Since neon is a color of lure, it easily attracts anyone for its vibrancy. So it is needless to say, Epipremnum aureum ‘Neon’ or neon pothos escalates the ambient belle a thousand times. It will be a gem collection for your indoor garden. Besides, it is easy to take care of the neon pothos since it is a negligence-tolerant plant.
This eye-catching vine is a robust plant and easily thrives just like any other variety of pothos. If you are hesitant to have this just because your room does not get enough sunlight, there is nothing to worry about.
The flamboyant, gorgeous, and heart-shaped leaves of pothos will not lose their enticing neon green color, even if you place it in a dark room.
You can expect all the characteristics of the pothos from this one, with the addition of stunning neon green foliage.
This neon ivy has an undisrupted growth even in adverse conditions. It requires fertilization during the growing season. In addition, the well-drained soil quickens its growth and keeps it healthy.
Irrespective of being a tropical plant, neon pothos are temperature and humidity tolerant. Weekly watering is enough to keep neon pothos happy and flourishing.
Although neon pothos adjusts to living in the dark, bright, indirect, and filtered sunlight provides them an uninterrupted growth. Neon pothos improves air quality like any pothos by breaking down the VOC particles in the encompassing air so that you can breathe fresh air, at least in your room.
How do you care for neon pothos?
Neon pothos is one of the sturdiest houseplants available in the market. Since taking care of them is easy, many newbie gardeners prefer this vine for starting indoor gardening.
The adaptability of neon pothos is so vast that it adjusts with any environment. Although this vine can live at any temperature, filtered and indirect sunlight intensifies its growth.
You will notice your neon pothos thrive swiftly if it gets proper nutrition from a superior quality soil. If you want to place neon pothos in a low light room like a washroom, your vine will not mind. Even in tenebrosity, this magnificent vine remains vibrant.
Besides this, you can grow neon pothos even in water or soil. So, here, we will discuss how you can take care of neon pothos if you do not know.
1. Choosing proper soil will reduce half of your work
If you are a newbie indoor gardener and feel stressed about taking care of neon pothos, good quality soil will minimize the anxiety.
You can increase the quality of the soil by mixing some natural fertilizers. Neon pothos love well-drained soil, which provides balanced humidity.
Water-logged soil leads to root rot, leaf damage, and even the death of your pothos. So make sure the soil drains the water properly.
You can consider mixing finely blended eggshells with the soil since it enriches calcium quantity in it. But if you are too lazy to do it, make sure the pH of the soil is from 6.1 to 6.5.
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2. Lesser watering lengthens the lifespan of neon pothos
Irrespective of being a tropical vine, neon pothos are highly drought-tolerant. Over-watering has the potential to kill your vibrant leafy vine. Water your plant only once a week or just whenever needed.
You must check out whether the soil is dry and include enough moisture to make it a little moist. If you are new to caring houseplants, you can fix a watering schedule.
As this plant needs little care, it will not mind if you forget watering occasionally. You can consider purchasing a pot with a hole underneath for your neon pothos. This trick allows proper drainage of the plant so that the vine stays healthy.
But less watering too can interrupt the growth of your pothos ivy. If you notice leaf curling and black spots over the foliage area, these are the signs of less watering.
Less watering can cause abnormal leaf droppings of your healthy neon pothos. So, water this plant whenever it feels dry or the upper part of the soil becomes dry. Although these species do not need much water, too much negligence in the watering can cause its death.
3. Light plays a huge role in the growth of neon pothos
Although neon pothos can adjust with low light and darkness, bright indirect light is preferable for growth. Scorching sunlight can burn the pothos leaves, but less than enough daylight makes the leaves turn pale and shrank.
If you want your neon pothos to remain electrifying green throughout the year, then place your pothos pot near the window. Keeping it in an area where the sunlight is bright and indirect helps the vine thrive more quickly.
If you put it in a dark room throughout the year, it will lose its variation. Even filtered and fluorescent light helps the neon pothos grow more quickly.
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4. This robust plant is temperature-tolerant
Neon pothos is a vine of tropical climate. Although it has higher adaptability of any temperature, intense humidity and temperature are preferable.
Neon pothos cuddles a temperature between seventy to ninety degrees Fahrenheit. So placing it on a balcony or bright sunny room is the wise decision.
If the temperature of your area remains below fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit throughout the year, your neon pothos can survive.
But the freezing temperature can pause its growth, and you will notice the leaves turning black.
If you feel the temperature is too icy for your pothos, you can artificially increase your room warmth. Your neon green friend will like this tenderness, just like you.
5. Adequate moisture is best for neon pothos.
High humidity is the best environmental factor any tropical vine wants. If you place neon pothos in a damp place, you will notice some improvements in them.
Lesser than enough humidity can put a stop to the growth of this pothos ivy. If you observe brown leaf tips in your healthy vine, it can be a symptom of non-adequate moisture.
Although neon pothos can survive in any humid region, high humidity helps them to thrive.
If your plants turn black, check out the moisture in the soil. Stunted growth, leaf or stem damage can result from dryness. In this scenario, fill the pot with gravel and water.
Besides, you can also try a trick to enhance the humidity of your neon pothos. Fill a tray with pebbles and water, and then place your pothos tub over it.
The bottom of the pot must not touch the water, and it should include a hole underneath. The water vapor rises from the tray and adds humidity to the ambient air. Once in a while, misting can also improve the condition.
6. Fertilization produces sound health to neon pothos.
If your neon pothos plant is in an excellent variety of well-drained soil, it will need fertilization.
Still, during the growth period, fertilization improves the thriving of the plant. If you assume the growth rate of your neon pothos has slowed down, fertilization will improve it and enhance its lifespan.
If you need a very quick and immediate improvement in your weak or sick pothos, you can consider purchasing an inorganic fertilizer.
Expert horticulturists always suggest using organic fertilizer since it is beneficial for both plant and gardener. Though organic fertilizer works slowly, your neon pothos will have sustained the development through it.
You can even make an organic fertilizer on your own. Put the eggshells at the bottom of a pot and transfer your pothos to that container. The eggshells will not only act as an organic fertilizer but also help the damaged roots to recover.
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7. Repotting recovers root rot
Your thriving neon pothos needs repotting almost every year since it provides more room for the roots to spread.
Not only has that, but at one point, the soil of the container lost its nutritional components. So repotting provides uninterrupted growth to your pothos.
You need to schedule your repotting and water neon pothos two days before it. Carefully take out the vine from the old pot. Else you might end up damaging the roots.
Gently remove as much soil as you can from the root ball of neon pothos. Then pour a higher quality of soil mix in the new pothos tub, but do not overfill it, and place your neon pothos in it. Once a year repotting is always suggestible.
Your booming neon pothos needs at least a four inches tub while getting repotted. If the height of the plant crosses six inches, a ten-inch tub would be perfect for your vine.
Having a hole at the bottom is a significant factor you should remember while choosing a pothos tub. This gorgeous vine prefers well drainage over everything.
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Do Neon pothos like to be misted?
Neon pothos likes to be misted occasionally since it loves higher humidity. As we have said earlier, tropical houseplants require high humidity, and misting enhances the humidity level in the encompassing air. Though maximum varieties of pothos do not require intense moisture, this neon variety loves dampness.
Expert horticulturists suggest misting instead of frequent watering, as misting circulates the humidity all over the plant gently. It will increase the growth of neon pothos and make them sturdier.
It will be more beneficial if you dilute fertilizer or neem oil in the misting bottle and spray it gently all over the plant, especially at the root. Your plant will get a balanced diet from it.
If you assume your room has less humidity than required, you can consider installing a humidifier. It will ensure your room has at least 60% percent humidity per neon pothos demands.
Why are my neon pothos leaves turning brown?
If the gigantic and bright neon green leaves of your pothos suddenly start turning brown, this can be an indication of some serious issues. The probable causes of this complication are as follows.
Direct sunlight
If your neon pothos gets direct and unfiltered sunlight, it will lose all the humidity and end up drying. The heat can char the leaves and turn them brown. Neon pothos prefers filtered and indirect sunlight.
Pest infestation
Mealybug invasion can lead to brown leaves and even the death of neon pothos. You can identify the pest infestation by noticing some white insects underneath the leaves. To get rid of these insects, you can try spraying rubbing alcohol or neem oil.
Root rot
If the soil of neon pothos does not drain the excess water properly, this waterlogged soil can cause root rot.
Sustained root rot can damage the whole plant and turn the leaves brown simultaneously. Although neon pothos is a vigorous vine, you must check the moisture content before watering and ensure the water drains properly.
Neon Pothos light requirements
Neon pothos appreciates bright yet indirect sunlight. If you feel your neon vine cannot get enough sunlight, do not worry. Low light is enough for pothos to stay fresh and healthy. You can replace sunlight with fluorescent light if the room is too dark. It will be wise to place the neon pothos tub away from any windows that allow broad daylight.
Long-time exposure to direct sunlight can scorch the vibrant neon green leaves of pothos.
A sudden occurrence of dull leaves in your healthy pothos can result from intense sunlight. So it will be better to place your pothos in a hanging basket near a window.
Soil for Neon pothos
A well-draining soil is the best for neon pothos. Although neon pothos is the best indoor plants to adjust to any soil, airy soil with a pH level of 6.1 to 6.5 is perfect for them. General potting soil keeps a higher amount of moisture and tends to waterlog. So planting the neon pothos in an airy and well-draining soil will thrive it fast.
While potting the plant, using organic fertilizers would make your neon pothos glow even more. You can make this fertilizer by mixing peat moss and coconut coir.
Another secret formula you could try is mixing one part peat moss and the same portion of coarse sand or perlite. Once-in-year fertilization enhances the lifespan of your gorgeous neon pothos.
How long does Neon pothos live?
A neon pothos can live with a range of a minimum of five years to a maximum of ten years, depending on some environmental factors. Although neon pothos is a little maintenance and robust vine, its lifespan depends on some conditions.-
Sunbeam and temperature
Intense and meandering sunlight provides healthy growth to your neon pothos and increases their lifespan. The apt temperature for this plant will be seventy to ninety degrees Fahrenheit.
Watering and humidity
Over-watering can pause the growth of pothos and even lead to plant damage. Once a week, moistening is apt for neon pothos. The gardener ensures the water drains on time because waterlogged soil causes root damage and decreases the lifespan of neon pothos.
An environment with a minimum of 60% humidity is perfect for neon pothos to live for more than a decade.
Although misting promotes a little humidity in ambient air, it cannot do much in an arid area. Installing a humidifier will be the wisest decision then, as apt humidity provides an infinite life expectancy to your neon pothos.
Bug invasion
Each year numerous neon pothos ivy dies because of life-shortening pest infestation problems.
You can recognize the bacterial infections by checking for water-soaked bruises on the damaged leaf, particularly near the margins.
Soft rots on leaves and stems might occur due to bacterial infection and can get fatal if not cured on time. You can consider using any pesticides or neem oil to help neon pothos get rid of the diseases.
Why are Neon Pothos leaves turning yellow?
Healthy neon pothos leaves can turn yellow for various reasons, like over-watering, lesser humidity, inappropriate light, and pest infestation. If the plant-soil does not extract the water properly, heavy moisture causes yellowing of the leaf. Expert gardeners’ advice is scheduling the time for watering and keeping them a little moist all the time. Bone-dry and waterlogged soil can cause leaf-yellowing and even death of the neon pothos.
Inadequate humidity too worsens the condition of pothos by turning the leaves yellow. That is why veteran horticulturists always suggest installing plant humidifiers, especially for this plant.
If you place them in the light throughout the year, the dazzling green leaves will turn yellow and dry. So, always allow the vine to get bright yet filtered sunlight.
Some insects like scale, mealybugs, and spider mites can suck up the moisture of the plant. As a result, neon pothos leaves become yellow and pale.
Since indoor plants are prone to get easily infected by these pests, neon pothos needs serious care. Applying pesticides once a year will remove the slightest chance of pest infestation in these vines.
End Thoughts
Neon Pothos live more than a decade if they get adequate care and favorable environmental factors.
And you already know that taking care of pothos is no big deal since it has minimal demands. You can cherish the beauty of your houseplant forever if you follow the above tips we have shared in this article. Happy Gardening!