How To Take Care of a Pothos Plant - Tips & Tricks

A pothos is a reasonably common plant you will see in homes and offices. The plant is simple enough to keep alive, which makes it ideal for most environments. Here are some tips for caring for this plant and more!

Table of Contents

What is the Scientific Name + Other Names?

Epipremnum Aureum
Money Plant
Devil’s Ivy

What Are Some Different Types of Pothos?

Jade Pothos
Satin Pothos
Manjula Pothos
Neon Pothos
Snow Queen Pothos
Marble Queen Pothos
Silver Satin
Golden Pothos

What Soil Works Best for Pothos?

Traditional potting soil works best for a pothos plant. One tip is to place the plant in a container with suitable drainage holes. Drainage holes at the bottom of a container reduce the risk of root rot, a common disease for this plant.

Are Coffee Grounds Good for Pothos?

If you have a pothos plant, you’ll want to ensure that the soil has plenty of nitrogen. Coffee grounds have a ph neutral level and 2% nitrogen, which can help a pothos plant grow effectively. Check out the are coffee grounds suitable for houseplants guide to learn more about this practice.

How Much Sun Does a Pothos Plant Need?

Being native to southeast Asia and Polynesia, a pothos plant thrives with a ton of indirect light. The plant can do well in your home by placing it in front of an eastern or western window. However, this plant does not enjoy direct sunlight, so add a curtain over the window that the plant is facing to limit burning the leaves.

What Temperature Works Best?

Room temperatures around 60-80 degrees Fahrenheit is what works best for this plant.

Does this Plant Enjoy Humidity?

Being native to southeast Asia and Polynesia, a pothos plant enjoys humid environments. Consider placing this plant in a bathroom that has a shower since it will appreciate the extra humidity. If you can’t put the plant in a bathroom, you can mist, use a humidifier or a pebble tray to create a more humid environment.

How Often Should You Water this Plant?

You should water a pothos plant when the top inch or so of soil is dry. The plant does best when the soil is between a dry and soggy state. If the plant is in a room with almost no humidity, you can mist the plant instead of top watering it.

Overwatering the plant is common for most plant owners. Common signs of overwatering a pothos plant include soggy soil and the leaves turning yellow. If you suspect that you are overwatering the plant, here are a few things to do.

First, you should drain out any excess water. Second, cut off any yellow leaves to preserve the plant’s energy. Third, consider repotting the plant in fresh soil and stop watering for a bit while the plant adjusts to the new ground.

What Size Does this Grow to Typically?

Mature pothos plants can grow quite large, anywhere between 20-40 feet.

Most Common Bugs

Spider mites, fungus gnats, and aphids are common bugs that can latch onto a pothos plant. Typical reasons for these bugs include overwatering and poor ventilation.

To combat these bugs, you first want to remove the plant from others to reduce the spread of these pests. Second, you should cut away any yellow leaves to preserve the rest of the plant’s energy. Third, you can wash the plant off with moderate water pressure and also use horticulture oils.

Most Common Diseases

One of the most common diseases on a pothos plant is root rot. Root rot occurs when you overwater a plant, and the water at the bottom of the plant can’t drain. If you suspect root rot with either yellowing leaves or black roots at the bottom of the plant, you should do a few things.

Move the plant to a container with drainage holes if it is not in one already.
Cut any infected roots away, and then clean the reaming roots with fungicide.
Repot the plant in fresh potting soil.
Wait a few days before watering the plant again to let the plant fully dry.

How Often Should You Repot this Plant?

Typically speaking, you should repot the plant once a year. However, if you notice that the plant is outgrowing its current container, you should either repot, prune, or propagate the plant. Mainly if the plant’s roots are sticking through the bottom of the container, you should repot the plant.

Check out how to correctly repot a plant to see tips and tricks to consider.

Can you Prune this Plant?

You can prune this plant as often as you like since it can grow large in your home. After making the cuts, you can consider propagating the plant to grow new plants.

How to Propagate a Pothos Plant?

One way to propagate a pothos plant is to cut one big part of the plant with leaves and nodes and place it in a cup of water. Another way is to make multiple cuts along the stem with a leaf and at least one node. From there, you put those cuttings into a jar with water.

After you start seeing roots, you can pot the newly propagated plant/s in a new container with fresh potting soil.

Conclusion: How to Take Care of a Pothos Plant?

In summary, a pothos plant is one of the most common plants for any home or office. The plant does best with indirect light, moderate water, regular soil, and a mild to warm environment. Not only is the plant easy to care for, but propagating the plant is easy, which makes it a great gift to give to others to grow in their home!