I’m not positive that gardening questions go in Cafe Society; if not, I apologize and hope a mod will move this.
I’ve had this pothos plant for years now. I found it next to a dumpster with lots of long vines that had no leaves on them. I saved it from the trash, cut the vines all off and it grew back very nicely. However, I recently moved and had it in a place where apparently several feet of vines didn’t get any light, so I’m back in the situation where there are long vines with no leaves, but hearty, nice buds and leaves on the ends.
So do I cut off these vines because no new leaves will form? Or will it grow leaves on these vines now that I have it back in full light again? Can I root those nice budding ends? Do I place the cuttings in water or soil?
Thanks for any advice and tips. This plant is a tough bastard, so it’s not going to die or anything, but I do want it to flourish and grow over my front window, and right now it looks scraggly and stringy.
Rubystreak
I think I would probably go ahead and cut the vines. I also might stick these in water, and the cuttings would probably live, if not thrive, and I would not have any great hopes of them rooting.
But cutting off the vines would encourage some nice new growth from your pothos plant.
I’m going to sound like a wimp, but it’s hard for me to cut those 2-3 feet of vines when there’s a foot or more of nice new growth at the ends. Will those vines really never grow leaves again? I’m willing to wait it out if it takes a while, but I’ve looked on the 'Net and haven’t found a definitive answer on a vine re-leafing.
I have never had them grow new leaves on the bald spots, so while I am not saying it is impossible, I doubt it. On the other hand, these guys root like madmen. Cut the vines off a few inches from the soil, then leave a few inches on the leafy ends and stick them in water. You could also try to root the bald vines–it wouldn’t surprise me if they rooted, then if you cut them short, grew new leaves.
I concur with Brynda. The vines will not regrow leaves. Sitting here beside me are two large pothos made from rooting a single leaf each by sticking it in water out of direct sunlight. I’ve never had one not grow when rooted iby this method.
Thank you for the answer to the re-leafing question. I think I need to re-pot into a bigger holder, because the surface of the soil is so covered in vines that there’s no room to put in new cuttings. I guess I could start another pothos, though…
I tried to get a cutting to root once and it didn’t. I had it in water and it just sat there. Perhaps I did something wrong? Could I just put a cutting directly into soil?
Another possibility: if you pinch of the very end of the vine, (the pointy thing that will unfold to be the newest leaf) the vine will sometimes branch out in another place.
This I have also done: Make a topiary form with three 2ft bamboo sticks tied together at the top in a tepee shape. Then drape and twist the vines on the sticks so that the leaves are all on the outside. It looks much better than bare vines hanging down. And of course pinch off the ends to get it to branch out more.
The downside is that you now have a floor plant instead of a hanging plant, if that’s what you prefer.
Cuttings need a lot of light to grow. I have put cuttings right in the soil with the rest of the plant, and they grew, but the pot was out on the deck all summer (which produced luxurious growth anyway.) I’ve not tried it on an indoor plant in the winter.
Good luck! It’s nice to have greenery in the house. SO is always threatening to buy a machete.
If I put my plant on the ground, the cats would absolutely destroy it in one hour flat. They have an inexplicable but virulent hatred for all plant life and would rip the leaves off and pull the roots out, leaving it to die. I’m totally serious about this.
Myron, if I pinch off the unfurling end, you think those dead vines would branch out and sprout? Or would the end of the vine, where the new growth is happening, fork into two?
They usually branch out farther up the vine, on one of the little nodes where leaves used to be. Sometimes you even get more than one. (By “dead” I assume you mean bare)
My cat ignores the plants, fortunately (unless the pot’s big enough for her to sit in it).