What comes to your mind when a plant like pothos comes to your senses? Is it easy maintenance, decent growth rate, minimal water, and other resource requirements, or something else?
These might come, but the soil mixture for a plant like pothos is significantly vital to consider. Yes, I know that pothos plants don’t ask much.
Still, you must heed the type and nature of soil they require and how much. As you know that pothos come in various types like Jade, golden pothos, etc., it’s interesting to note here that their soil requirements are almost the same irrespective of the type.
So, in case you’ve just bought your first pothos plant and are wondering about how to prepare its soil mixture, continue reading further to get answers to all your doubts in this regard.
What kind of soil is suitable for pothos?
It’s a no-brainer that choosing the perfect kind of soil for pothos is a daunting task in itself. However, remember that pothos won’t depend on a single kind of soil for growth.
That is, pothos can do well in all kinds of soil. However, here’s a catch or vital conditions the soil should fulfill. These include:
- The soil needs to be well-draining. When planted in a pot or planter, the soil shouldn’t retain excessive water in it.
- The soil should have all the required nutrition in sufficient quantities like magnesium, iron, zinc, sulfur, manganese, and much more. These nutrients will not only assist the plant to grow but will also ensure it lasts longer.
Besides, keep in mind the soil you’d choose must have proper space for airflow in and out; otherwise, the plant may die or experience slow growth.
Plus, never use your regular garden soil as it is too heavy for a plant like pothos. Hence, all these are vital aspects of an ideal soil for pothos.
Now, the following sections will take you through the famous soils that pothos like and much more.
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Soil that pothos like the most
Pothos is also famous for its scientific name Devil’s Ivy as it is next to impossible to kill this plant completely.
Do you know why? It can reside in almost all weather conditions and have a series of privileges over other plants.
One of them is its privilege to grow in multiple kinds of soils or soil mix. However, as every object that shines isn’t gold, similarly, every locally available soil mix isn’t the mix you’d throw in your plant to grow.
At times, you might find a ready-made soil mix that may not require any alterations at your end. However, some soil mixes would require some. Here are those.
The following components are vital ingredients for a pothos plant soil mix that serves a series of functions. For example,
- Vermiculite: It’s a hydrating mineral that resembles mica in appearance. It aerates the soil and assists in water and nutrition absorption and retention.
- Peat moss: In simple terms, peat moss is a partially decomposed covering of dead fibrous materials in bogs that takes thousands of years to become so.
- Perlite: It’s another commonly available mineral with air pockets and is well-known for its water retention capabilities.
- Sand: Although not required in enormous quantities, adding some sand will provide extra water drainage and likewise aerate the soil.
- Shredded bark: It’s a good alternative for air pockets and better drainage.
- Compost: This decayed mixture of plants is the ultimate source of nutrients for your soil.
- Coconut (coco) coir: You will find it in a coconut tree and a substitute for peat moss.
Now, here are two popular pothos plant recipes you can try out.
In the first recipe, you’d need any ordinary soil mix (make sure it’s suitable for pothos and isn’t of low quality) and some parts of either perlite or coarse sand.
This mixture will complete the aeration needs. However, it’ll retain much water. Due to this, this soil mixture is suitable for only dry and arid climates. For tropical and humid climates, the following mix will go well.
For this recipe, you’d need a small part of any cactus soil, compost, and peat moss/coconut coir. It is a bit of a time-consuming process but equally rewarding in all aspects.
One more thing here is that the proportion of cactus soil shouldn’t be much as cactus soil is naturally dry soil. And compost and coco coir will help it absorb and retain water.
Things you should keep in mind while choosing soil for your pothos
So, now it’s clear that preparing a soil mix for pothos is no rocket science, and with some common knowledge about the plant, you can help your pothos thrive and get bushier. Still, the following are some things you ought to keep in mind while choosing soil for your pothos.
- Nutrient content,
- Drainage capacity,
- Moisture absorption and retention capacity, and
- Aeration
Pothos won’t thrive in soil that’s devoid of essential soil nutrients like potassium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, etc.
Second, if you often tend to overwater your plant, the soil you’d choose must have sufficient drainage; otherwise, the plant roots will start to rot, leaves will become droopy, etc.
Next comes the aeration of the soil. Suppose the soil can’t breathe like if it’s tightly packed, the plant will have stunted growth or no growth at all.
Your pothos soil must likewise have good moisture absorption and retention capabilities.
Thus, the above four things are crucial from your pothos plant’s point of view.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Do pothos need soil?
No, pothos can also grow without soil, in water provided you add a bit of liquid fertilizer to fulfill its nutrient requirements.
You might wonder how it’s possible, but you can quickly grow pothos in water through its cuttings.
With a simple container, non-chlorinated tap water, and liquid fertilizer, you can prepare a decent growing condition for the pothos.
Does pothos grow better in water or soil?
There is no proper study that proves whether pothos does well in water or soil. However, according to experts, it doesn’t matter as long as the plant is getting enough and required nutrients, be it in soil or water.
It is the reason why you add liquid fertilizer while you’re growing pothos in water to nourish it with the exact nutrients it would absorb from the soil. In a nutshell, you can grow pothos in both sources at your convenience.
Do pothos like cactus soil?
No, pothos doesn’t like cactus soil if you’re using a cactus soil mix purely. It is because cactus soil is naturally dry and has poor water absorption and retention capability.
Due to this, your plant won’t get its daily water requirement and suffer from stunted growth. If you’re using cactus soil, you will have to add a part of compost and coco coir to it. These two ingredients will solve the cactus soil’s moisture problems.
Conclusion
While browsing online about “how to grow pothos at home,” ” how to take care of a pothos plant,” and so on, you’ll find one common subsection of “soil.”
Like every other plant species, pothos is too dependent on the soil and its properties. Its basic four properties include drainage, water absorption & retention, aeration, and nutrients.
Owing to these four must-have properties, you can’t go with any random soil mix for your plant, and you’ll have to make sure the mix stands on all these vital aspects.
If not, the above two pothos soil mix recipes are there for your rescue. Lastly, you’ll find it strange, but pothos indeed is one among other plants that can grow in both water and soil!