A plant is referred to as leggy if its stems and leaves are unusually lengthy. Legginess affects the Monstera, along with many other plant species, and it can lessen the usual beauty that these plants are known for having.
Lack of light will result in a Monstera plant that is lanky. The plant stretches and moves to where it can get the proper amount of light when it is given insufficient lighting. The plant acquires a lanky appearance as a result, which is characterized by long stems and sparse leaves.
Indoor plants are excellent for purifying the air and fostering a calm atmosphere. Additionally, plants bring value to our living area with their aesthetic appeal. Similar to other plants, Monsteras can occasionally be an eyesore if they have an unusual shape.
In this piece, we’ll go through some simple measures to make sure the plant has the correct environment to avoid this occurrence.
Table of Contents
What is Meant by Leggy a Monstera?
Legginess affects a large number of houseplants. One of the rarest varieties of tropical, evergreen vines in the world, Monsteras are no exception. Long stems and little foliage give the plant its lanky appearance.
This is uncommon in plants, and there are a variety of causes that can account for plant stress and its response to environmental conditions.
Leggy Monsteras operates on the same tenet as any other plant without access to light. Darker spaces and settings tend to have a stronger impact on a leggy appearance as a result.
You might try using a moss pole to support your leggy monstera. You may learn a lot about the advantages, applications, and how to create your own own moss poles from our post on using them on indoor plants.
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Can All Species of Monsteras Become Leggy?
Yes. Monsteras of all kinds have the potential to sag.
Both Monstera deliciosa and Monstera adansonii share this trait. When there is not enough light, plants will often reach out to any surface to find some light.
The process of photosynthesis, which is how plants obtain nourishment, depends on a light source.
A wide variety of light is reported to be tolerated by monsteras. Monsteras require light sources to flourish, just like any other plant. The leaves of Monstera tend to grow in larger shapes with more splits and holes when exposed to adequate light.
Fenestrations is the name for the divots and holes on the leaves. In the wild, the Monsteras’ holes, splits, and other fenestrations will enable them endure high wind gusts. In nature, the plant is able to build a more sturdy upright structure because to this.
Monsteras leaves won’t develop as they should without adequate light, resulting in fewer fenestrations and thinner leaves.
To capture as much light as possible, thinner leaves without holes are produced, which is a natural adaptation for the plant’s survival.
Monsteras will grow at a reasonable rate with modest lighting. But for the Monsteras, more light is always the ideal environment for growth.
What Causes a Monsteras to Become Leggy
Light is the main cause of Monsteras starting to grow long, but there are other factors as well.
You can avoid legginess throughout the monstera plant’s growth by being aware of how these factors influence the plant’s growth.
Here are a few potential causes of legginess in your Monstera plants.
Light source
The light source is the primary cause of monstera’s legginess symptoms.
Monsteras will move toward whatever light is available at the time if they don’t have access to adequate sunshine or another light source.
See our in-depth article on the causes of plants’ sideways growth.
For plants, this activity is normal. Given that Monsteras are noted climbers, they will expand more quickly if exposed to more light. The plant will grow larger and be able to create more food through photosynthesis as there is more light accessible to it.
If they are kept in a small space with low lighting, they will behave normally and expand to find a light source in the space.
The plant won’t die if a Monsteras is kept in a room without a sufficient amount of light, but it won’t grow either if it is.
As the leaves and stalks grow abnormally, having a leggy monstera goes against the plant’s reputation for having an aesthetically pleasing appearance.
Without a light source, Monsteras will become thinner and have smaller holes in their leaves.
They won’t have access to adequate light to complete the plant’s fenestration task. The plant’s overall structure won’t be as beautiful as it would be if it received enough light.
It’s important to give balanced illumination, and we’ve located a reliable artificial grow light on Amazon that does the job by offering the proper spectrum of light. Clicking here will take you there.
Container size
Your Monsteras’ legginess may also be caused by the container’s overcrowded roots.
The plant will exhibit aberrant growth patterns if it has more roots since it will find it more challenging to collect moisture and nutrients. Roots will take up more room in a small container if the plant is in one.
This would then affect the soil’s aeration and drainage.
Always check that the soil in the container has a good drainage system in place, and perhaps it’s time to think about repotting the plant with the right soil amendments.
Check out our post on vermiculite and perlite to learn more about the best soil additions for repotting.
Temperature
The ideal temperature range for monsteras is between 20 and 30 C (68 to 86 F). They’re tropical plants, thus
The plant will experience stress if the temperature rises much above the normal threshold.
The Monsteras appear to favor warmer temperatures with high humidity levels. These conditions will give the plants the feel of a tropical jungle.
Moisture
Since monsteras are renowned for their resilience, you won’t notice any immediate impacts from watering them more frequently than once per day.
As the soil moisture dries up, monsteras will start to droop, at which point you must immediately water them. Don’t worry, regular tap water will work just fine; you won’t need any special water for them to grow at a respectable rate.
Consider adding distilled water if the water’s quality is a problem. Simply allowing a specific amount of water to sit for a while, allowing any additives and sediments to sink to the bottom, will yield distilled water.
How to Prevent Legginess
Fortunately, there are certain steps you can take to stop Monsteras from growing long.
Nobody wants to anticipate seeing their plant leggy even with careful care. That doesn’t mean you have to acquire a new plant and throw your old one away.
If you don’t know how to fix the issue, you’ll end up making the same blunders with the next batch again. Monsteras can be fairly challenging, but they will behave in the same way as other plants that have a similar structure.
Your Monsteras will grow at the proper rate without slowing down if you use the Prevention ways to give them some vitality again.
Use the techniques listed below as soon as you can if your Monsteras are showing any signs of legginess to prevent it from getting worse.
These are some of the methods one can employ to keep Monsteras from growing too long.
Use a Strong Light source
Adding light is the best approach to repair your Monsteras. Your Monster might need to be moved to an area with adequate light so that it can grow.
These plants require intense indirect light for an extended period of time, thus you need to move the plant as soon as you can before the legginess gets worse.
They will grow more quickly and have a greater probability of developing fenestrations, which will improve their appearance.
The monstera plant will grow much more effectively if it is placed near to a window that gets enough light both during the day and even in the winter.
Add an Artificial Light Source
A Monsteras’s beauty lies in its leaf design. They will need to be positioned beneath a powerful light source for that to occur.
Monsteras will develop quickly and painlessly if you place them under a strong light source.
If your home doesn’t receive a lot of natural light, you can utilize artificial lighting to provide the plants with a light source.
Different settings have different structures. There are some areas of the house where it is challenging to receive consistent sunshine throughout the day.
If this applies to you, you can replicate the climate outside in your home by using artificial sunshine. They can act as though they are in direct sunlight by using artificial light to assist them acquire enough light.
The plants are more concerned about the light’s intensity than its precise source. You can accomplish this without the help of their natural equivalents by using an artificial light source.
Rotate Your Plants
You might consider spinning the plant to direct the light so that it shines on both sides of the Monsteras if the lighthouse in your home only affects one side of the plant.
The Monsteras will get leggy on the side that does not receive light if one side does.
If this is the case, you will need to rotate the plant on a regular basis. Make sure the plants’ two sides receive an even distribution of light on a consistent basis and without any breaks.
One side shouldn’t appear more active than the other because the leggier side will likely to show more as it reaches toward the light.
When it comes to a plant’s development, rotating your plants periodically provides a lot of advantages. The advantages and instructions for doing this are available here.
Curing Legginess
There are various techniques you may do to help your Monsteras look and grow better than before if you notice that they are becoming leggy.
One remedy is to prune your Monstera plants. You will remove all the undesirable foliage from your Monsteras here. Additionally, you can remove the dried leaves and aerial roots from this area to ensure that the sunlight can spread out freely.
The cut off cuttings can also be propagated. Additional advantage. Yay!
Note: Dying and dry leaves also consume nutrients and energy that would otherwise be used by the plant’s other leaves to grow strong. By getting rid of them, the plant will be able to concentrate its nutrients and energy where they are most required.
How to prune a leggy Monsteras
You’ll need a utility knife or scissors as tools.
- Hands should always be washed before beginning this task. Or you run the risk of infecting the plant with bacteria and illnesses. If at all feasible, wear gloves to prevent skin irritation from Monstera sap.
- Instead of randomly chopping the plants, visualize the final shape to assist you understand what you are attempting to create.
- By their developing stem tips, damaged or dry leaves must be removed. Another method for adjusting the Monsteras’ growth pattern is to cut off the developing tip with a pair of sharp knives.
- Make sure to double-check each cut to ensure that it is proceeding exactly as you had imagined. Never trim more than 30% of the plant’s foliage at one time. Anything above that will ultimately stun Monsteras.
Propagation
The wasted cuttings can be used for propagation; all you need to do is put them in a small container with sterile tap or distilled water.
They can establish roots as a result. To get the roots to emerge from the cuttings, you must perform a weekly water change. You can transfer the roots to the pot once you can see them.
If the propagation process proceeds smoothly, Monsteras have a reputation for growing more quickly. You can have a better, more complete Monstera plant if you simply follow all the preventative instructions.
Conclusion
Every novice gardener must deal with the Monsteras legginess problem at some point.
However, legginess can be treated by supplying the initial deficient growing environment.
Light is a key element in avoiding a leggy Monstera. You may prevent a plant from trying to stretch and get lanky in search of a better source by giving it the proper quantity of light.
Rotating the plants and providing them with nutrients are important for their overall development as well as for developing a more aesthetically pleasing and robust plant.
FAQ
Why is my Monstera not bushy?
A plant’s appearance can be influenced by a number of elements, but the quantity and distribution of leaves are the key ones. Insufficient exposure to bright, indirect light causes Monsteras to become leggy.
Why is my Monstera leaf so thin?
Overwatering or underwatering, a lack of nutrients, a lack of light, low humidity, extreme temperatures, and overfertilization are some of the factors that contribute to monstera’s being small. Smaller leaves on your monstera may also be caused by employing an improper soil mixture or an inappropriate pot.
Will Monstera grow back after pruning?
When the time comes to actually trim your monstera, keep in mind that pruning promotes growth so choose where to make your cuts. You can safely reduce the plant’s size if you’re pruning to manage your monstera’s size. Just remember that it will eventually need to be done again because it will grow back.
How do I fix my leggy Monstera?
When a Monstera doesn’t receive enough light, it becomes leggy and becomes elongated and sparse. Once a leggy Monstera has been identified, it can be treated by cutting back the leggy growth and making sure the plant continues to receive enough sunshine going ahead.