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EDIT: Looking better after bottom watering (2nd photo), will likely… | Anything about plants | Planta community

Jessie Stratton Zhou

EDIT: Looking better after bottom watering (2nd photo), will likely repot soon! Seeking advice regarding watering! My satin pothos is almost always has curled leaves even though I water it every week. I find I pluck off brown and yellow leaves quite often, but it hangs near my window so gets pretty good partial sunlight. I don’t want to overwater and get yellow leaves but I know curling indicates it’s thirsty. I usually use a little bit of water at a time to water (instead of dousing, the water goes straight through the holes at the bottom), I can see it’s only coating the top of the soil (see second photo, just watered and if I dig a little all the soil underneath is dry). Any advice? Should I bottom water? I don’t know if the plant will be too waterlogged.

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5 comments

  1. William

    I always bottom water and it works great for me. Your plant shouldn’t be water logged as long as you have drainage holes and a well draining soil. I’d recommend trying a different method of watering so the soil is completely wet and if that doesn’t work to uncurl the leaves then try changing different things like location like if it’s cold out where you are moving it away from the window for a bit

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  2. Hiya!

    I’m thinking it’s screaming to be repotted. At least take a look at the roots. See if there are any dark rotting roots and take them off. Give it lots of fresh soil and water it really well. Then let it dry out. Satin Pothos like to be pretty dry before getting watered again. Check You Tube for similar type issues and how to resolve them. I had a small one do the same thing and now it’s thriving. It was sick when I bought it and have been rehabbing it.

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    • Hiya!

      When you do water it, water it thoroughly

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  3. 9s

    Hey there! This soil looks depleted of nutrients and could probably need a change. Once soil loses its water retention properties, it can become hydrophobic and any kind of watering is just temporary. I would soak it in luke warm water over night, and try to remove the plant the next day from the soil. Don’t focus on removing all of it- just what you can by gently shaking and poking your fingers in between the roots. Pot it in new soil OR add some vermiculite and compost/worm castings to your old soil. Both will help fluff up your soil so it can feed the plant and hold moisture better. I would also add some more perlite and charcoal to help balance out the new water holding properties you’re adding in. After repotting, you’re going to want to water thoroughly. The water shouldn’t drain completely threw with the new soil so pour it in, wait around 30 seconds, then do a second pour. In my home, I water these once every 2 weeks to allow them to dry completely. I think once you change the soil, yours may be closer to the same schedule :) hope this helps!

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    • Jessie Stratton Zhou

      Thank you! I watered it and we’re actually heading out of town for three weeks this week so I’ll repot when I’m home 😊 Its looking better today but I water it about once a week (it was 10 days or so in winter) now and even then the leaves get all curled, and I think it’s thirsty. I’ll repot and see if that helps!

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