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Repotting Pothos is easy – you get a new plastic, ceramic, or clay pot with drainage holes and some well-draining substrate.
Put a couple of inches of the new substrate in the pot, then gently remove your Pothos from its old pot and place it in the new one.
Cover the roots with the remaining substrate until it’s two inches below the rim of the new container.
If your Pothos is thriving and growing rapidly, you may need to repot once a year in the spring. Repotting refreshes the soil, prevents root-wrapping, and gives the root system space to grow. Use an aerated potting mix in a new pot that is only one size bigger than the old one. The roots need oxygen.
How To Repot Pothos Step By Step Guide
This covers everything you’ll need to know about how to repot Pothos.
How To Know When To Repot Your Pothos
Has your Pothos been in its pot for a year or more? Are the leaves drooping even after you’ve watered your plant?
Can you see any roots sticking out at the bottom of the pot? If so, it is probably potbound, meaning that the roots have filled the pot to capacity and now have nowhere else to go – time to repot.
Best Time For Pothos Repotting
Pothos, like many other houseplants, goes dormant in the winter. It is still alive but not actively growing during the cold season. The plant starts to wake up in the spring and becomes active throughout the summer months.
Spring or early summer is best for repotting when Pothos resumes its growth phase. The root system can take advantage of the new potting medium and extra space to expand, enabling the further growth of vines and fresh leaves.
If your Pothos seems unhealthy and you think the problem could be root rot, it is best to repot it as quickly as possible to prevent the condition from spreading.
Signs that it is unhealthy are withering or yellowing leaves and mushy roots. Take action immediately, even if it is still autumn or winter.
Soil Mix For Pothos Repotting
Pothos likes a well-draining potting substrate because its roots need oxygen and water. Too much water in the substrate prevents them from getting oxygen. When you repot your Pothos, don’t use potting soil alone and never use garden soil.
You can make your own substrate using:
- Four parts peat moss two parts perlite
- One part sand, and one part shredded bark
You can also combine peat moss and perlite with regular potting soil. The soil’s pH should be around 6 to 6.5, but you need a pH test kit to measure it, and this is not, strictly speaking, necessary.
Otherwise, you could buy a potting mix designed for succulents. Whatever substrate you use must be sufficiently aerated, hold nutrients and water, and be deep enough to anchor the plant firmly.
Step By Step Guide To Pothos Repotting
Step One: Prepare the fresh potting mix and fill the new pot to just under a third. Make sure the pot has drainage holes.
Step Two: Gently remove your Pothos from its pot, careful not to break off any stems. Turn the pot on its side and work the soil loose around the edges with a blunt knife or spatula. Then slowly tip it upside down, and the plant with the substrate should fall into your hand.
Step Three: Use your fingers to remove all the old substrate around the roots. Inspect the roots and carefully remove any that are dead or don’t look right. Do NOT prune the roots unless you see rotten mushy ones.
Step Four: Place the plant in its new pot and cover the roots with the remaining substrate up to an inch or two below the pot rim.
Step Five: Water the plant until you see it running from the drainage holes. Top up the potting mix if it subsides. Don’t apply any fertilizer until it has settled in its new pot, which takes around a month.
How Often Should I Repot My Pothos?
If your Pothos is healthy and growing every month, you will probably need to repot it each year in the spring or early summer.
Pothos grows rapidly, which is why it needs annual repotting. However, if it is in low light conditions, it does not grow as fast as in bright light and may only need repotting once every two years.
Container Size
Don’t think that by repotting your Pothos in a huge new pot, you are doing it, or yourself, any favors.
If there is too much soil around your Pothos, you risk overwatering, which can be deadly because the plant will get root rot. The sides of the new container should only be a couple of inches away from the root ball.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pothos Reporting
Is Repotting Good for Pothos?
Yes, because it grows fast in bright light and can become potbound or root-wrapped. As the name suggests, the roots have no space left to grow, so your plant will no longer thrive in these conditions.
The potting medium is exhausted, and there isn’t enough to provide your Pothos with the nutrients it needs.
When you repot the plant, you replace the old, tired substrate with a fresh new one full of healthy minerals and other food your Pothos requires to continue flourishing.
What Will Happen If I Don’t Repot My Pothos?
The leaves droop, and the plant becomes stressed if root-wrapped. Its growth will be stunted because there isn’t enough soil left to retain the water close to the roots.
Also, the substrate becomes depleted of nutrients with time, can become compacted, and won’t drain well.
Pothos is susceptible to root rot if the soil does not drain properly, and it will eventually die.
What Can I Do If I Have Overwatered My Pothos?
The occasional overwatering is not serious as long as you leave the soil to dry out completely before watering again. However, if you have been overwatering for some time, the only solution is to repot your Pothos because it could be suffering from root rot.
Root rot is a severe condition that deprives a plant of oxygen, water, and nutrients and eventually kills it.
You may not discover the problem until it is too late because it starts below the surface of the potting soil. Roots affected by root rot never recover, and the condition may spread to the entire root system.
What Should I Repot My Pothos In?
Pothos is not particularly fussy about what its pot is made of as long as there are sufficient drainage holes.
You can repot it in a hanging basket, a terracotta pot or a plastic one. If you use a hanging basket, get a plastic one with a built-in drip tray.
The baskets lined with coir or peat dry out too fast and can be messy. Terracotta or clay pots wick the water away from the soil to evaporate into the air, so you may have to water more often. Plastic pots retain water more, so they need less frequent watering.
Conclusion
You will need to repot your Pothos periodically as it grows. Repotting has the advantages of refreshing the substrate, allowing space for the root system to spread, preventing root rot, and providing fresh nutrients.