Monstera/Philodendron mystery problem...

[Entomancer]

So I bought one of these from a grocery store last year (it's one of those split-leaf things that some people call monstera, but is actually a philodendron cultivar).

It suffered a little bit of cold damage (I bought it in January, and had to walk home with it) but it seemed healthy for a while after that.

Then it started losing leaves...it grew more, but none of those leaves survived. They began unfurling/expanding, but then they turned brown and died. It was in a large terra cotta pot; the pot I bought it in was far too small for it, and it was badly, badly root-bound. I figured it would fix this problem by itself when I moved it, but then it started losing those leaves...

So I repotted it again; I actually noticed mold growing on the pot, and it is not outdoors (no greenhouse here...), so I moved it to a black plastic pot, about double the size of the old terra cotta pot. When I moved it, I noticed that the roots were still in a giant, packed ball, and the plant had not been able to correct that itself. I decided to massage the root ball; some roots broke in the process, but it was ultimately looser than before, and I repotted it with some black gold potting soil.

Now, almost all of the leaves look unhealthy. I keep it well-watered, and I use the old water from aquarium water changes, so I know it's getting tons of good nutrients and nothing that could harm it (all of my aquariums are freshwater, have soft water and are very healthy). At the rate it's going, though, it looks like it might die altogether.

I know these plants are supposed to be really hardy, so I'm puzzled as to what the problem is. I have a bunch of other aroid houseplants, I treat them all the same way and they grow faster than I can manage them; one have taken over an entire wall near my television. I bought some more potting soil (same type, same brand), and I think I'm going to split the rootball at this point to try and help it, but I figured I would post about it before I whip out a steak knife and start playing phyto-surgeon.

Any ideas? I know there are a few brilliant green thumbs that hang out here...

 

[Galapoheros]

I don't know but I think it's best to keep them outside if you can. I know someone that keeps them by their pool, it freezes in the winter. Sometimes they make it and sometimes they don't, depending on how cold it gets. They didn't know the nature of the plant, that it has aerial roots it puts out and grows up trees in the wild. It seems like a plant that wouldn't like rich soil much, but something closer to a modified orchid mix. Sorry I can't offer more, but "maybe" better than nothing, not many replies so thought I'd type at least something.

 

[The Snark]

Phil's leaves only turn color, orange, when they have been burned. Either direct sunlight or a 'hot' soil. Since yours sounds like history anyway, try this. Unpot it, rinse the roots thoroughly, and let it stand in an empty pot. Dip the roots in water twice a day. If it continues to loose leaves I'd guess the roots have been burned beyond repair.

Phil's don't mind mingy soil. They can be almost aquatic. They are not epiphytes however and only derive moisture from aerial roots and leaves, not nutrients. They are very intolerant to high nitrogen soils. I watched our landlord bring home horse manure and proceed to burn about 500 to death.


Our Phil. Orange, dying in the sun, I put it in the shade and ignored it for a year. Then I spread it's shoots into a fan shape to screen us from nosy neighbors. 1 1/2 years later the neighbors moved so I shoved it in the dirt to screen us from the road. Got too much sun there. 4 years on we dug up what remained of it and planted bits and pieces around our giant silk tree. This is him 6 years later.
In the background is a split leaf. They don't mind the sun but also tolerate full shade quite happily as long as it is non variegated.
The limit of a Phils growth is how far the plant can pump nutrients from the soil. This slightly variegated can do 15 feet at best. The split leaf gets up to about 25 feet. The base of the tree they are growing on is 8 feet across for scale.
The soil around the base of that tree is pure crap. Mingy and partly poisoned by bamboo. I'm also a very negligent waterer. When all of Phil's leaves curl into tubes I throw water around once or twice a week.

 

[Louise E. Rothstein]

Dear Entomancer,

You might have overfed damaged roots.
They would have been less able to assimilate all that food than the rapidly multiplying bacteria,molds,and/or fungi that might have added those damaged roots to their menu.

Please do not overfeed a plant whose roots have become impaired.

Please give those roots time to recover...

And better luck next time.