If the leaves on your Swiss cheese plant are curling, the main cause could be that you have either overwatered or underwatered your plant. More often than not, most of the issues you will experience with Monstera plants, from yellowing leaves to drooping leaves always comes back to a watering issue. However, problems with watering are not the sole cause of curling leaves and it could also be down to the fact the plant is under heat stress or an…
In general, I find that my Monstera plants are very forgiving and it takes a lot of neglect before they start showing any signs of ill health. However, if you notice that your Swiss cheese plant is drooping or wilting, maybe looking a little sad, the most common reason behind this is that you are actually overwatering or underwatering the plant. If you know that this is not the case then other reasons include the wrong size pot for your…
Swiss cheese plants originally became popular in the 1970s and they are enjoying a revival now because, as a houseplant, swiss cheese plants are very easy to care for. These plants quickly grow and will easily become tall plants. They are also good air purifiers for your home. I actually have several Monstera, with my biggest plant currently being around 6ft tall. Swiss cheese plants are incredibly easy to look after, and it all starts with providing them with the…
You can choose from three ways of how to propagate a Swiss cheese plant – by stem cuttings, my personal favourite and probably the easiest, air layering or by seed which I don’t really recommend. The easiest method is by using bits of the stems that you cut off as they’re really easy to get to root. All three methods are straightforward but takes time for the new plants to grow. I cover how to carry out all three processes…
The main reason that your Swiss cheese plant is turning yellow is probably to do with water. You could be over-watering or under-watering the plant; the symptoms are almost the same. In my guide, I explain how to tell which of these is the problem. I also cover other issues that can cause the leaves to turn yellow, including to much light, environmental shock often from repotting, lack of nutrients, root bound plants and more. I also look at other…
To repot a Swiss cheese plant (Monstera) isn’t really any different from repotting other house plants. The keys are to choose a pot that’s large enough and has plenty of drainage holes; to use the right potting mix, and to not pack everything in too tightly. Here’s my step-by-step guide to doing all this to get the most out of your Monstera plant. I have personally done this to plants up to 6ft, so I have experience with both repotting…
If it looks like your Swiss cheese plant is dripping water, or ‘crying’, some people even describe it as sweating, it could be because of one of two reasons. You could be overwatering your plant, and it’s using a process called transpiration to get rid of the excess water. Or, it could be a perfectly natural process called guttation. I discuss both of these in this article and give advice on what to do about each. Over-watering often leads to…
Swiss cheese plants are more prone to pests than diseases. The Swiss cheese plant pests are the usual ones found on houseplants and plants grown in greenhouses. Think scale insects, thrips and mealybugs. As for diseases, there are none that are exclusive to Swiss cheese plants. But I’ve included the ones most common to plants like the cheese plant, including root rot and powdery mildew. If you have issues with the leaves turning yellow, this guide is probably the guide…
It’s often difficult to tell if you’ve really got a dying Swiss cheese plant on your hands. Wilting yellow leaves or soft mushy stems are not necessarily mean it’s too late to recover what looks like a dying plant. My guide leads you through troubleshooting the problems with your (dying) Monstera and helps you deal with them and help revive them. I have been growing Swiss cheese plants for over 20 years in the nursery. However, I’ve also grown them…
There are two occasions when I tend to prune my orchids. The first is after they’ve flowered to encourage new growth and often a second flush of blooms or prepare them for a cooler period ready before they naturally bloom again. The second is to remove diseased or dead flowers and foliage to help prevent the spread of diseases or rejuvenate a dying orchid. Here’s how I go about pruning my orchids. After flowering Some orchids bloom just once a…