What to Do When Your Pothos Grows Too Tall? The Correct Way to Handle It Is Right Here

Pothos is also known as devil's ivy, golden pothos, golden vine, etc. It is a large evergreen climbing plant of the genus Epipremnum. In fact, a pothos growing tall is not a disease but a natural growth pattern, because pothos is inherently a large climbing plant. After you buy it, it will not keep the shape the seller maintained. Let's take a look below at what to do when your pothos grows too tall!

What to Do When Your Pothos Grows Too Tall?

1. Vigorous growth of pothos is usually caused by the growing points pointing upward. Turn the growing points of the pothos (the growth nodes on each branch and leaf) downward, keep them downward for a week, and it will turn back before long.

2. Directly cut the overly long parts of the pothos short, that is, at 15-20 cm from the potting soil, so that the pothos grows new branches and leaves again. However, this method takes a relatively long cycle, but the newly grown plant will be more robust.

3. When the pothos grows too tall, to avoid waste, you can prune it appropriately and then cut off the tender tips at the top as cuttings material. By the time the old plant grows old, the new plant will already have grown, so you can continuously replenish with new pothos.

How to Prune and Shape Pothos?

1. Column style: Use a small dragon jar, large flower tray or oil basin filled with soil, stand a wooden stick or moso bamboo column about 1 m high and 5-6 cm in diameter in the middle, and tie palm bark or palm tree bark around the column. Plant 4-5 pothos plants of similar size with sturdy stems and leaves around the column, preferably plants that have already been propagated by cuttings, rooted and are ready to be transplanted into pots, so that they take shape faster.

2. Hanging style: Use pots of various sizes filled with soil, plant 1-3 pothos plants in the pot, and hang them or place them in high places indoors. As they grow and develop, the stems and leaves droop along the pot rim, swaying in the wind and bringing the whole room to life. If cultivated in a small pot, put it in a porcelain outer pot and hang it indoors or in the porch. If cultivated in a wall-mounted pot, it can be hung on the wall or window door.

3. Waterfall style: Use a flower trough and plant one pothos every 15 cm. The flower trough is 80-100 cm long, then hang it on the wall or place it on the wall top, balcony, etc. According to the conditions of the hanging or placement location, you can hang or place one to several flower troughs. You can also place the flower trough under the wall, so that the pothos vines climb up along ropes stretched on the wall.

How to Grow Pothos Well?

1. Light: Pothos does not have a strong tendency toward the sun. But in the north in autumn and winter, to supplement the lack of temperature and photosynthesis, the light intensity should be increased. At the same time, when the temperature is low, open windows as little as possible, because in a very short time the leaves may be frostbitten.

2. Humidity: Pothos grows faster in an environment with higher air humidity. It is recommended to maintain indoor humidity. You can use a humidifier to increase air humidity, or cover the plant with a transparent plastic bag to create a small greenhouse effect, but it should not exceed two hours.

3. Temperature: Pothos is very sensitive to temperature. If the temperature is too low, it is easily frostbitten. A room temperature of about 20 degrees is enough. If heating equipment is turned on, the pothos leaves should not be too close to it. Keeping the indoor temperature above 10 degrees is enough for it to safely pass the winter.

4. Fertilizing: Because pothos grown indoors absorbs nutrients less fully than outdoors, it is recommended to fertilize once every half month. You can buy fertilizer specially for pothos on the market. Or ask the flower shop owner to help choose fertilizer.

5. Watering: When watering pothos, do not directly pour water into the pot. Instead, first slowly inject water, wait for it to seep down, then spray evenly, and wait for the water to penetrate. In addition, water should also be sprayed at the places where aerial roots grow, to reduce insufficient water absorption by the roots caused by too rapid evaporation.

6. Shaping: Pothos shaping and pruning is carried out in spring. When the stems and vines have climbed all over the palm column and the tips exceed the palm column by about 20 cm, cut off 40 cm of the stem tips of 2-3 of the plants. After the cut, when new buds and new leaves sprout, then cut off the stem tips of the remaining plants.

7. Pests and diseases: Pothos plants are very susceptible to problems from pests and pathogens. Typical pests affecting pothos include mealybugs, red spiders, scale insects, etc. Mealybugs are usually the most common, and alcohol can be used to kill the insects, remove them with a cotton swab, or take them out by hand.