hi all,

i recently got a monstera variegata cutting. i've had it in water for a week but am worried i've managed to irrevocably harm it somehow.

the leaf is wilting and one of the stems has started to brown/blacken.

does anyone have any advice on how to salvage it? is salvaging it possible?

thanks in advance

The dark color around the node is not a good sign. If it is soft and squishy, then it has rotted and it probably will not recover. However, I am surprised that that would happen in just a week. If the black stuff wipes off and it is firm underneath, then keep it in water as you have. Be patient as it will take many weeks for healthy roots to form.

Is there another stem node above the one you have kept in water?

WillC said:The dark color around the node is not a good sign. If it is soft and squishy, then it has rotted and it probably will not recover. However, I am surprised that that would happen in just a week. If the black stuff wipes off and it is firm underneath, then keep it in water as you have. Be patient as it will take many weeks for healthy roots to form.

Is there another stem node above the one you have kept in water?

Hi Will,

Thanks for your advice. The black stuff doesn't wipe off but it doesn't feel squishy either, just less firm than the green bits. There isn't another stem node unfortunately.

Is it worth keeping it in water to see if it will develop healthy roots?

Thanks once again

As long as the node is firm, wipe off the black film and refresh the water every week or so.

You have roots, so if it were me, I would put it in potting mix now. Once roots form, there's no reason to keep it in water. I've tried both ways- leaving plants in water long term and potting them up when roots are over 1/2". The plants that I place in potting mix at 1/2" do very well, and the ones I leave in water, the roots end up "mushy" and the plant does not do as well as a whole.

Essentially it is set back by leaving it in water because the roots perform differently in water vs. soil. The less roots that have to convert from being in water to moving to soil, the better. I'm sure there's a technical discussion somewhere on this somewhere, but this is the best description I can offer.

Whether cuttings are rooted in soil or in soil and regardless of their length, they still have to develop the cell structure needed to grow in soil. There is no superior method.

What really matters is the quality of the soil used and then properly maintaining the moisture content of that soil. Newly formed roots are more sensitive to even minor lapses in the balance between oxygen and water around them, so pay very close attention to using a porous potting mix and keeping the soil properly moist, especially in the early stages of root development.

Hi there I'm having a similar situation with a recent cutting of my monstera node. I cut this about a week ago, and have a root growing which seems healthy; however below the node I have rot .. it's squishy. Any suggestions on how to deal with this?

@faizal - You can cut off the dark, dying tissue at the end of the stem. Should not be a problem. Change the water regularly.

I received my first ever cutting of plant and I'm v excited... But now I worry how will I know how to look after it and what time will I have to wait for the white roots...