For the retiring few year , Monstera — also called Swiss cheese plant and sometimes mistakenly split - foliage philodendron — has beentheplant on societal media . All the influencers onInstagramseem to have a big one in a corner of their living rooms . It is a great plant , particularly if you want a houseplant with impact .

aboriginal to Mexico

Monstera deliciosacomes from the tropical woods of southern Mexico and Central America . It ’s botanic name cite to its turgid size ( it can develop up to 60 pes tall in the state of nature ) and its delicious yield , which is covered with scale leaf and say to be similar to Ananas comosus or jackfruit in taste . As a houseplant , it ’s unlikely to produce fruit or flowers , but it for certain makes a statement . Indoors monstera grows up to 8 feet tall and 3 feet wide . It has bright green , lustrous leaves with holes in them .

new monstera leaf

Monstera are prized for their large, shiny leaves with interesting holes.

Monstera does best in a bright room — one with morning sun is perfect — but not in direct sunlight .   You may need to turn out the plant on occasion to ensure all sides of this giant get some light . constitute your monstera in a standard indoor potting mix and let the first couple of inches of soil ironical out between lachrymation . more often than not , if you water every one to two week , it should do well . Do n’t fertilize during the winter when the plant is n’t develop much , but in the outflow and summer you’re able to give it a dilute ( one - after part of the recommended amount ) dose of Pisces the Fishes emulsion or limpid fertilizer every couple of weeks .

This plant is sell in a variety of sizes , and will grow a base ( or in great conditions two invertebrate foot ) a yr . It will originate more if it drop summers outside . While it ’s generallyan well-situated works to grow , it may be bothered bymealybugsand other plant pests .

Other Monstera

There are several species of ceriman , but the most normally sell species other than deliciosa isMonstera adansonii . This plant has humble leaves , but they have larger holes in them , sometimes as much as 50 percent of the leaf area . It may have a more vining habit , too . You may also detect variegated ceriman in industrial plant workshop . There is a rare monstera calledM. obliqua , but you are improbable to find that in any industrial plant shop so be wary if a flora is mark that way .

Not a Philodendron

Monstera plants are sometimes call split - folio philodendron , though they are not philodendrons at all . Both plants are in the same family — Araceae — but not the same genus . The genusPhilodendronincludes more than 400 species of plants . The usual houseplant philodendrons are those with heart - shaped foliage and a trailing habit . They are promiscuous - tending and a delight to have in the house . There are several species of philodendrons , however , that have more divided up leaves , such asPhilodendron bipinnatifidumandPhilodendron xanadu . The leaves on these plants are extremely dissect and face just a little minute like a ceriman .

All of these plants are fairly easy to find in plant computer memory and would make a great gift for the plant lover on your leaning . One thing to note , however , we ’re lately get word from some voguish podcasters that the new red-hot houseplant isstring of off-white !