch of the very yellow leaves).


    Tropicbreeze, we usually water it without taking the inside pot out of the hanging pot, however the inside pot has a tray attached at the bottom which prevents the water from spilling into the hanging pot. I think we may start removing it from the hanging pot everytime we water it, and letting it sit in the sink until ready to hang back up.


    This is how its looking today, thanks everyone! Very helpful.