Are these long tendrils the flowers? Should I chop them? The plant has been full of them before and I chopped them all off, but they sprang right back up.
From what I can tell, the strings themselves have not grown much longer than when I got it, even with wrapping them around the base of the planter.
They’re sitting under a grow light about 10-11” above, and clearly reaching for the light.
I water once a week, the capacity of one of those little glass jars on the counter.
I’m thinking I’m doing something wrong, but have reached the end of my knowledge and thought I’d better ask the pros!
by Wander_Beee
4 Comments
They’re the flowers! I always leave them until they fall off.
I would leave them. The plant has worked so hard to produce them. Also, watering once a week may be too much. I only water mine when the soil has dried out completely. Then I thoroughly water and let the access drain out. One of those little jars of water may not be enough at one time to full saturate all the soil and roots. Then watering again in a week is t giving the soil time to dry which could lead to root rot.
Those are the flowers. It uses a lot of energy to produce them, so plants tend not to grow much when flowering. I pinch them off (with sharp clean scissors) down to the closest leaves/turtles so my plant focuses more on growth. To encourage the strings to produce more offshoots, make sure they are touching the soil – I cut up a paper clip to make U shaped bits of wire to “pin” down the strings to ensure they are more likely to root.
I pinch the flower buds off almost daily. They take energy from the plant that will otherwise go into making new leaves, and personally I hate how they look.
Does your pot and soil mix have good drainage? I wouldn’t let it get too dry, or too wet… aim for consistent moisture.
Mine was a tiny starter plant 1-1/2 years ago and now it’s massive. I’d share a photo but that doesn’t seem to be an option on this post. Good luck!