Taking care of a Swiss cheese plant (aka Monstera deliciosa)

Ahh, the famous Monstera Deliciosa. Who know taking care of it could be so tricky!

Ahh, the Monstera Deliciosa, the classic house plant that every plant owner must have, so, of course I have one. The Monstera is a plant that can add a statement to a room, backyard or even house. The intricate shapes of this plant also adds a bit of spunk and personality to a space!

Where I got my Monstera:

I got my Monstera in a nursery near Richmond West, Miami FL. And, wow. Do I need to go there again when I get my plants looking their greatest. Maytee’s Garden Center has an abundance of plants that you can buy for extremely affordable prices.

I got my Monstera at the price of $15, when I was expecting to pay about $40 for a grown one.

Maytee’s Garden Center has such a plethora of beautiful plants that I am dying to revisit and purchase when I get the chance. But for the time being, I need to focus on the plants I have now! But if you’re into plants, please do visit this nursery. They’re kind, and give you lots of advice on plant care even AFTER you purchased your plant, which you’ll come to see how later in this post.

What’s The Monstera Looking Like Now?

If you’ve read my previous plant post… Then you’ll know that gardening is a recent hobby that I’ve picked up. And that can be seen in the plants. And… My Monstera is no exception to this.

This is what my Monstera used to look like….

And… this is currently what my Monstera looks like now.

Don’t get me wrong, my Monstera has been putting out a lot of new growth, which just goes to show me that it’s not dying. But, I am scared of an infection that it’s been struggling with.

Recently, for the past few months or so I’ve been struggling with what I think to be Rust Fungus on the leaves of my plant. It spread to almost every leaf (with the exception of the new growth) and it’s worrying.

I’ve been using a fungicide known as Neem Oil to address the issue, but currently haven’t seen any progress. Maybe the speed of the fungus has slowed, but I still see it spreading… Because of this, I’m forced the chop the infected leaves of the Monstera, which HURTS. I love it’s leaves, but, I want to see my plant flourish without any infections.

So now, What is Rust Fungus?

Rust Fungus is a type of fungal infection that sticks to the leaves of your plant. It tends to have spots underneath, or on your plant leaves, and they look like tiny copper pimples, or like rust, hence the reason for it’s name.

But this fungus SPREADS. In weeks, after I truly began to notice what was wrong, the fungus had spread to almost all leaves in my plant. And it was aggressive. It started to brown my leaves, leaving crunchy and ugly ends. It was horrible, and it hurts to look at the condition my Monstera is in now. But, I know it’ll grow back, especially since I’m trying to prorogate it.

A real big help in this mission to tackle the Rust Fungus, was Maytee’s Garden Center. I called them and they were actually the ones that referred to me the Neem Oil for the plant. As well as tips on how to prune the infected leaves, which I sincerely appreciate.

Since this post, I have chopped the most mature leaf of the plant off and put it in a glass jar to propagate just to ensure that this plant continue to live, and this is what it looks like.

But, now that we’ve addressed the main issue of the plant, lets go ahead and cover the basic care tips that I’ve learned!

Important information (Care Tips):

I have been watching many YouTube videos, reading MANY articles just to learn more about the proper care for a Monstera Deliciosa. Here are some content creators and articles that I found to be the most resourceful!

Soil Needs:

From my experience, regular potting soil just isn’t cutting it for my Monstera, if anything, I feel like it’s killing it, since the soil is retaining too much water. So after following a few guides from the YouTubers I listed above, I will be adjusting my soil as soon as I can, and this is what I’ll be adjusting it to.

• Pumice: A material that is used to make soil well-draining.
• Perlite: A material that is used to make soil well-draining.
• Coco Chips: A material that is used to absorb and retain moisture.
• Charcoal: A material that helps give nutrients to your plants roots whilst maintaining water for when the plant needs it. (It’s also known for it’s antibacterial properties!)
• Orchid Bark: A material that is used to make soil well-draining.

Also to note, that there are products out there that contain all the products premixed if you would rather buy the combination of these soils instead of mixing it all on your own. Here’s the link to a few products that you can buy on Amazon that I personally recommend!

• De La Tanks House Plant Mix
• Gardenera Premium Monstera Potting Soil
• Monstera Houseplant Potting Soil Mix

(Consequences of No Climbing poll ) Climbing poll:

From what I learned in my research, Monstera’s are climbing plants. In nature, they love to scale trees and can grow pretty darn big. Because of this, it’s important to replicate that environment and if you don’t you, might be faced were certain consequences.

Because Monstera’s grow so big and wide they tend to overgrow their pots, literally as if they’re trying to escape the pot their stuck in. And those aerial roots are notorious for getting caught in walls, rugs and etc.! So if you don’t want your Monstera to grow out if its pot, give it a poll to climb up.

Fertilizer:

If you read my last plant post “Taking Care of My Black Coral Colocasia,” then you’d know my fear for fertilizing my plants. Since my Black Coral, I’ve been really hesitant to fertilize my plants in fear of burning the roots. But after watching a few guides, I think I’m finally ready to get my hands on some fertilizer.

The Spring and Summer months are the best times to feed a Monstera and it’s important to feed them during this time to maximize the potential growth that you’ll get for that season.

Watering schedule:

Now, when it comes to watering, I tend to find myself overwatering my plants a tad too much. I’ve always had a hard time figuring out the right watering time, but now I think I got it all sorted out.

Recently I have been using this app called Plant Parent, which allows me to keep a watering/feeding schedule of all my plants, keeping me able to stay on track with their growth!

The app even goes through the trouble of identifying not just the plant species you have, but the current health condition that it’s in too! Many features of this app is pay-walled, but even without paying you still get access to many features that allow you to keep your plants in check, which is why I like this app.

With the help of Plant Parent I have been able to get my watering schedule fixed, and now I think I’m going to start watering my Monstera anywhere between once every 2 weeks, to once a month. Which I’ll keep track of in the app!

This, so far, has been my journey with my Monstera Deliciosa. If you’re interested in staying updated about it’s progress, register your email to get updates on when I post, that way you never miss out!

I hope you guys enjoyed this post, and if you have any questions don’t hesitate to leave a comment or reach out to me,

Until next time!!