Lazy gardeners opt for pothos to decorate their living space, as it is semi-neglect plant. However, the easiest to grow houseplant also has its share of preferences.
Though pothos is hardy and can survive with little care, you must provide best potting soil for pothos to make it look healthy.
Pothos need well-drained soil that have ability to retain required moisture and filled with nutrients. It is recommended to make your own potting soil mix to grow pothos as it allows you to control the ratio of ingredients.
Soil for pothos should be well-aerated and acidic in nature.
It might feel difficult to choose the right soil, but by end of this article you’ll find it easy to make your own soil mix at home.
You can be relieved by the fact that you are not the only one facing issues revolving around the decision of choosing the best potting mix for pothos. That’s right! There are a number of people who are daunted by the mere thought of selecting the most appropriate soil mix for pothos.
Their worries can be safely attributed to the problems caused by an inappropriate selection of pothos potting mixture.
One can face soil selection issues while repotting the old photos houseplant, or while propagating a completely novel living being.
Check this: Why pothos cuttings is not rooting?
Let us have a thorough look at the type of potting soil that your pothos desire, with additional tips assisting you through every step of your journey in propagating and growing pothos in your own backyard.
Also Read: Why Pothos Leaves Turning Yellow?
Know Your Plant – Pothos
Before we jump to the ultimate question, let us take a stop and make an attempt to gain greater insights into the life of the pothos plant thriving within the boundaries of your house.
Pothos comes packed with multiple names, most common of them being the Devil’s ivy, money plant, or golden pothos. Other than this, different cultures and regions give varied names to the plant.
However, its scientific name remains constant throughout, although a bit difficult to pronounce, this provides a standard identity to the plant, Epipremnumaureum.
The plant belongs to the Arum family and hails from the region of southeastern Asia. It demands us to reciprocate the available surroundings in a manner that is hugely similar to its native place. Therefore, care needs to be taken for the same.
Pothos provides exceptional benefits to the environment, in the sense that it aids in air purification by removing toxins present in the form of formaldehyde, benzene, and toluene.
Enough being stated about pothos plants, the bottom line remains. Taking good care of pothos plants is usually undemanding. This is because of their flexibility in adjusting to multiple environmental types.
You put them in light and they will grow in light, cover them in shade, and they will still do fine. All in all, there is no better plant than pothos to add some good greenery to your homes.
Best Potting Soil Mix for Pothos Plant
In case if you are still having a hard time unlocking what kind of soil works best for pothos, know that a soil that can retain moisture and essential nutrients while also draining off excess water and humidity is the ideal soil type for this houseplant.
Additionally, mixtures of perlite and peat moss also frame the best fertility ground for pothos to grow. Let us dive into greater details as we move forward.
1. Well drained soil
Wet and soggy potting mixture is a bane for pothos plants and they do more harm than any good. An average pothos plant requires living in a soil that appropriately drains out excess water while retaining the adequate moisture.
To avoid the problem of root rot, choose soil made of perlite and compost that allows free movement of water throughout. Further, you can also create little ventilation slabs and drainage holes in the pot to support the growth of pothos.
Nourishment, absorption, and efficient drainage are some of the key elements that should be provided by your soil type. For the purpose of growing pothos, you can either purchase a pre mix, or make your own potting mixture by following some simple recipes.
2. Acidic Soil
Do pothos plants like acidic soil? It depends on how you define acid. Pothos plants are completely fine to grow in a slightly environment setting. The ideal acid tolerance range is 6.1 to 6.5 and it thrives in that range.
Make sure to run regular acidity checks on your soil and do not let the pH level fall below 5.8. Any level below this range would cause tremendous damage to the parts of your pothos plants, especially the roots and the leaves.
Try to avoid selecting a soil that is too acidic and look for signs that convey you to remove the acidic cover. Wilted leaves and weak roots are the most common symptoms of an excessively acidic soil.
Also Read: How Much Light Do Jade Plants Need?
Cactus Soil? No.
Cactus soil is perhaps the last soil type that your pothos plant currently requires. Turn your head towards this soil, only if this is your last resort.
Apparently, cactus soil faces a hard time in taking proper hold of moisture, thereby rendering the plant dry at most parts of the day. But what if this is the only choice present?
In that case, you can do a little DIY to use this soil for your own benefit. How? Let’s see!
You can take a part of cactus soil and mix it with cocopeat, peat moss, or compost. Since cactus soil is known for keeping the soil dry, adding compost, cocopeat, or peat moss will provide it with the perfect balance that would help it in retaining moisture, making it ideal for pothos to grow in.
Further, combining these mixtures, would also make the soil nutrient rich and organically fir to grow.
Also Read: Why Are My Amaryllis Leaves Turning Yellow?
How to Make Potting Soil Mix for Pothos at Home?
If you decide to make your own potting mixture for growing, here is a list of some ingredients that you do not want to miss:
- Vermiculite
- Peat moss
- Perlite
- Sand
- Shredded bark
- Compost
- Coco coir (can also be used as a peat moss substitute)
While peat moss and coco coir provides excellent means of oxygen and water retention, vermiculite adequately aerates the soil.
Perlite, sand, and shredded bark are key ingredients that help the soil develop air pockets and drainage characteristics.
Conclusively, compost makes the soil an organic and nutritive match.
Recipes of Potting Soil Mix for Pothos
We will be looking at not one, but two top notch recipes for making the best soil mix for pothos in less time, with all the available material.
1. Take four parts of coco coir, or peat moss, or you can mix the two equally.
Scoop out two perlite parts, mix them with one part of vermiculite or sand, can be used interchangeably, and with one part of shredded bark. Mix these quantities for a long time and make a proper bed for your pothos plants to grow.
2. Take one part of cactus soil and add one part of peat moss, coco peat and compost each to make a solid mix.
Check the pH level. Keep it aside for some time. And bam! Your potting mix is ready. Spread the layer evenly throughout the pot and place your plant after the soil settles completely.
3. Purchasing potting mixture
An easier option is to buy a commercially laid pre potting mix that does not require you to add any ingredients on your own.
However, there is a chance that if you decide to purchase a potting mixture then you might have to compromise with the quality of the soil.
You can get potting mixtures that are soilless, as well as those who have soil as their active ingredient.
The focus should be to go through the packet thoroughly and know about the components of the soil mix.
If you go with the idea of buying a soilless potting mixture, then do remember that those mixtures are sterile, and keep the fungi, bacteria, and pests away from the plant for long periods of time.
In addition, they support the plant with excellent moisture absorption. The only drawback is the insufficient composition of nutrition in the mixture.
Also Read: Do Pothos Need Sunlight to Grow?
Things to keep in mind
If you desire to buy a potting mix for your pothos plant, chances are that you would be presented with numerous products before you. Nevertheless, you should have adequate knowledge about the selection criteria too.
Here are a few things that you need to keep in mind before choosing a good pothos plant potting mixture.
- Rich in nutrition: Pothos, being fast growing plants, absorb nutrition at a quicker rate. Nutrition rich soil supplements the plant growth and boosts the requirements of the plant. If your potting mixture is soilless, make sure to comprehend it with nutritional additions.
- Good draining properties: To avoid the problems of root rotting and overwatering, a soil should be so chosen that it drains the water out immediately. Do not let your leaves suffer from drooping and wilting, choose the right porous mixture.
- Moisture retainer: Many get confused between a soil offering well drainage properties and a soil that retains moisture in the required amounts. Choose a soil that does not dry out quickly and keeps dispensing the plant continuously with water.
Note that the key difference here is in drawing off the “excess” water, while maintaining the amount of moisture that is required and necessary for the plant to grow.
Ideal is the soil that offers both these characteristics.
Facilitates aeration of the soil: An aerated soil restraints the stunted growth of the plant, thus giving it proper breathing space to grow its roots and nurture itself. The soil should not be tightly packed, and not too loosely packed for that matter.
Repotting tips for Pothos plant
Talking about the best potting mixture for pothos plants, and not including repotting?
Yes, that is not possible.
This is precisely why we thought of giving you some quick repotting tips and tricks that are ideally suited for the pothos plant, before bidding a farewell.
Let us know the why, how, and when of repotting pothos house plants.
Why repotting?
Why are we so bent upon getting an in-depth knowledge of repotting a pothos plant correctly? The reason is two-fold.
First, to prevent stunted growth of the plant, and second to prevent health problems.
As we discussed earlier, pothos are fast growing plants and the pot in which they grow might sometimes not be able to contain the roots completely, and could restrict the plant growth severely.
Therefore, it is important to repot the plants into a pot that is big enough in size and shape and adequately supports the quality of aeration within the soil.
Health problems caused due to overwatering or inadequate fertilizer supply can also be prevented if the plants are repotted timely with the help of the right apparatus. Repotting enables us to place the plant in a fresh, new, and well-drained soil, which reduces any chances of the plant getting sick.
The “hows and whens” of repotting
There are two visibly alarming situations that inform us about the right time of repotting pothos plants.
If the size of the plant has outgrown the pot, or if the plant is becoming root bound, then it is the right time for your plant to be repotted someplace else.
Spring and early summer remains the most favorable season to set the repotting grounds for the plant.
If you cannot do it over these seasons, then do not bother touching them during winters, because it would simply do more harm than any good.
It is ideally suggested to start planting pothos in a pot sized 4” to 6”, and then move consecutively by increasing the size of each pot by 2”. Choose a pot that is neither too big nor too small for your plants.
Best potting soil for golden pothos
Potting soil mix for golden pothos is similar to that of pothos plant. A blend of peat moss, coconut coir, worm castings and garden soil will be ideal for golden pothos.
What kind of soil is best for silver satin pothos?
Perfect combination for this pothos is a mix of peat moss combined with perlite and vermiculite or coco coir.
You can also add orchid bark and sand to improve draining abilities of this soil mix.
In order to prevent root rot from occurring one should avoid using heavy or tightly packed soils that tend to accumulate moisture.
To keep your silver satin pothos in good condition make sure you monitor the soil’s moisture level regularly and adjust watering accordingly.
Pothos is grows well in tropical regions with nutrient rich soil.
Can I use cactus soil for pothos?
Cactus soil is ideal for succulents and cacti. Pothos on other hand need moist rich growing soil. Cactus soil isn’t a good choice for growing pothos plant, as it won’t hold moisture for longer time.
Conclusion
Wonder what kind of potting soil is best for pothos?
Choose a well-drained soil that can retain moisture.
Draining ability of the potting soil mix helps to avoid overwatering and moisture retaining ability will save the plant from underwatering issues.
To boost plant growth, you should also include old compost or worm castings to the potting soil mix.
Adding perlite, sand or peat moss can make the growing medium well-aerated.
Pothos are for a low maintenance, yet beautiful addition to your office or home setting, and then your eyes should not travel further than a well laid pothos plant.
They are insanely popular for their ability to adapt to any or every setting. They only expect you to give minimal care from time to time.
Further, contrary to the beliefs that some people hold about their toxicity, pothos plant ingestion can be fatal and perhaps, poisonous to one’s lungs and stomach.
Children should be kept away from consuming the leaves, since it can take them close to the threshold of death.
Pet animals like dogs and cats can also display features of ill health due to the consumption of pothos.
Conclusively, growing pothos as a houseplant is a fine choice, and if the aforementioned tips are followed carefully, they can turn out to be your best experience.
Khaja Moinuddin, a computer science graduate, finds joy in gardening and homesteading. Join him on this blog as he shares his experiences in homesteading, gardening, and composting