Monstera (Monstera) - one of the most famous tropical houseplants. Especially often its openwork dark green leaves can be seen in large offices and the lobby of buildings, in winter gardens and shop windows. Despite the origin of his name from the word "monster", many are happy to decorate their home with this bright beauty.

Botanical Description and Features

Delicious Monstera (in Latin - Monstera deliciosa) - a representative of large vines belonging to the aroid family. This herbaceous evergreen liana grows very quickly and in natural conditions can rise to a support with a height of over 9 m. The spectacular appearance of the delicate monstera has caused its frequent cultivation as an ornamental plant.

The homeland of creepers is the tropical rainforests of Central and South America. Today it also grows in tropical thickets of southern Brazil, in Mexico, India, Australia and other places. There it reaches incredible sizes and wraps around the nearest strong and tall trees. In a large greenhouse, a monstera can extend up to 12 m, and in a house - up to 3 m.

Did you know? “Leaky” leaves serve as a monster in order to cover as much of the area as possible and increase the likelihood of sunlight on the sheet for further photosynthesis.

Conditions for growing indoors

In order to successfully grow a monstera, you should choose the right place for it, observe the temperature regime, take care of the level of humidity and lighting.

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Seat selection

When choosing a place for a monstera, it should be taken into account that it occupies a vast space and does not like moving. That is why it is worth immediately deciding on a spacious place where an overgrown plant does not block the passage or window opening.

It is better to put the pot with the young monster on a small table or stand at a distance of about 1.5 m from the window. Behind it on the wall should arrange additional lighting and turn it on as needed. Since the plant is lianiform, in nature it braids the nearest trees and rises along them, clinging to its aerial roots.

Important! A very young monstera can grow without support. But the deviation of its stem from the vertical is a signal that additional support is needed.

In the home, you should also provide such a support, otherwise the delicate monstera will bend under the weight of its leaves and may break. For support, you can use a stick sold in flower shops wrapped in coconut fiber. It is well suited for young plants, but for more mature it is better to use wall mounts - a wooden lattice or a dense twine.

Optimum temperature

Due to its origin, monstera is a thermophilic plant. In summer, she will be comfortable at a temperature of about + 22–25 ° C, in winter - + 16–17 ° C. Under such conditions, the liana grows and develops very well. If the temperature drops too low, for example, to +10 ° C, then the plant will not die, but will practically not develop. In addition, it is advisable to protect the monstera from drafts and hot air from heaters, as they can cause its illness and death.

Humidity

Tropical origin affects the requirements for ambient humidity. Relative humidity should be above average and not lower than 60% at any time of the year. Hot and dry air causes the leaves of the plant to actively evaporate moisture. That is why it is necessary to moisten the room additionally and spray the vine with settled water (especially in the summer). The liquid should be fairly soft so that white stains do not form on the leaves. When spraying, the aerial roots of the plant should also be treated.

Important! To make the monstera shine with healthy beauty, you can use a special tool for polishing indoor plants from a flower shop, preferably in the form of an aerosol.

In winter, spraying can not be carried out, but only wipe the leaves from dust using a damp cloth or sponge. Such a procedure is also necessary because dust disrupts the process of photosynthesis, adsorbs harmful substances and is a beneficial environment for the development of some pests.

Lighting

Monstera delitsiosa unpretentious to light and grows well even in a shaded place. However, a complete lack of lighting will not work, in this case the plant will have a pale appearance, thinned roots and small leaves with almost no cuts.

The bright sun at hot noon also does not like the creeper, as it causes burns on its leaves. Ideal if it is on the east or west side in a well-lit place without direct sunlight.

If the plant is located on the south side, it is worth moving it from the window into the interior of the room and be sure to shade it at noon. The northern window of the sun will not be enough, then you need to install a lamp for artificial lighting.

Home care and growing

The key to the healthy growth of the monstera is a suitable soil and a convenient pot for planting, regular watering, timely top dressing, as well as transplanting and pruning of the plant.

Soil and Choosing a Pot for Planting

Monstera is impressive in size, so you should choose a large pot for planting it. It should be quite wide so that aerial roots can be directed to the ground. For a young specimen, a medium-sized pot is approximately equal in height and width.

At the bottom of the pot, 2-3 cm of drainage material — expanded clay, gravel, perlite or polystyrene crumbs — are necessarily laid. Next, pour soil. The soil mixture for planting decorative and deciduous houseplants is suitable for creepers, which can be bought in specialized stores.

You can make a suitable soil yourself by taking 3 parts of turf land and 1 part of peat, humus and sand. The soil should be loose, nutritious and well-retaining moisture.

Watering and fertilizer

This tropical beauty needs abundant watering with well-maintained, warm and soft water. In winter, watering should be more moderate. It is necessary to ensure that the top layer of the earth in the pot does not dry out. You should also avoid over-saturation of the soil with water, so as not to provoke rotting of the roots. An external sign of excess moisture is the appearance of droplets of water along the edges of the leaves and small brown spots. In addition to watering, one should not forget about regular spraying of leaves and cleaning them from dust with a soft cloth or sponge.

Did you know? Monstera can «work» great home weather forecaster. The fact is that about a day before the start of rain or thunderstorm, its leaves are abundantly irrigated with water droplets.

For active growth and a healthy appearance, the liana needs to be fed. Fertilizers are applied 2 times a month during active growth - in spring and summer. Fertilizing is carried out with mineral complexes for decorative and deciduous plants. In winter, you don’t need to fertilize the monstera, because in low light its new leaves will grow weak and inexpressive. Do not require top dressing and specimens up to half a meter high.

Transplant and pruning

Monstera grows rapidly, so every 1-2 years, when the old pot becomes small, the plant has to be replanted. This should be done carefully, remembering the fragility of aerial roots. First you need to choose a new wide and deep pot, preferably ceramic. Its width should be enough so that the aerial roots reach the ground.

For transplantation you need:

1. Moisten the soil in a pot. With a knife or spatula, separate the soil from the walls and get the vine with a lump of earth, trying not to damage it.
2. Remove bad roots. Place the plant in the center of the new pot, which should be 6-10 cm wider than the old.
3. Install a support nearby. Cover the remaining space with fresh soil, tamping it a little.
4. Water and spray the plant. If necessary, add more soil and take it to a permanent place.

It will be more and more difficult to transplant the monster every time, so you need to connect an assistant, and prepare everything necessary for the transplant in advance. At the same time, a strong, straight trunk or stick can act as a support. After 5-6 years, the monstera develops to a significant size and instead of replanting at least once a year, the topsoil is replaced.Monstera doesn't need regular pruning. If you want to grow a voluminous and sprawling specimen, you can cut the stem 1-2 times when it is just forming. The airy roots of a creeper cannot be cut off because they are needed for its nutrition and hydration. If you do not like the look of the roots, then you can try to carefully collect them in bunches, decorate with moss or fix on the stem. The roots cling to any supports with pleasure and grow into them.

Did you know? Residents of Southeast Asia consider the monster a symbol of good luck and health. In Thailand, for example, they are certainly trying to put her at the bedside of a seriously ill person.

Breeding methods

Monstera can multiply in different ways - cuttings, layering and seeds. Let's take a closer look at all of these methods.

Cuttings

Usually this method is used when there is a need to rejuvenate the plant and grow its new instances. For this, a shoot with aerial roots and at least one mature leaf is selected. Without cutting off the shoot, its aerial roots are placed in a container with water to form small full-fledged roots. After the appearance of washcloths from the roots, the upper part of the stem below the roots is cut off from the maternal specimen and planted in a prepared pot. If you need to cover the "bald patches" on the old vine, such a process is planted in the main pot.There is another method of propagation by cuttings. To do this, the apical stem with several leaves and an eye-bud is cut from the mother plant and planted in a container with wet sand or a mixture of sand and peat under the film. After rooting, after about a month, the cuttings are transplanted into pots with soil. Do not germinate cuttings in water, as these roots will not be adapted to the soil and will begin to hurt at first.

Video: Rooting the cuttings of a monstera

Layering

Propagation by lateral shoots is the easiest and most reliable way. It can be used throughout the spring-summer period. To do this, the side shoots growing at the base of the stem are carefully separated with a sharp knife. After the resulting slices have dried, they are treated with crushed activated or charcoal.

A cropped shoot is planted in a pot with a layer of drainage and loose, nutritious soil. The pot is covered with polyethylene and placed in a warm and bright place. Periodically, the soil should be moistened and the greenhouse lightly ventilated. When new shoots appear on the shoots, the plant is considered to be successfully rooted.

Seeds

This is the rarest way to reproduce the liana, because in artificial conditions it blooms very rarely and it is almost impossible to get seeds. But if somehow they were in your hands, then they need to be sown in a container with a mixture of sand and peat in a ratio of 1: 1, and germinated under a film in a warm and bright place at a temperature of + 20-25 ° C.Growing monstera from seeds Periodically, the greenhouse should be ventilated and the soil moistened. Shoots should appear in 3-4 weeks. First, the plant will release undissolved leaves, and only after 5-8 months, full leaves will form. After this, seedlings should be dived. Plants grown from seeds are planted in permanent pots after two years. By this time they will have a developed root system and 3-5 juvenile leaves and 2-4 adult leaves.

Important! Keep in mind that monstera juice is toxic and causes dermatitis and irritation of the skin and mucous membranes in many people. To avoid this, all work on trimming and transplanting must be done with gloves.

The period of rest and flowering

Monstera is an evergreen without a pronounced period of rest. When daylight hours decrease and the surrounding temperature drops below +20 ° C, it slows down its growth. In addition, in winter she does not need fertilizer, watering becomes scarce. This period gives the liana a respite and the opportunity in the spring to begin to develop rapidly again.

In nature, the plant blooms large, up to 30 cm tall, white or light cream flowers resembling corn cobs. Unfortunately, this practically does not happen in the home. Only sometimes flowering and fruiting can be achieved in large greenhouses or conservatories.Approximately 8-10 months after flowering, the fruits of the monstera fully ripen. Its berries are edible, which is reflected in the name - a delicious or delicious monstera.

Growing difficulties

When growing a monster, you can encounter such problems:

• drying, yellowing and darkening leaves - excessively dry and hot air in the room;
• drilling and cracking leaves - too cold and humid room;
• small, pale and without slits leaves - lack of lighting;
• rotting of the stem - low temperature and excessive watering;
• dark dots on the inner surface of the leaves - defeat by a red spider mite;
• sluggish and "crying" leaves - excess moisture in the soil and atmosphere;
• yellowing and small leaves, but without wilting - deficiency of nutrients in the soil;
• pale leaves with yellow spots - prolonged exposure to direct sunlight.

The main methods of dealing with all these phenomena is the elimination of errors in the care and maintenance of the vine.Many experienced flower growers believe that growing monstera is a simple matter even for novice plant lovers. As a result of the work, you will receive an exotic tropical corner, in the shadow of which it will be pleasant to relax and admire the unusual leaves of a luxurious green beauty.