The Monstera Deliciosa is very popular among houseplant enthusiasts. This plant grows with large green fenestrated leaves. This plant is a lot of fun to care for and is a stunning addition to any houseplant collection.

Monstera Deliciosa (also known as The Swiss Cheese Plant) grows native in Central America. This plant has been transported to many different areas of the world and can be found growing in parts of Hawaii and Florida.

If you can mimic warm and humid temperatures in your home, this plant will be extremely content. The care for this plant is fairly straightforward and simple. With a few tips and tricks, you can be well on your way to having a gorgeous Monstera plant. I have even been successful growing this plant from Monstera seeds!

One of the most desired parts of this plant is the large fenestrated leaves. The happier this plant, the larger the leaves with more fenestrations. Lighting is important if you want to have fenestrated leaves. Bright indirect light with some moments of direct sunlight throughout the day will help immensely.

Other ways to encourage fenestrations on the leaves include training the plant on a trellis or moss pole, pruning, fertilizing, and an even watering schedule. Age of the plant also matters, baby plants will not grow leaves with fenestrations until they have matured into an adult plant.

monstera delicious with inner fenestrations — *Monstera leaves with inner fenestrations*

If you are looking to purchase a Monstera Deliciosa you can easily find them at most nurseries or greenhouses. I have even seen them at my local grocery store from time to time. If you want to try growing them from seed, or from a cutting then you can purchase them on Etsy.

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Purchase Monstera Deliciosa on Etsy

More Beautiful Monstera Plants:

The variegated Form of the Deliciosa is the Monstera Albo. it is a stunning plant. Read all about the Albo in this post.

Learning about the monstera lechleriana-pin image — The Monstera Lechleriana

Everything you need to know about the monstera peru plant-pin image — The Monstera Lechleriana

Monstera Deliciosa grow large fruit on the stems when grown outdoors. This fruit is edible when ripe and has flavors of coconut, banana, and pineapple. Many people love eating this delicious and healthy fruit from the Monstera plant. Be warned however, if you eat this fruit before it is ripe, you can get a severe sore throat and irritated skin.

monstera deliciosa fruit — *Monstera Fruit*

We have compiled a printable care guide with all the information you need to care for your plant!

Yield: Printable Care Guide

Monstera Deliciosa Care Guide

The Monstera Deliciosa is a large lovely evergreen plant. It has beautiful green leaves with holes (fenestrations) that add interest and texture to this magnificent plant.

This plant also comes in a a rare variegated leaf form.

This Care Guide will teach you how to keep this houseplant happy all through the year.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Difficulty easy

Materials

Tools

Pot (ceramic, plastic, or terra cotta)
Potting medium (perlite, soil, peat moss, and orchid bark)
Scissors
Rubbing Alcohol

Instructions

Soil Preference:

All Monsteras prefer well draining soil. The roots requirs lots of oxygen and will rot quickly if they sit in moist soil.
A homemade aroid soil mix of 1/2 potting soil and 1/2 peat moss or coco fiber is a good mix for monsteras. Add bark or perlite for an even lighter mix.
Make sure your pot has drainage at the bottom. Do not use a pot with no drainage hole for this plant.
A heavy soil potting mix is not recommended for Monsteras

Pot Size and Type:

The monstera Deliciosa can grow in many different kinds of pots, I like to plant mine in terra cotta pots with a drainage hole.
Monstera Deliciosa's do not like to be root bound
Repot every second year or when roots come out the drainage holes on the pot bottom. Don't jump to a huge pot from a small one. Just go to the next size up pot for the root ball. Too much soil around the root ball invites wet soil conditions and root rot will follow.

Moss Poles and Trellising:

Your Deliciosa will enjoy growing on a moss pole so it can be fed and moisturized as it climbs. This will give you both excellent leaf growth and plant size. Eventually you will need a well anchored good sized pole.

Lighting:

This monstera will be happiest in BRIGHT indirect light. It will also grow just fine in lower light conditions, but the growth will be slower. You will not see optimal leaf fenstrations unless the plant has the proper light conditions.
Bright filtered sunlight from a window will produce best color, leaf size and plant growth.
Make sure the plant isn't sitting in constant direct sunlight. The leaves can burn and yellow.

Watering:

Water your monstera when the soil is dry at least an inch down. These aroid plants are typically drought resistant and can withstand longer periods of dryness compared to other houseplants. Every two weeks should be fine.
Watering is best done on a regular schedule so the plant is not over or under watered. Both can cause stress on the plant.
In dormant winter months reduce watering to when the soil is dry.
Never let this plant get wet feet. This plant is susceptible to root rot and fungus gnats in heavy moist soils.

Humidity Tips:

Like all monstera the Deliciosa enjoys a humid environment. Keep the plant at 60% humidity or higher for best growth and hydration. Here are some ways to do that.

Set it on a large pebble tray with water in it.
give your plant room a good sized humidifier.
Group plants together so they respire together and keep the humidity up.
Use a hygrometer to monitor the humidity and check it often.

How to Fertilize:

Apply a good quality fertilizer (linked in materials) monthly through Spring and summer.
Decrease feedings by late Fall and allow this plant to rest through the winter months.

Temperature:

The monstera plant will do best in temperatures between 65-85 degrees F.

Leaf Washing:

Monstera plants benefit from monthly leaf washing to dust and pests off. This also open the leaf stomata so the leaf can absorb moisture and respire oxygen to your room.

1 1/2 Tsp. Neem oil to a quart of distilled water is a good solution for applying directly to the leaves to deter pests. Wash both the top and bottom of the leaf.

Pests:

This monstera is a hardy resilient plant. However all plants can get attacked by pests.
Stress by longterm overwatering, poor light, extreme temperatures and soil conditions are contributors to plant stress..
Spider mites, mealy bugs, scale, thrips and whitefly are the most common houseplant pests you will see.
Read our post on How to get rid of aphids and other pests with our homemade pesticide soap recipe or neems oil.
To minimize the possibility of pests be sure to check all nursery plants before bringing them home.
Quarantine all new plants until you are sure no pests live in them.

How to Propagate:

Stem Cuttings:

Cut stem in the internodal spacing using sterile scissors
Place in water or wet spagnum moss with nodes and stem down in the water or moss and the leaf up.
After several weeks roots will grow
Plant in soil when roots are 2-3 inches long

Planting From Seed:

Read my post and watch my video series on how to propagate monstera from seeds.

Toxic Plant Warning:

All Monstera plants are toxic. Keep them away from kids and pets.

Notes

This plant does best when trained onto a moss pole or trellis so it can climb. Watch the video below of us repotting and staking our raphidophora tetrasperma for tips on repotting climbing aroids.

You can read all about the Monstera fruit and the tips and tricks for eating it.

Monstera Deliciosa Plant Care Guide and Profile