So this little plant is confusing me. I cleaned the roots and stem because the roots are brown, and yet they’re growing little white roots on the sides? I’ve had this plantling since July 2nd (my birthday) and it hasn’t grown another leaf yet. I think it keeps TRYING to grow another leaf but it keeps rotting at the top and trying again. I’m just not sure, I’ve never propagated before.
Recently I also had some issues propagating pothos plants in water. I then decided that the roots looked long enough that they could survive in soil. Sure enough, now that they are in soil, they are growing well and seem healthy and happy. I think maybe once they get to a certain point, this plant just naturally doesn’t want to be in water constantly. Though it could also have something to do with the health of the initial cuttings. Mine were very unhappy when I received them from my mom.
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those roots are a normal healthy color for pothos roots that have been in water that long, you might be over-correcting
4 likes Okay, thank you! When I was rinsing them they seemed firm, so I guess it’s time to add to soil!
1 likeI agree with eatyacarbs. Its normal for water roots on pothos to go a brown color. As long as they aren’t squishy they’re completely healthy. If you are rubbing them till all the brown comes off you are probably damaging the roots which is reflected in its attempts to put out new leaves. Also, if you are wanting to keep it in water permanently (which is absolutely possible), you’ll need to start adding a very diluted fertilizer to the water. Water alone will not have enough nutrients to sustain the plant.
3 likes Thanks for the advice! This was the first time I gently rinsed them and didn’t notice any squishiness. I read that leftover coffee ground water is a good fertilizer, so I added that. I have an extra small pot I can use too!
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Coffee grounds is not balanced nutrition the plant needs. Pothos are simple. They need regular fertilizer. A tea from compost and manure can work if you are going organic only. A diluted commercial liquid fertilizer like Miracle Gro will work better than coffee grounds if you plan to keep it in water.
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