Hi Everyone,
This pothos found its way to me, and I'm trying to identify it. I'm wondering if it might be a Golden Pothos? Any help would be very much appreciated!
Thank you!

Yes, this is the original form of this plant, Epipremnum aureum. All the other cultivars are derived from this one. Erroneously called Pothos. Not a Pothos.

Not in the Pothos genus but that is the nickname everyone uses.

Yes, that is Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) which has three common names: Pothos, Golden Pothos and Devil's Ivy.

Thank you all very much!

I love this , it grows fast. I like seeing new leaves coming out

It was a Pothos, but no more.

It was firstly named scientifically Pothos aureus, (Pothos aureus Linden & André in 1880) then moved to Scindapsus (Scindapsus aureus) then to Rhaphidophora (Rhaphidophora aurea). Scientist change the name as they study it further and new evident appear along the way.

It is a plant with long history, most changes was due to the botanical description made based on juvenile plant, not the inflorescence/flower. floral morphology is needed in most case on plant description to accurately identifies plant.
Epipremnum aureum is one of plant known to be very rarely bloom naturally, due to it's genetic make up. (something associated to the gibberellin (GA) biosynthetic gene)

In the past. some seller will also call this Monstera, or Philodendron, but seems like it is rarely called that way nowadays.

But the name Pothos seems likely will persist. Anyway it is the Basionym (the first legal name) of that plant.

The same thing happen to Sansevieria and many other plants, it will likely take sometimes to call Sansevieria as Dracaena in gardening society I think

The aroid community has a huge push to try and stop the use of Pothos as a common name for Epipremnum aureum. Also the use of Satin Pothos and Satin Philodendron for Scindapsus, Split Leaf Philodendron for Thaumatuphyllum bipinnitifidum, and Swiss cheese plant to describe practically every Monstera that exists from Obliqua to Adansonii to deliciosa. Common names make trouble. I knew a women, she actually was on another site not this one, who was trying to buy a Monstera deliciosa aurea-variegata. She thought she found one on Etsy. It was listed as a Monstera aurea. It was not yet mature, but had just started to pinnate. If the plant had been mature enough to be both pinnate and fenestrate, the difference would have been readily apparent from a picture since Epipremnum aureum does not fenestrate. But there are other morphological differences that an experienced aroidist would have also recognized. An experienced aroid grower would have known the difference anyway, but she was inexperienced and took the listing of Monstera at face value and paid $250. When she got it she thought it was off so she emailed me a photo and asked if it was a Monstera. Sadly, she had paid $250 for a cutting from an Epipremnum aureum. She contacted the seller, and they refused to refund her.
WHY?
Because 'Monstera aurea is a common name for Epipremnum aureum IN THE PAST'. She opened a case with Etsy and they sided with the seller.
This was a marketing scam at its very best.

Epipremnum aureum does not flower as a juvenile plant. It only flowers as a mature plant, and only in tropical conditions (temps no lower than about 65F and highs of about 85F.) They also will not flower if stressed by drought or being planted in direct full sun. They can be induced to flower chemically when mature using ethylene gas or Gibberlin. But its rare outside the true tropics to find one flowering.SInce most people who grow them as houseplants never get them to mature stage and never meet their specific needs for humidity, light and temp they never see flowers

Yes, not just it does not blooms outside tropic, it is exactly "extremely" rare to see bloom naturally, even in tropic like my place, it is invasive here in tropics.

The last "Formal" report of this plant blooming naturally is in 1962. Since then, there is no report of E. aureum flowering both in wild as well as in cultivation. that's how rare blooming is.
This statement was in a journal ; Sci Rep. 2016 Jun 27:6:28598. doi: 10.1038/srep28598.

So not only it need tropical, or getting large, it is extremely rare to bloom, even in tropic. Most biologist never ever seen one, despite how common and invasive this plant is.
However, non "formaly reported" sightings does exist, one that is famous is by Mick Mittermeier, he meet one in Veraguas Panama, he post it on his IG, @ mickmitty March 24, 2021 https://www.instagram.com/p/CM...

That is why all of this plant in cultivation was believed propagated vegetatively, no hibridization involved. all cultivar were derived from one single origin. The species is endemic only to island of Moorea in the Society Islands, and this origin was just known in 2004 by botanist Peter Boyce. Unlike other Epipremnum species that are not shy to bloom, and are more wide spread as a native population. This made E aureum soo common (if not most common house-plant) yet so mysteriously special.


@Silverglade this page talks about the short history of the naming, light and easily understood reading. https://www.exoticrainforest.c...

And this journal, if you want to dive deeper into the "shy-flowering nature" subject. Including the exact Gene involved, and the method used to induce flowering, in case you becoming intrigued or "nerdie" enough to see yours flowering in the future. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/p...

Very interesting! Especially the last article.

Aside from the genetics and experiments, I wonder where the 1962 bloom was observed? Did it occur high above our heads in the canopy of a tree? If so, I wonder if this could be a factor in the rarity of observing the blooms?

LOL Tofi Mick is a friend of mine.
Excellent info you have shared

I don't think we know the tidbit of data, Tiffany

Gina1960 said: LOL Tofi Mick is a friend of mine.

Owh, it must be so great to have a friend, traveling the world seeking new plants, I would never able to resist the temptation on asking him a cutting or seeds of rare plant especially new identified plant, or endemic, or anything unusual...just anything He got a Monstera species named after him...dang

purpleinopp said:
Aside from the genetics and experiments, I wonder where the 1962 bloom was observed?

The 1962 bloom report was by Birdsey M. R. in a scientific report "Pothos aureus transferred to Rhaphidophora. Baileya 10, 155–159 (1962). It was from a plant from Puerto Rico and at the Fairchild Tropical Garden, Florida, Unfortunately the journal is not available on line, people working in Biology library, might have access to it, the detail of plant origin and other tidbids could be in there.

Birdsey transfer the Pothos aureus to Rhaphidophora as R. aurea. Still not quite right, although he did aware that the ovule characters belong to Epipremnum.

Meanwhile most likely at the near year, in Singapore, Furtado made the other floral encounter, unaware of Birdsey's publication, and published the same report of flowering of "P. aurea in Singapore 1964. suggesting transferring P. aureus to Epipremnum, remarked that "flowering material is very similar to that of E. pinnatum.

Bunting (1964), transfer Pothos aureus to Epipremnum, also Nicolson's (1978) stated there is no significant difference between E aureum and E pinnatum as separate species. Since then, Epipremnum aureum was regarded as cultivar of E. pinnatum. Although people do understand E pinnatum set bloom freely both in the wild and in cultivation, as long as the plant mature enough. very distinct compared to E aureum, among other morphological differences.

Finally Peter boyce wrote the distinct E aureum as a separate species from E pinnatum in 2004 https://www.aroid.org/gallery/...[Aroideana%2027,%20199_205]%20-%20Boyce%202004.pdf

It is quite a long way for a very common house-plant to be correctly identified

Based on another photo of the bloom from Wikipedia, it probably does bloom very high up above. The caption stated ; "Naturally occurring flower cluster found in South Florida tree canopy. Four flowers were found on the end of a old vine about 2 inches in diameter approximately 25 feet above the ground, 9 February 2021,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

Cool thanks Tofi! Mick and I have traded plants before it the past. He has a lot of friends, and I am very very low on the totem pole LOL. He is in Miami and I am 6 hours away. He does bring plants back the the US when he travels. Legally with permits I am guessing. I don't think he would do it any other way. His father is a naturalist and his mother I believe is a photographer. he was raised traveling the globe with them to fond and photograph plants and animals in the wild.

Peter Boyce is a Facebook friend, I don't personally know him. I have had him ID some stuff for me in the past. He's a cool guy.