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Pothos plants are beautiful houseplants that many plant enthusiasts have in their collections. But they do have some specific conditions that they require for things such as light and water. When these conditions arent’ met for the plant it can lead to some problems. And one of these problems is a burnt look on the leaves of the pothos or what some often refer to as a sunburned pothos. This leads many to ask the question “Can Pothos plants Get Sunburn?”
See our Pothos Care Guide for more information on how to take care of your Pothos plant.
Can Pothos Plants Get Sunburn?
Yes, pothos plants can get sunburn on their leaves. This is caused by the leaves of the plant being in direct sunlight. Pothos need indirect light, they do not do well in direct sun. In order to prevent this, you need to make sure that you have your pothos plant in the correct lighting. Pothos originate from tropical forests and are used to be shaded in nature by the larger trees they grow and climb on.
Low Light, Medium Light, or Bright Light?
Depending on the type of pothos you have the light requirements for the plant will vary. For common varieties of Pothos without too much variegation, such as the Gold Pothos or the Jade Pothos, you can put the plant anywhere there is some light in the house. These types of Pothos plants can do well in low light, medium light, and bright light.
If you have more variegated varieties (such as the Marble Queen Pothos, Snow Queen Pothos, N’Joy Pothos, and Pearls and Jade Pothos) then you will need to have your plant in a brightly lit area that does not have the sun shining directly on it. If you can’t avoid direct sunlight coming in where you have your pothos, use something such as a sheer curtain to filter the sunlight.
How to Help a Sunburnt Pothos Plant
Get The Plant Out of the Sun
The first thing you want to do is get the plant out of the sunlight that caused the sunburn to begin with. If you have no other place to put the plant see how you can filter the sunlight that is causing the sunburn. Sheer curtains work great for windows that have sunlight coming through them. These are often used to create bright filtered light for plants.
Remove The Burned Leaves from the Pothos
Often when finding burnt leaves on pothos plants, the question comes up of: “Should I cut off the sunburned leaves?” And the answer is yes you do want to remove the burnt leaves.
Leaving any damaged leaves on a plant can cause the plant to use more energy trying to negate the damage that it should be using. In order for your Pothos to grow well in the future, you want the plant to use its energy on the healthy portions of the plant. Also, this will look more pleasing to the eye. Once a leaf is damaged it will not heal back fully and look as it did when it was healthy.
Used some sterilized scissors to remove these leaves. You can remove the leaf only, you don’t have to take off the entire vine unless you want to.
Check Soil Moisture
Most often plants sitting in the sun can become dried out. After you have moved the plant out of the sun and removed the damaged leaves, check the soil to see if it has dried out. The plant might need to have a bit of extra water right after being removed from the sunlight.
Related Pothos Articles:
- Why Is My Marble Queen Pothos Losing Variegation?
- How to Propagate Pothos Plants in Water from Cuttings (With Pictures)
- Why Is My Pothos Dripping Water?
- Is The N’Joy Pothos Slow Growing?
- Are Pearls and Jade Pothos Slow Growing Plants?
