I put these sticks so my cheese plant would have an easier time standing and now she is still not standing on her own and is growing around the sticks. Does anyone have any ideas on how to help? She gets watered once a week and has sunlight through a door. Her name is Dorothy and I’ve had her for 4 years 🙂
by LexiTheWalrus
8 Comments
I forgot Swiss cheese is a monstera, I should’ve put it in that tag my apologies!
She needs way more light, that is why she is growing so leggy
Monsteras need support, check out the dedicated sub to see what I mean. In nature they grow up trees.
Monstera needs something to climb(they usually climb a tree in the wild). It will not stand on its own. There are things like moss or coco choir poles that are typically used
My belief is that Dorothy feels there is no place like home. She is trying to click her heels and get you to move her somewhere with more sun.
Long legs are sometimes thought of as an attractive physical characteristic, even in plants. So if you’re into it then great. It’s also why the fenestrations are underdeveloped.
In this case the legginess is called etiolation and it’s usually not desired. The plant is adding extra tissue that contributes to the length in an effort to reach light. These cells are largely composed of lipids and don’t contain chlorophyll. Luckily, it’s reversible.
[Nerd Level IV info on etiolation](https://academic.oup.com/jxb/article/71/4/1215/5680819)
Bless her heart, she’s really doing the best with what she has. 😞
They are climbers, not bushy. They need a trellis or moss pole or similar. I learned the hard way and mine got too old and stiff to be tied up easily.
https://preview.redd.it/5oj14zbo3pse1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=913aec22c14430ffbe296287ebd411b3c25d1518
Monstera are indeed climbing plants that need support, but they are also high light plants, and the leggy appearance of yours shows has it needs a lot more light. Not only will more light encourage the plant to grow bigger leaves, it will help it to be less floppy and stretched out looking. At least in the new growth.