White Monstera Care InfographicThe variegated monstera plant, also known as white Monstera, is a subspecies of the monstera deliciosa plant. It makes a fantastic indoor plant as its contrasting white and green colored leaves add an unprecedented level of funk to your living space.
The best thing about this plant is, of course, how easy they are to look after! Let’s look at how to care for this plant properly.
What Is White Monstera?
White monstera, also called Monstera albo borsigiana, is a subspecies of the monstera deliciosa plant. It has big variegated leaves that have large green and pure white patches on them; they can grow to be 10 to 35 inches long and 30 inches wide. The stems of this plant are also quite long and striped, much like its leaves.
White Monstera Care
Care for the variegated monstera albo plant by providing it with indirect bright light, watering it every seven to nine days, and keeping it under high humidity and temperature levels.
Learn how to grow white Monstera here.
– Light Requirements
The Monstera variegated plant needs plenty of bright but indirect light all day long. It is a sensitive plant that cannot tolerate direct sunlight at all. Exposing it to even moderate amounts of direct sunlight will cause its white variegated parts to shrink and then turn green over time. In severe cases, even the green leaves of this plant will turn yellow as a result of sunburn.
– How To Keep White Monstera Indoors
Here are some things to keep in mind if your plant is indoors:
- Choose the brightest room in the house for this plant but keep it some distance away from the windows.
- The north-facing window in the house is the safest for your variegated Monstera houseplant. This window receives only indirect light throughout the day.
- The east and the west side windows are the next best options for this plant. These windows receive direct light of moderate-intensity only for a couple of hours each day. You can simply put a curtain over these windows during that time to save your plant from the direct sunlight.
- If there is a south-facing window in the room with the Monstera plant, you need to keep the plant at least 3 feet away from it, or keep the window covered with filters. This is because this window receives very harsh light that is utterly intolerable for this plant.
– Water Requirements
The water needs of the variegated monstera plants are quite straightforward. Although this plant needs a constant watering regime to grow healthy and happy, it is quite a hardy plant and will tolerate even slightly drier soil conditions for a short while.
– How Often To Water
These plants need to be watered at least once a week during the hot summer months. One clear-cut indication that your plants need water is whenever the top one inch of their soil becomes thoroughly dry.
All you have to do is simply put a pencil or a stick inside the soil and see how dry or moist it comes out. In very hot and dry climates, you will have to increase how often to water these plants.
– The Right Method To Water
Here is a tried and tested method of watering your plant:
- Always use a moderate amount of water to give to this plant. This plant likes to be watered deeply each time.
- Our experts always advise that water should be poured over the soil and not directly on the plant itself. Water poured over the plant takes a long time to evaporate and this puts it at an increased risk of developing fungal infections.
- Keep pouring water over the soil at a deliberate pace until you see it coming out of the drainage hole of the pot. Stop watering the plant when this happens because this means that water has soaked all the way through in the soil.
- Collect this water coming out of the drainage hole in a saucer and then drain it right away.
– Soil Requirements
The potting mix for the white monstera albo plant needs to be both rapidly draining and rich in organic matter. You need to add ingredients like perlite, bark pieces or coco coir to the soil to improve its drainage. Not only do these ingredients open up space for the flow of water, but they also allow the roots to grow unimpeded.
Furthermore, in order to improve the organic levels of the soil, you can add ingredients like peat moss, compost or worm castings. These would improve the nutrient levels of the soil according to your plant’s needs.
– Temperature Requirements
Ideally, 65 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit is the perfect temperature to keep your white monstera plant under. Don’t let the temperature fall below 55 degrees Fahrenheit because they are not frost-hardy and will undergo cold shock. Their leaves will begin to exfoliate dangerously.
– Humidity Requirements
This plant has better tolerance for lower humidity levels of around 30 to 60 percent as compared to other monstera varieties. With that being said, it still loves and would thrive better under higher humidity levels. Most homes have average humidity levels of around 25 to 40 percent.
Learn how to improve humidity around your monstera plant below:
- One option is to keep this plant in the most humid rooms of the house. These are, without a doubt, the washroom and the kitchen.
- Keeping similar plants close together also increases the surrounding air-moisture content around them.
- You can also mist your plant to make sure it doesn’t dry out. Just make sure that you are doing it very lightly and in the morning. Misting in the morning allows the extra water a lot of time to evaporate before temperatures drop in the evening.
– Fertilizing Requirements
Most plants grow best with a regular fertilizing schedule at hand. The white monstera alba is no exception to this. This plant needs to be fertilized every six to eight weeks from March to October each year, but fertilization can be stopped during the non-growing winter months.
Read the list below to find out some amazing care tips regarding the use of synthetic fertilizers:
- Always buy a commercial fertilizer that has a balanced ratio of all the essential elements, particularly nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
- Mix the fertilizer with the exact amount of water given on the packaging label, then add in more water in order to dilute it even more.
- Always water the plant first and then fertilize it right away. This habit will go a long way in preventing unwanted fertilizer burns.
– Pruning
Don’t forget to clean the beautiful leaves of your plant every week. Remove all old leaves at the lowest portion of the stem every fall.
Propagation
You can propagate the albo variegated plant using both stem cuttings and seedlings during spring each year. When using stem cuttings, both water and organic substrate can be used as appropriate media.
Find out about both processes in detail below.
– Cutting
Propagate stem cuttings by cutting under the nodes of the stems and growing it in water or moss. Propagating is useful as it is not very often that you will find white Monstera for sale.
– Taking the Right Stem Cuttings
The stem cutting that you need for propagating this plant should be long and contain at least one node at the bottom. The nodes are present mostly in the bottom two-thirds of the long Monstera stem.
The node is a swollen bump present between the junction of two stems. Take sharp gardening scissors and cut one stem of the plant at least two inches below the node.
Remove all leaves and stem sheaths that are present on the cutting, then place it on a piece of paper towel to dry for about 10 minutes at least.
– Propagating in Water
Propagating stem cuttings in water is super easy and convenient. Take a long transparent jar of water, preferably one that is wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. Fill this jar with clean, filtered water only halfway through.
Place the stem cutting in this jar such that it remains upright with its node submerged completely in water. You can use a moss pole to aid in keeping the cutting upright. Now place this jar in the brightest, warmest and most humid part of your house.
It will take several weeks for the new baby roots to emerge and grow. These nodes need to be at least several inches long before the plant can be transferred to a pot. Meanwhile, you will have to keep changing the water in the pot every week before it becomes too dirty.
– Propagating in Sphagnum Moss
Yes, you can also propagate your Albino monstera plant using moss as the nutrition medium. Many people swear that this method produces better variegations in the plant.
To do this, take an appropriately-sized pot and fill it with 100 percent moss. Make a hole in the center and insert the cutting into it.
Place the pot in a warm, bright location and keep the medium moist but not soggy all the time. In several weeks’ time, new shoots will begin to grow, indicating that your cutting
has taken root. Wait another couple of weeks and then transplant in another larger pot containing the right type of potting mix for the variegated monstera plant.
– Seeds
Here is how you can propagate your plant using seeds:
- Seeds from the Monstera plant are easily available from any good gardening supply store. However, keep in mind that these seeds don’t have a very long shelf life and should be propagated as soon as possible.
- Take a medium shallow tray and fill it with an appropriate nutrient medium from the store.
- Prior to planting the albo monstera seeds, soak them in lukewarm water for at least 12 hours.
- Now take the slightly swollen seeds and bury them gently in the medium within the tray at a distance of about two inches from one another.
- Place the tray in a bright, warm place and keep the nutrition medium slightly moist at all times.
- In about two months, you will see new roots and shoots growing. This is when you can transport these baby plants to a pot.
Problems
The most common problems you might face with your monstera variegata houseplant are sunburn, leaves turning brown, and the development of root rot.
– Sunburn
Sunburn on the swiss cheese plant is always a cause of major concern. The plant will lose its beautiful variegations and instead develop yellow leaves that are also dry and crispy. That is why you should never expose it to direct sunlight.
– Leaves Turning Brown
The leaves of your Monstera deliciosa will turn brown either due to underwatering or low humidity. Find out the complete details below.
– Underwatering
The edges or tips of this plant’s leaves will begin to turn brown when it is not being watered often enough. Check your soil to see how dry it is. If it is drier than two inches deep, then it is most definitely being underwatered. Water as soon as the top inch of the soil becomes dry.
– Low Humidity
Lower than ideal levels of air moisture content will also turn the leaves of this plant a sickly brown. The leaves will also turn crisp and crunchy, which is why you should always keep a hygrometer at home to check how humid the surrounding air is.
If you find it lacking, use the methods we have described above in the humidity section.
– Root Rot
Root rot almost always occurs as a result of overwatering. It is a fungal condition and produces yellowing of leaves.
Brown rot spots also emerge in advanced cases. In order to treat root rot, you must remove the entire plant from its soil and repot it in fresh soil.
FAQ
Does White Monstera outgrow its pots?
Yes, White Monsteras can outgrow their pots if they are not repotted regularly. It’s important to choose a pot that allows for growth and drainage.
Do White Monsteras like to be misted?
White Monsteras do not require misting but benefit from high humidity. Consider using a humidifier or placing a tray of water near the plant.
How often should I repot my White Monstera plant?
White Monsteras should be repotted every 1-2 years or when the roots have outgrown the pot. Use fresh soil and a slightly larger pot.
Conclusion
Let us recap all that we have learned so far in this care guide for Monstera Albo variegata.
- The white monstera or the monstera albo is a unique subspecies of Monstera delicious that has very large leaves with green and white variegations on them. It belongs to the family of the monstera deliciosa plant.
- Your white monstera albo needs to be in filtered or indirect bright light all day long. Also, water it regularly whenever the top one inch of the soil becomes dry.
- Keep this plant in a moderately warm and humid indoor location and fertilize it every six to eight weeks using a balanced fertilizer.
- You can propagate this house plant using either stem cuttings or seeds. Stem cutting propagation is far easier and can be carried out using water or moss as the growth medium.
With our comprehensive guide, there is no reason why you shouldn’t grow and propagate the white monstera house plants successfully at home. Give them plenty of warmth, indirect sunlight, and regular watering and fertilizing and get 100 percent great results back.
- How Long Do Hibiscus Flowers Last: Ways To Elongate - May 24, 2023
- Aeroponics vs. Hydroponics: Comparison of Two Planting Ways - May 24, 2023
- Monstera Deliciosa Light Requirements: The Ideal Conditions - May 21, 2023
