Have you ever wondered about how to care for a Monstera Esqueleto? In many cases, caring for these wonderfully unique plants can seem a little tricky since there’s a lot that you may need to consider as part of this decision.
But don’t worry! If you have been looking to learn more about how to care for your plants, we’ve outlined some of the key things you’ll need to know as follows to help.
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What are Monstera Esqueleto Plants?
Before we begin looking at how to care for your Monstera Esqueleto, it’s first worth considering its main features. Monstera Esqueleto plants are large, tropical plants that are part of the arum family; as such, they are close to both the peace lily and the elephant ear plant.
How to Care for Monstera Esqueleto Plants
So, you’ve purchased a stunning new Monstera Esqueleto for your home – but what now? Looking after your Monstera Esqueleto plants shouldn’t be a major challenge. With that being said, there are several important things you’ll need to keep in mind to help, and we’ve outlined the main things as follows to help.
#1 Potting Your Monstera Esqueleto
One of the first things you should consider when looking after your Monstera Esqueleto plant is how you should pot it. Generally speaking, Monstera Esqueleto plants do best with incredibly well-draining soils, since they are easy to overwater (we’ll get to that shortly). With this thought in mind, choosing light loam soil or a sandy loam may be a good option to consider.
What Fertilizer Should I Use?
Finding the right type of fertilizer can often be difficult, as there are numerous different options available. Generally speaking, a 5-2-3 NPK fertilizer should be suitable for your Monstera Esqueleto, as this will help support its particularly large leaves and root system.
With that being said, it is possible to get dedicated Monstera Esqueleto fertilizer in some specialist stores. If you can get hold of this, you know your plant will enjoy the best mineral balance possible.
Repotting
Monstera Esqueleto plants tend to grow at a relatively quick rate, and as a result, you may need to repot your plant around once a year.
Alternatively, if you want to increase your collection of plants, propagation works excellently with Monstera Esqueleto plants! All you’ll need is a stem cutting with several healthy leaves and a node. This should be placed in an appropriate propagation medium to give it the best chances of growing into a strong, healthy plant.
#2 Watering your Plant
As we’ve already mentioned, Monstera Esqueleto plants are incredibly easy to overwater. As such, you’ll need to be careful to ensure that the plant doesn’t end up getting too saturated, as this can quickly kill it!
And don’t forget – even if the top of the soil feels dry, there could be a lot of water built up around the roots still. As such, if your water is draining well, you’ll likely want to look at watering the plant gently around once a week.
Ensure the plant’s soil remains airy and not compacted to help further drainage and prevent overwatering.
Bottom Watering for Monstera Esqueleto Plants
If you’re worried about giving your Monstera Esqueleto too much water, a good option is to try bottom watering instead. Though unsuitable for long-term use, occasional bottom-watering can be a good option if you think you have been overwatering your plant.
Make sure to use top-watering methods occasionally to help prevent excessive mineral build-up on the top of the soil, though!
With this method, you submerge the plant pot about halfway up in a pan or bucket of fresh water. This allows the soil to take up water from the bottom rather than allowing it to drain from the top down.
Naturally, this process will take a while for the water to soak through to the top. Simply leave the plant pot for around ten minutes, then allow the excess water to drain before returning the plant to its normal location.
#3 Optimal Sunlight Requirements
In the wild, Monstera Esqueleto plants are generally floor-dwelling plants protected by a heavy canopy from the forest.
As a result of this, to give your plant the best chance of thriving in your house environment, you’ll want to look at ways to replicate this lighting condition by keeping it out of direct sunlight overall.
The best way to think of this is to focus on an area where your plant will receive plenty of light but won’t be directly hit by light from the sun. In other words, the windowsill is a big no-go! Instead, you may want to keep the plant close to a window but not in direct sunlight overall.
What happens if your Monstera Esqueleto does get too much light? Well, this won’t usually kill the plant immediately, but it does mean that the leaves may begin to fade in color or dry out a little.
If you notice this, it may be worth moving the plant slightly further away from the light source to see if that makes a difference.
#4 Temperature Ranges
The ideal temperature for different plant species will vary significantly depending on where they originated. In the case of Monstera Esqueleto plants, the best temperature is usually between 68 and 83 degrees Fahrenheit. However, keeping your plant in the 70 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit range will help if possible.
You should always take care to avoid keeping your Monstera Esqueleto near direct sources of heat. These can cause significant water loss from the leaf, thereby drying it out significantly.
#5 Humidity
The humidity level for Monstera Esqueleto plants should ideally be relatively high since the species originated in rainforest environments. If your home is naturally quite humid, this may be enough to help keep the plant in great condition.
However, if you notice that your Monstera Esqueleto seems to be drying out more quickly than you’d like (despite a suitable temperature range), you may need to increase the humidity of its environment.
This doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll need to suffer rainforest-level humidity just to keep your plant(s) safe, though. The simplest change is to place a humidifier near the plant, which can help keep the air directly around it damper.
In doing so, you should be able to create a more suitable environment for your Monstera Esqueleto without drastically increasing the humidity levels in your home.
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