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How to Grow Full, Healthy Golden Pothos Plants

If you are looking to transform your thin, stringy Devils Ivy into the lush, green beauty that it is meant to be, we have good news for you: this makeover is easy! Also, if you are looking to buy more Pothos and want a Golden Pothos glow from the start, just keep in mind a few simple tips.

1. Choose Wisely!

Purchase your Devils Ivy as you would your produce when food shopping. Look for healthy, full plants with many cuttings -- the more cuttings in the pot the better! You want plants with glossy, green leaves that feel crisp to the touch and rigid, firm green stems (or brown and stiff -- this means the plant is older). It is also very important that you find plants that have dryish soil; these little devils hate soggy soil, so if they have been living in too much moisture for you-don’t-know-how-long, you are purchasing a potential problem.

2. Give Your Pothos the Light It Needs

If your Pothos is bathing in the afternoon sun, move it! Pothos hate direct light, so you will find a dramatic improvement if you place your plant in a spot that provides medium to bright indirect light. Pothos will do well in low-light areas, but if you want the fastest and fullest growth, make sure your Pothos is in a spot that exposes the entire plant to at least four hours of indirect sun each day. You will find that long vines sometimes find their way under furniture and into dark corners - that’s fine, but keep in mind that darkness produces smaller leaves.

3. It’s the Climb!

If you want your Pothos’s leaves to get particularly big, invest in a trellis, support, or stake to encourage climbing. In their native environments, Devils Ivy begin as below-canopy plants with smaller leaves, and as they climb their way up trees and gain access to more indirect light, the plant starts developing larger leaves to capture more of the sun’s nutrients. Fun fact: with the right amount of indirect light, the Pothos might develop Monstera-like lobes as they mature!

4. Prune your Plant!

It might seem counter-intuitive, but pruning encourages new growth and, ultimately, a fuller plant because, from each cut, the plant will sprout new growth. Indoor Pothos plants seem to grow throughout the year, so any time is a good time to groom. Just like your regularly scheduled haircut appointments, start a Pothos pruning regimen so you don’t forget!

5. Limit the Water

I mentioned before, your Pothos hates soggy soil, so let the soil dry out between watering. When it is, in fact, time to water, saturate the entire surface of the soil (not just one spot) and do not stop watering until you start seeing drainage coming through the bottom.

6. Taking Care of Those Bald Spots

If the top of your plant is bald, then use the bobby pin method: use pins to secure long vines to the bare patches. Over time, the vines will root and fill in the head of the plant. You can use floral pins, as well.

Golden Pothos Glow

Maintain a Pothos is simple. In fact, those of us who have neglected our Pothos over a long vacation will go so far as to say that these plants are actually hard to kill. However, if your goal is to have your plant thrive, and not just survive, it doesn’t require much - just some awareness and a bit of planning. Follow the simple tips above, and you will undoubtedly see big gains with little extra effort!

We're so excited that we've just been voted one of the best nurseries in Brisbane. Check out the link below to read more.

https://lawn.com.au/the-best-nurseries-in-brisbane/

We're often asked 'What's the best way to clean my indoor plant?' 

Over a period of time indoor plants will accumulate fuzzy leaves. Keeping the leaves of your plants free of dust makes them look more attractive.

It also helps them stay healthier. Clean leaves help air-purifying plants and air-filtering plans absorb more light and can perform photosynthesis more efficiently. 

When cleaning plants, it's important to use gentle, effective methods that remove contaminants without harming the plants.

You can use a commercial leaf cleaning product and follow the instructions on the packaging, or the occasional use of light dish soap water to clean, followed by plain clear lukewarm water rinse should be fine to keep your plants clean and pest-free.

Avoid using homemade leaf shine products as they may tend to clog pores and inhibit transpiration.

To impart a beautiful shine to smooth leaves, add a little Neem oil to your spray solutions. This will also help deter pests.

To clean the leaves of smooth leafed plants, you will need:

- A spray bottle of cleaning product

- A soft, clean cloth or paper towel

Spray the leaves of your plant with your cleaning solution and then gently wipe clean with your soft cloth or paper towel.

Be careful to apply just the right amount of pressure and resistance to remove dust and contaminants without damaging or accidentally removing the leaves.

NO SCRUBBING!

Always work from the base of the stem toward the tip of the leaf. With a "wiper" in both hands you can do both sides of the leaf at once with a soft cloth or paper towel.

Perform this kid of leaf-by-leaf cleaning once or twice a month. For smaller plants, you can use a soft feather duster to displace dust and keep your plants refreshed.

If you have plants in the kitchen area, watch out for grease that can accumulate on the leaves. These plants will need to be cleaned more often.

A well-groomed plant is a happy, healthy plant 😊🌱

5 of the best TALL indoor plants

Tall Indoor Plants have a place in every home; whether they are used to fill empty corners or tall walls, or simply to make a bold statement in a room. These plants can either be indoor trees or large scale plants at a certain level of maturity.

We've listed our top 5 tall indoor plants that we feel have a place in every home.

Strelizia - Giant Bird of Paradise 🦜🏝

Are one of our favourites among all the indoor tall plants. This is the definition of a tropical style plant. It's very easy to grow and maintain. It grows fast and produces beautiful unfolding leaves.

It’s a gorgeous plant to display individually or to pair up with other plants in a green corner of your home.

Ficus Lyrata - Fiddle leaf fig 🎻🌿

Fiddle Leaf Figs are sold as small plants or as tall indoor plants.

Fiddle Leaf Figs are easy to grow and care for once you find the perfect spot for it and refine the watering schedule. These plants definitely need a lot of bright light. Once mastered, they make a great statement.

Rhapis Palm 🏝

Thrive in bright indirect light areas and don’t do well in low light rooms! However, these plants may turn their leaves yellow if exposed to too much direct sun. Rhaphis Palms are great for adding a tropical flare and wow! effect to your home!

Draceana Fragrantissima - Happy Plant 🤗🌱

Dragon Trees or Dracaenas are very easy to grow tall indoor plants. They are very suitable for plants newbies and very busy people.

These plants enjoy moderate to low light conditions. Full sun will burn its leaves. Dracaenas are drought tolerant, so you don’t have to water them very often. This plant is an excellent air purifier helping remove formaldehyde, xylene and trichloroethylene from the air.

 Ficus Elastica Burgandy - Rubber plant

Rubber trees, can be enjoyed as either medium-sized house plants or grown to become focal point, beautiful indoor trees. They can grow to impressive heights within a few years.

Which large plant will you be getting this weekend? 🤔💚🌱

What are the best indoor plants for air purification, asthma, and allergy sufferers??? 🌬🌿

Well, according to NASA's "Clean air study" that was researching ways to keep air clean while on missions at the international space station. The below list of indoor plants where deemed to be the best,  along with being easy care (which we love)

PEACE LILY ✌🏽🌱

Even if you’re not familiar with houseplants we bet you’ll recognise the Peace Lily. It might be the most common houseplant here in Oz – and for good reason. According to NASA’s research, this plant can help improve air quality by 60%. It neutralises benzene, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide.

In addition, it can help reduce mould in the home. How does it reduce mould? The plant absorbs mould spores and converts them into food (amazing right?).

They look great on a dining table, on a bedroom dresser, or on the sink in a bathroom.

SPIDER PLANT 🕷🌱

Spider plants are another common indoor plant and great for people with asthma and allergies. They do more than just brighten up a room, they also clean the air.

They have the ability to remove a significant amount toxins in the household air within a few days – especially formaldehyde. The NASA study showed Spider plant performed the best of indoor plants with a 95 percent removal rate.

SNAKE PLANT 🐍🌱

This mod and sleek plant, is great at filtering out formaldehyde, which can be found in cleaning products, hair dyes and treatments, and even toilet paper (yikes). It gives off oxygen at night, making it a nice one near the bedroom, but prefers humidity, so the bathroom is a safe place to keep it happiest.

The Environmental Protection Agency states “indoor air can be 2-5 times worse than outdoor air”, so it makes sense to employ these useful plants in our homes. Why not pick one up this weekend and breathe easy 😊

Do you own a rubber plant?! Keep it alive and well for years to come with these awesome rubber tree care tips!

Pro Tips:

💧 Rubber plants have two different seasons. Growing season and dormant season. Growing season occurs during the summer and this is when it needs the most water. During the dormant season, your plant needs much less water (sometimes needing water as little as once a month!) Just make sure that your plant is not sitting in water.

🌞 Rubber plants like bright, but indirect light. That means a nice sunny room, without being right in front of the window. If it has to be in some direct sunlight, it would prefer morning light, when the sun still isn't too harsh.

🌱 Clean the foliage often so that the leaves stay shiny an will be healthy as possible.

That's about it for the Rubber Plant! If you have any more tips or fun stories about your own rubber plants, feel free to leave a comment! And if you don't have one yet, head on into The Grow Centre and let us help you out choosing your new plant family member.

Are you the proud plant parent of a fiddle leaf fig? Or perhaps it's next on the wish list... either way, follow these fabulous fiddle leaf fig care tips, and you'll be growing a full, lush, healthy plant, that you can enjoy for years to come.

Pro Tips:

💧The fiddle leaf fig likes its soil to be kept consistently evenly moist, with a brief drying out period between waterings, as it comes from an area of the world that gets very dry between rain. Water it throughly whenever the top 3cm of soil have dried. Allowing the soil to dry more than a few inches will lead to leaf loss, so be sure to check in with the soil regularly until you develop a routine with your plant. In contrast, too much moisture in the soil can lead to root rot and cause leaves to drop.

🌞Choose a location away from air vents and drafts where the tree will receieve plenty of bright ambient light. If you're unsure about your lighting conditions, placing the tree directly next to the window is the safest bet.

🌱Rotate your tree once a month to keep it standing straight and tall. Fiddle leaf figs in particular like t reach towards the light, so if you don't rotate you'll notice them bending over in time.