your regular old philo

Why is it that the one's I buy in the store, the leaves are large and then after I get them home the new growth is smaller? Same varigation and healthy looking in color, just smaller leaves. What am I doing wrong?
Dawn

Change in environmental conditions. I'm guessing the ones we buy are grown under ideal conditions ... shade cloth down south, which means lots of bright light, just no direct sun light and they are fed probably every 2 weeks or more often a special formular just right for phils.

I use to have the same problem until I moved mine to in front of a window, wrap-around porches so no direct sun which will kill them. I fed mine Miracle Gro every 2 weeks and use the plant stakes also. When I see the stakes have melted I put in more. The important thing here is I haven't killed any from over fertilizing them.

Good Luck and I hope this information has been helpful .

Judy

I agree with Judy about more light and using a moss pole or some other support for climbing/vining Philos. Makes all the difference in the world.

GH

I agree with Judy. Houseplants are grown mostly in commercial greenhouses under ideal conditions. More light, high humidity, fertilizer program, etc. make for great looking plants to sell to the public. Sometimes it takes time for new houseplants to acclimate to their new surroundings but you can help them by providing more light and humidity. (Or move to the tropics.)

Thanks everyone. hmmm, I'll think about moving! :)

I used to have the same problem with a lot of my philodendron. I still do occasionally with a pothos, but I figured out that problem too. My thoughts mirror the above.

Humidity and light seem to be the key, as does water with some. I have found most of my foliage plants also like any fertilizer high in N.

The light issue is usually the hardest to fix depending on how you have things set up in your home. I made sure in our new house to set up the plant room on the east north east side of the house. The humidity can be fixed with an electric humidifier. I leave mine running 24/7 on low. I use a warm-mist humidifier too, keeps me from having to clean a filter (it boils the water into steam) plus it already makes the air warm as the vapors come out, which the plants like. In the evening, when the sun is gone from that side of the house I tend to use plant lights to provide additional light to some of the philos for a few hours. Misting is also a daily routine.

And the problem I had with pothos was this. When I used to buy them in stores they'd already be attached to a wooden stake. When I went to repot them I'd detach them from this stake and put a new one in place, wrapping them around it and tying the stems back up. This was a big mistake. I've had much better luck repotting them, keeping the existing stake in place, and putting taller ones around it. By removing the stake I forced the plant to re-establish itself on the new stakes and that hindered growth. Needless to say, I haven't done that since.