- Author: Constance Harrington
- Published: June 11, 2020
- Last Updated: July 14, 2022
Mini monstera plants are perennial climbing vines that look fabulous with their dark green, heart-shaped leaves. They’re a great choice to grow at home as they’re easy to care for and are suitable for most conditions. They make for good outdoor plants but are more commonly grown indoors as houseplants.
Once quite rare outside their native habitats, mini monstera is now widely available in most parts of the world. Established mini monstera plants are not especially cheap to buy, so propagating your own is an option worth considering.
I provide my best advice for mini monstera propagation below, along with tips for looking after your plants and dealing with common problems.
What Is a Mini Monstera?
The mini monstera is not actually a monstera plant. It’s a species in the rhaphidophora genus, not the monstera genus, and its full botanical name is Rhaphidophora tetrasperma. It’s called mini monstera because it closely resembles Monstera deliciosa.
Monstera plants and rhaphidophora plants are both in the Araceae family, so you’d expect a few similar characteristics. The mini monstera is a vine rather than an upright grower, though, and has smaller leaves and wider fenestrations.
What are fenestrations? Fenestrations are the holes, slits, and other openings on some plants’ leaves.
The mini monstera is native to a few tropical regions across Asia and Africa, most notably Thailand and Malaysia. Although it thrives in tropical climates, it makes an excellent houseplant as it adapts well to indoor conditions. It’s unlikely to flower when grown inside, though, despite being a flowering plant.
Mini monstera plants typically top out at around two meters (6.5 feet) tall when grown indoors, but they can grow taller. The leaves usually grow to around 15-20 centimeters (six to eight inches). They can grow even taller, with longer leaves, when grown outside in the right conditions.
A natural climber, the mini monstera has aerial roots that will latch on to trees, walls, and anything else that provides support and stability. It’s an evergreen plant that retains its leaves all year round.
Warning: Mini monstera is toxic to animals. It should be kept out of reach of pets if possible.
Mini Monstera Propagation Tips
I recommend propagating mini monstera in water and from stem cuttings. You can also propagate from mini monstera seeds, but I don’t believe the plant will root from leaf cuttings.
Here is a helpful guide that explains how to propagate plants in water.
Now here are my top tips for propagating mini monstera stem cuttings in water.
- When purchasing mini monstera cuttings, make sure you use a reputable seller.
- When taking cuttings yourself, take them from a mature and healthy plant and use a clean, sharp cutting tool.
- Each stem cutting should have AT LEAST one node (nodes are the part of the stem where the leaves begin to grow). I recommend taking cuttings with two or three nodes.
- Once in water, keep your cuttings in a location that gets plenty of indirect light.
- Keep the water levels topped up, and change the water completely once a week.
- Only move a cutting to a pot once it has grown roots at least 2.5 centimeters (one inch) long. I recommend waiting until the roots are double that length.
- Move cuttings to pots that are around five centimeters (two inches) bigger than the root system.
- Use a soil or potting mix that is rich in nutrients and drains well. Moisten it BEFORE you add the cuttings.
- Once the cutting is in a pot, keep the soil or potting mix consistently moist to allow the roots to acclimate to their new environment.
- Keep the humidity as high as possible while cuttings establish themselves.
Most of the above advice applies if you decide to propagate mini monstera directly into soil or potting mix, too. That approach is fine, but in my experience, you can expect better results when propagating in water.
Caring for Mini Monstera
Established mini monstera plants are not difficult to care for. They’ll survive most conditions even if you neglect them a little. However, they’ll thrive if you provide them with optimal growing conditions and the correct care.
Here is my advice for the conditions to give them, followed by some additional tips for giving them the best care.
Soil Requirements
Mini monstera plants do best in slightly acidic soil that is nutrient-rich, moist, and well-draining. I recommend using a good-quality houseplant potting mix and then adding some perlite and peat moss.
The perlite will help with aeration, and the peat moss will help with moisture and nutrient retention. You could add charcoal as an alternative option.
Light Requirements
Bright, indirect sunlight is optimal for mini monstera plants. They’ll tolerate some direct sunlight, but I recommend only exposing them to the morning sun directly. The hotter afternoon sun could burn their leaves.
Although mini monstera will probably survive in locations with low light, it won’t grow incredibly well. Consider using a grow light if you can’t provide any indirect sunlight.
Water Requirements
Mini monstera plants have delicate roots that are sensitive to underwatering and overwatering. They thrive on moisture and appreciate regular watering but don’t like being soaked.
The exact watering requirements for mini monstera plants vary depending on other factors such as temperature, humidity, and how much light they’re receiving. My best advice is to water whenever the top level of the soil is dry but not let the soil dry out completely.
Top Tip: It’s usually best to underwater rather than overwater. Most indoor plants can recover relatively quickly from underwatering, but overwatering can cause long-term damage.
Temperature Requirements
Ensure you never expose your mini monstera to temperatures below 15 degrees Celsius (around 60 degrees Fahrenheit). The optimal range is 20-25 degrees Celsius, which is roughly 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mini monstera plants don’t like extreme changes in temperature, so try to avoid those.
Humidity Requirements
Humid conditions are good for mini monstera plants; the higher, the better. Low humidity won’t kill them if the other conditions are satisfactory, but try to keep the humidity high if you can.
If the conditions are not humid, consider using a humidifier or regularly misting your plants. You could also place them over a tray of water.
More Top Tips for Mini Monstera Care
- Make sure you use well-draining pots for your mini monstera plants. A drainage hole is essential, and I recommend using plastic or glazed ceramic pots rather than terracotta.
- Your mini monstera plants will benefit from regular fertilizing during their active growing period. They’re susceptible to fertilizer burn, though, so be careful. I recommend using a high-quality, balanced liquid fertilizer that you dilute well.
- Minis monstera does not grow as well as a trailing or hanging plant despite being a vine. Check out these string plants that hang if that’s what you’re looking for.
- Mini monstera doesn’t NEED climbing support, but a moss pole, trellis, or another type of support will help with growth.
- Keep your mini monstera plants away from drafty locations.
- You should repot mini monstera plants as often as required, usually once a year if they grow as expected. If they grow especially fast, you may need to report twice a year. Try to repot during the growing season if you can.
- Your mini monstera plants don’t require significant pruning. However, it’s a good idea to remove dead or dying leaves every so often.
Dealing With Common Mini Monstera Problems
You should be able to enjoy your mini monstera plants without too much hassle. However, there are a few common problems that you may well encounter. Most of them are due to improper care, but you can do everything right and still have issues.
Here’s a list of the most common mini monstera problems with advice on how to deal with them.
- Pests: The pests you’re most likely to see on your mini monstera are spider mites and mealybugs. First, you could try blasting these off your plants by spraying water. If that doesn’t work, neem oil, insecticidal soap, or an appropriate pesticide should all do the job.
- Lack of fenestrations: This is normal with young mini monstera, so there may be nothing to worry about. It can be a sign of insufficient light, though, so you could try providing a bit more exposure to light.
- Yellow leaves: The typical causes of yellow leaves are overwatering or a lack of light. A little less water and a little more light should fix the problem.
- Curled or drooping leaves: These are most likely down to underwatering. Be careful, though, as they can also be caused by overwatering. Revisit your watering schedule and try to figure out whether your plants need more water or less.
- Brown leaves, dark spots, and crispy edges: All of these are symptoms of a lack of moisture or humidity. Try misting your plants regularly or moving them to your bathroom where there’s more moisture in the air.
- Root rot: This is almost always because of overwatering. Give your plants a little less water, or water them less frequently.
Where to Buy Mini Monstera Plants, Cuttings, and Supplies
Mini monstera plants are for sale at most garden stores. So are the supplies you need, such as containers, potting mix, and fertilizer. You’ll also find mini monstera plants for sale at most of the leading online nurseries.
There are plenty of options for buying mini monstera cuttings, too. Many online nurseries sell cuttings as well as plants, as do quite a few Etsy shops. There’s also a fantastic Reddit community where you can trade plants, seeds, and cuttings.