Monstera (lat. Monstera deliciosa) is a tropical plant that thrives in a humid environment and enjoys lots of water. Overwatering, however, can have terrible results.
The most typical signs of overwatered monstera include wilting, dark patches on foliage, yellowing leaves, and a bad odor coming from the soil. Remove sick roots and sprinkle with fungicide before replanting overwatered Monstera plants. After that, think about repotting the monster in a fresh container with fresh soil.
Can a monstera recover after being overwatered?
If the monstera delicosa or adansonii has not experienced serious root rot, it may be feasible to revive it. The most crucial step is to remove excess water from the soil and allow plenty of time for your pots to dry.
If you want to restore our plant to optimal health, you may need to take into account the potential consequences of overwatering a monstera.
Here’s how to save a monstera that’s been overwatered:
Withhold watering and drain the potting soil
It’s important to wait to water your plant until you’re certain that the extra water has been drained.
At least twice a week, give your Monstera adansonii some water (depending on the climate in your area). Make sure the top layer of the potting has dried out completely before providing water to your plant (about 1-2 inches).
Check for root rot indicators
A negative effect of overwatering is root rot. Drooping leaves, a bad smell, and the sight of dark brown spots inside your plant’s roots are a few of the typical signs of root rot.
In order to stop the infection from spreading to other sections of the plant, it is essential to replace the potting soil and remove any rotting roots. To help inhibit the spread of disease, use a fungicide (and eradicate the fungi from your soil).
Make sure you stick to your watering schedule, and check on the health of your plant frequently.
Change potting medium
By altering the potting medium, you can prevent waterlogging, root rot, and other consequences of over watering. In addition, monstera are often enormous plants that may occasionally need to have their growing containers changed to allow a growth in size.
A potting mix of well-moisturized, well-drained soils with a relative pH range of 5.5-6.5 is ideal for growing monstera. Additionally, you can choose to mix pine bark fines with peat moss in a 1:4 ratio.
Selecting the best potting medium enables you to regulate temperature and water retention while also giving your plant a secure foundation.
Change the growing container
Selecting the right growth container for your monstera adansonii or delicosa is essential. When choosing a high-quality pot, you may need to take the plant’s size into account as well as drainage options and the pot’s material. The spacing on either side of a healthy growing pot should be about one and a half inches.
Before adding any potting material, always make sure your roots fit within the pot securely. While some monstera plants have aerial roots that may cling to the surface, the majority of them will fit inside the container.
Additionally, it’s a good idea to pick a pot with drainage holes so that excess water can run off. Another choice is double potting, which might be advantageous if you have growing containers that don’t fit inside your home.
How is a monstera brought back to life?
- Reduce the amount of fertilizer you use. Although it is recommended to use fertilizer, avoid adding any more while the plant is wilting. Once the top inch of the soil feels fairly dry (after about a week or two), water your monstera with a nice bath under the facet (or tap) to help dissolve extra salts that can build up due to fertilizer. This should also help to rehydrate the monstera’s droopy leaves.
- Always give monstera a good soak, allowing any extra water to drip out the bottom of the pot. Give the monstera a good watering to ensure that the soil is evenly moist because drooping leaves are one of the first symptoms of drought stress. However, if the monstera’s soil is already moist, do not water because doing so could promote root rot, which would explain the plant’s drooping leaves.
- Place your monstera in a location with strong, indirect lighting. Too much shade might result in drooping leaves and stems, while full light is too intense for leaves that are sensitive to the sun. The monstera should come back to life if you put it in a room with direct light that is bright, simulating natural lighting.
- Make sure the temperature is between 60 and 85 degrees. Extreme heat makes the leaves lose more water, which makes them droop, and low temperatures stress the monstera, which can also make the plant droop. To mimic the temperatures in the monstera’s natural environment, keep it away from sources of indoor heat or air conditioning.
- By frequently spraying the leaves, you can raise the humidity. When the monstera has suffered from drought-related stress, spraying the leaves helps the plant recover by reducing water loss. In order to reach the ideal level of humidity for your monstera to revive, either spritz the plant frequently or buy a plant humidifier. Monstera typically prefer around 30 percent humidity.
- In between waterings, let the top inch of the soil dry out. If the soil is persistently damp, overwatering rather than underwatering is to blame for your monstera’s drooping. Before watering again, let the top inch or so of soil dry off. As monsteras need good drainage, make sure the monstera pot has drainage holes in the base and empty saucers and trays beneath the pot frequently to prevent water from pooling there.
- After repotting, give the monstera a good drink and check that the potting soil is well-draining. Any plant that has been replanted may have experienced considerable root damage, which temporarily impairs its capacity to adequately absorb moisture. After repotting, thoroughly moisten the potting soil to help reduce any drought stress that might have caused the leaves to droop. For monstera, use a light, well-draining potting soil. To improve drainage and mimic the soil conditions that monstera are suited to in their natural habitat, I personally enrich the potting soil with succulent and cactus soil or orchid potting mix.
- After transplanting your plant, recreate the natural environment for monsteras to rejuvenate drooping leaves. Your monstera should come back to life once it adjusts to its new environment if you give it plenty of bright indirect light, a regular watering schedule (typically once every seven days), increase the humidity by misting the leaves frequently, keep it away from heat sources, and avoid air conditioning.
- To protect your monstera from drooping and to keep it growing upright, use a bamboo support. Ideally, get a particular monstera support, which is generally wrapped in moss to replicate the growing circumstances of the monstera’s native environment. Monsteras tend to climb and can droop over without support. Naturally, the monster develops upward while clinging to the support.
How does a monstera look when it is overwatered?
These plants suffer when the soil remains very wet, therefore having an overwatered Monstera is a regular issue. The roots of the plant cannot receive any oxygen when the soil is completely saturated with water. This implies that they are unable to absorb water and nutrients and function properly.
Overwatering or excessive watering that is not stopped right away can also result in root rot, which can be fatal to your Monstera plant. It’s critical to determine whether your Monstera plant is being overwatered and to take immediate action to remedy the situation.
Drooping or wilting leaves
Monstera leaves that are wilting and drooping are indicative of a dry environment, and this association is valid. Wilting is an indication that the leaves and stems are not receiving enough water to keep the turgor pressure inside the plant tissue at the right level to support the plant.
Many people are shocked to hear that having too much water in the soil can also make leaves and stems wilt and droop. When water completely covers the soil, it plugs the pores that ordinarily contain oxygen, shutting off the roots’ access to oxygen.
For the purpose of absorbing water and nutrients for the rest of the plant, all plant roots require oxygen. As moist soil can also interfere with the effective transfer of water to plant tissues, drooping or wilting Monstera leaves and stems may indicate overwatering.
Yellowed leaves
Overwatering may be to blame if your Monstera has previously thrived in its existing location, receives adequate light, and suddenly starts to produce yellowing leaves.
Dark brown spots
The absence of water and nutrients might also result in your Monstera plant’s leaves becoming yellow and developing dark brown blotches on the leaves.
If yellowing leaves are ignored, dark brown patches usually form, signaling a more serious overwatering problem. Dark brown patches on your Monstera plant’s leaves could be the first indication of root rot brought on by wet soil.
Soil that remains wet and soggy
As this is a plant that will undoubtedly suffer in saturated soil, the best soil for Monstera plants is well-draining soil that allows the plant to get evenly moist. An overwatered Monstera or poor drainage is probably to blame if the soil in the plant’s pot takes more than a week or so to dry out.
In order to prevent the soil from becoming soggy and suffocating the roots with oxygen, water your Monstera plant when the top two inches of the soil feel dry to the touch and then let it dry before watering it again.
Every few days, check the soil in the pot to see if it takes too long to dry out, and then alter your watering schedule accordingly. Repot your Monstera plant in a high-quality aroid soil mixture if you believe the soil is wet because it doesn’t drain well.
Mold or fungi on the soil
Mold and fungi can grow easily in wet, muddy soil. The soil is definitely too damp if there is white, gray, or green fuzz on the surface.
Mold and fungi can resemble a thin covering of tiny moss and can also appear on the plant stem close to the soil line.
Water drops on the foliage
Water droplets may start to form on the tips or edges of the leaf if your Monstera plant is overwatered and the soil remains wet. This closely resembles your Monstera perspiring, which it kind of is. As the plant makes an effort to expel extra water through the tissues, water drops start to develop.
Droplets of water on the foliage are a warning indication that something is wrong and typically suggests overwatering.
Is root rot reversible in monstera?
The crucial step is this one. The only way to stop root rot is to fully remove it. Once you replant your Monstera in the ground, any sick tissue that is still there is likely to spread further.
You should clean your shears or scissors in between cuts, just like you did when trimming the leaves. When feasible, make a single, clean cut through each root to remove it. Your Monstera will have a tougher time healing ragged edges.
The only issue left is how much should be removed. Recall how before we advised you to use caution? So now is the time to be brutal.
Does monstera withstand root rot?
Knowing the symptoms of Monstera root rot is essential if you want to stop an infection from spreading and harming your lovely Swiss cheese plant.
Here are a few warning indications of root rot for your Monstera, listed in order of severity. Your Monstera will have a better chance of surviving if you catch root rot as soon as possible!
Early Detection
In Monstera, sluggish growth, wilting foliage, and yellow leaves are early indicators of root rot. All of these indicate that you need to inspect the soil around your Monstera plants to make sure it hasn’t been too moist for too long. Your Monstera can successfully recover from a case of root rot with the right care and early detection.
Stagnant growth
If your Monstera isn’t developing as quickly as it typically does, this is just known as stagnant growth. This is a typical wintertime occurrence as the days become shorter and the temperature decreases. When given insufficient amounts of light, fertilizer, or water, monsteras also experience a growth slowdown.
It’s not necessarily the case that your Monstera’s roots are decaying only because its growth is slowing down; nevertheless, if you don’t also reduce the frequency of its watering, it’s possible.
A plant like a Monstera that grows slowly won’t require as much water, while a stagnant plant’s roots could rot from too much water.
Wilted leaves
Wilted leaves are a sign that the earth is not providing enough water to your Monstera plant. Check the soil of your Monstera plant to see if it is damp or dry if it is withering.
Simply put, your Monstera needs water if the soil is dry. You should give it a good, lengthy drink of water as usual.
Your Monstera’s roots are most likely rotted and unable to absorb the existing water if the soil is already damp and it is droopy. You should now examine your Monstera’s roots and check for decay.
Yellow Leaves
Numerous things, such as overwatering and root disease, might be indicated by yellow Monstera leaves. If your Monstera stays in wet soil, the next stage after drooping leaves is yellowing leaves.
Check the soil and roots of your Monstera for excess moisture and rot if it has yellow leaves.
Advanced Root Rot
Your Monstera’s health will deteriorate if the early warning symptoms are disregarded or overlooked.
Black stains on the leaves, smelly roots, and discolored roots are indications of advanced root rot. These symptoms indicate that your Monstera requires emergency attention.
To keep the plant alive, you will need to perform a thorough check and remove any dead or dying components.
Root discoloration
Like other plants, your Monstera should have whitish roots. When root rot takes hold, the rotting roots become mushy and slimy and turn brown or black. This is only visible if you delve into the soil or remove your Monstera’s pot to look at the roots.
All dark and discolored roots on your Monstera must be removed in order to treat the root rot; otherwise, the illness will continue to grow.
Foul odor roots
If you put your face close to the soil of your Monstera plant and the scent of something rotting is there, something definitely is rotting, and it’s probably the roots of your Monstera plant.
It will be more difficult to maintain your Monstera alive at this time the worse the odor, the larger the infection, and the tougher it will be.
Black spots on leaves
Your Monstera’s leaves will start to develop black spots, occasionally with yellowing around the area. This suggests that the virus has already begun to spread across the entire plant.
Root rot will gradually grow up the roots, up the stem, and out to the leaves of the entire plant. You may recognize that this is taking place by looking for black or brown dots on the leaves.
Beyond Saving
Unfortunately, sometimes we don’t notice root rot’s warning symptoms until it’s too late. Your Monstera is doomed once the rot destroys all the roots and advances up into the stem.
If there are any remaining uninfected stem segments, propagating them would be your sole remaining option for saving your Monstera at this time.
Roots all dead
Once all of your Monstera’s roots have died, it is doubtful that it will survive. The existence of every plant depends on its roots, despite the fact that we cannot see them. If your Monstera has no roots, it cannot absorb nutrients or water and will probably perish from dehydration.
Dark and Mushy stem
The main stem of your Monstera will turn black and mushy after the rot has spread there. The Monstera will soon die since the rotting stem cannot provide nutrients and water to the foliage.