Hi. I have had my porthos for 3 years no issues. Previously watered it every couple
Of weeks and it did really well. We moved into this new place 1 year ago with indirect sunlight conditions. Couple months ago we reported it into a larger pot with organic soil. My husband also put a generous amount of miracle grow pellets in the soil. The problem started when I noticed some of the leaves were turning yellow and falling off. This started occurring after the repotting, using organic soil and miracl grow pellets. My husband was watering all the plants on a weekly basis and so I thought maybe over watering. Cut back a bit on the watering and the plants are wilting. please help. Complete newbie here.

Hi Colette,

The issue with your Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) is likely from the shock of repotting and also adding fertilizer pellets. Many plants can live in their original containers for a number of years without the need of repotting and most indoor plants do not need fertilizer. I don't think the organic soil is a problem at all but disturbing the plant roots when moving it to a larger container and also placing the miracle grow pellets into the soil has likely caused much undue stress. My advice would be to remove the plant from the pot, shake off as much of the soil containing the pellets as possible and gently place the plant in fresh soil. Water thoroughly until water is exiting the drainage holes and do not water again until the top one to two inches of soil feels dry to touch. Place the plant in an area where it will receive bright light but no direct sun. Pothos are fairly hardy plants and hopefully in time yours will recover.

I have Pothos growing in my yard and I never fertilize it. I have been growing indoor houseplants for almost 53 years and never fertilize them and I have it growing in my yard and climbing trees and those have never been fertilized either.

Here are a few Pothos pictures from our database at the blue link above, showing the plant grown as a container plant and also photos of it growing in nature:







Pothos are fairly hardy plants and hopefully in time yours will recover.

From Lin's posting:

"I have Pothos growing in my yard and I never fertilize it. I have been growing indoor houseplants for almost 53 years and never fertilize them..."

@Plantladylin,

What potting mix do you use for indoor plants, especially Pothos and Aglaonema?

Thank you.

Unless there is some supplemental lighting I dont think those plants are getting enough light to thrive.

csandt said:What potting mix do you use for indoor plants, especially Pothos and Aglaonema?

I'll have to go out in the morning and check the name of the stuff I currently have; it's not my favorite but the best I could find locally so it's what I've been using for the past year for all of my container plants, whether they are indoors or stay outside year round and I always mix extra perlite and orchid bark mix into whatever soil I use, to aid in aeration and drainage.

I find that most places nowadays only carry Miracle Grow, which personally I do not like. I dislike the moisture retention gels that seem to be included in a lot of bagged potting mixes nowadays and I also dislike soils with fertilizer included. For a couple of years I used an organic potting mix that I found at Lowes and I really loved it! The name is Just Natural but for some reason they quit carrying it over a year ago and it would be too costly to purchase it online.

plantladylin said:
For a couple of years I used an organic potting mix that I found at Lowes and I really loved it! The name is Just Natural but for some reason they quit carrying it over a year ago and it would be too costly to purchase it online.

I found that Ace Hardware stores carry Just Natural:
https://www.acehardware.com/de...

There is an Ace Hardware very near me. Thanks, Lin!

Carol, you are welcome!

:sigh: The nearest Ace to me is 25 miles away.

Lin,
As it turns out, the Ace store near me does not have Just Natural, and it is not available from their warehouse. However, there is a Walmart on the way to Longwood Gardens (one of my favorite places to visit) that is supposed to have it. You might check online for a Walmart near you. Not all of them have it, but some do, and it is on sale!

Our Walmart here in Sebastian and the one in Vero Beach do not carry it either.

I agree that the fertilizer pellets were not a good idea and I am not a fan of Miracle-Gro potting mix. However, the primary problem is that the plants are now in pots that are too large. Regardless of the potting mix used, the oversized pots with excess soil has prevented the soil around the roots from drying out properly.

Wilted leaves occur when the soil gets completely dried out (which I don't think is the case) or if the roots die back from overwatering and are no longer able to absorb water. If your Pothos stays wilted even after the soil is damp, then it is not likely to recover I am sorry to say.

Soil quality can make a difference, but having the right pot size to start with is much more important.