Vine plants are alluring to own. Having a piece of greenery that climbs on your walls or windows can be the closest thing to real magic. Not to mention, it’ll transform your room into a tropical piece of art.
Do you know what’s the best thing about pothos aside from the fact that it’s a vine plant? It’s incredibly hardy and virtually immortal. With low maintenance, it can thrive in your house and serve as an aesthetic decoration.
If silver satin pothos has caught your eye recently, you may want to learn a bit about its care tips and living conditions. In this article, I’ll tell you what it takes to grow a silver satin pothos and how to make sure it thrives under your care.
An Overview of Silver Satin Pothos
Silver pothos, or satin pothos, is the common name for Scindapsus pictus. It’s a species of pothos that’s beautiful, hardy, and easy to take care of. In fact, it’s one of the easiest plants to grow in a house.
Silver pothos is the cousin of golden pothos or devil’s ivy. They both grow into tropical vines, and they don’t tolerate low temperatures.
Silver satin pothos is best known for the shape and variegation of its leaves. They’re heart-shaped, and they have silver patches all around, explaining the name. The silver splotches are also mildly shiny, making the plant look like something out of a Harry Potter movie.
Silver Satin Pothos: The Full Care Guide
Silver satin has a low tolerance for cold conditions. That’s why it’s mostly grown inside houses—that, and the fact that it’s one of the easiest indoor plants to take care of.
The plant latches onto its surroundings, so you’ll need to consider that when choosing where to put it. Some plants can climb on their own, and some plants need hooks to be able to climb. In both cases, you’ll need to plan your room accordingly.
Here are all the caring requirements for the silver satin pothos.
Water
All pothos plants don’t need frequent watering. You can water your silver satin once weekly or once every two weeks, depending on the surrounding conditions. Here’s how often you should water it with regards to different factors:
- Pot type: Terracotta pots tend to cause moisture to evaporate faster than plastic pots. If you have a terracotta pot, you’ll need to water your satin weekly.
- Temperature: In the summer, the silver satin will need watering more often. Pothos tend to respire less in the winter, so the soil retains the moisture for longer. Hence, you don’t need to water it except once every two weeks or ten days.
- Soil type: If your soil retains moisture for long, you won’t need to water your silver satin more than once a week. If it drains quicker than it should, you’ll want to check your plant every few days to make sure it doesn’t need water.
If you want to do a quick test to know whether your pothos needs watering, you can use your finger to press firmly on the soil. If your finger gets wet, then the plant doesn’t need water. In this case, you should wait until the top surface of the soil dries completely before rewatering.
If your fingers come up dry, submerge them in the top 1–2 inches of the soil. If they’re still dry, then it may be a good time to water your pothos.
The right way to water your silver pothos is to pour only a moderate amount of water on the soil. Then, watch the water get drained into the holes. After that, the soil needs its time to completely dry before the next watering, so you should leave it for a week or so before checking it.
Keep in mind that overwatering is one of the very few conditions that may cause silver pothos to die. If it doesn’t die, the leaves may start developing rot, which will later attract fungus gnats and all sorts of disgusting house flies.
Light
Like most pothos species, the silver satin pothos doesn’t do well under bright light or direct sunlight. Its leaves start turning white, and they eventually burn off. Other than that, it should be fine in most conditions.
As a tropical plant, silver satin prefers sufficient, indirect light. It needs plenty of light to thrive, but it can survive in low light conditions too. The leaves may look frilly, and the plant won’t be in all its glory, but it’ll still live. It’s worth noting that the silver patches might start disappearing if the plant isn’t getting enough light, though.
The best place for a silver pothos pot is beside an east-facing window. If the sunlight is too bright or direct, you can install a see-through curtain to protect the plant from burning.
Soil
Silver pothos needs dry soil with good draining abilities. Most pothos variations don’t do well in wet soil, and the silver satin is no exception. In fact, that makes it easy for you to create the soil mix yourself.
You can create a mix of peat moss, potting soil, and perlite. The peat moss is responsible for retaining moisture, so the plant can still live if the watering isn’t often. If you don’t want to add perlite, you can add coco coir chips instead for drainage. Make sure the three components are added in equal quantities.
After you’re done, if you want to know if the soil is light enough, you can water it for a trial. The water should drain down the soil fairly quickly. If it pools on the top or takes more time to drain, it needs aeration.
On the other hand, if it drains too quickly and the water disappears, you need to add more peat moss for moisture retention.
Temperature
Silver satin pothos thrives in high temperatures, which isn’t a surprise considering that it’s a tropical plant. The perfect temperature range for it to grow healthy is between 65 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit.
It’ll survive under higher temperatures as well, but I can’t say the same about lower temperatures. If the temperature is too low for your silver pothos, its leaves will suffer from the cold, and they’ll start falling off until the plant dies.
Humidity
The silver pothos doesn’t need high humidity to survive, but it doesn’t do well in dry air. In fact, the leaves may start turning into a brown color if the air around is too dry for them to thrive. A 40–50% humidity is ideal for pothos to grow in the average range.
If the air around your house is a lot drier, you can simply mist the plant occasionally to provide it with enough moisture. However, you should know the risks associated with it. If the aerial roots absorb the water quickly, you may end up overwatering your plant.
Alternatively, you can put the pothos pot on top of a humidity tray while making sure the soil isn’t in direct contact with the water.
On the other hand, if you live in a humid area—close to the sea, for example—, you may need to get a dehumidifier to adjust the level of moisture in the air.
Fertilizer
Most silver pothos owners don’t need fertilization because the plant already grows quickly enough on its own if the conditions are in its favor. It’s true; the plant doesn’t require fertilization. However, the leaves will look shiny and vibrant if you use fertilizer. If you’re noticing that the leaves are losing their shine, you can start fertilizing the plant.
If you want to use fertilizer, it’s enough to use it once a month in the growing season.
It’s recommended to use a houseplant fertilizer with a diluted formula to avoid over-fertilizing the plant. Besides, it should have a slow-release formula because you won’t water the plant often.
And, you should also stop fertilizing the pothos in the winter and start doing it again around the spring. Remember, too much fertilizer may cause your plant to develop pests and diseases.
The Three Variations of Silver Satin Pothos
The silver satin is just one species of pothos, but there is a total of three variations. They all look strikingly similar, but they have differences that you may use to identify their different types.
- Argyraeus: Argyraeus is just another name for Scindapsus pictus, and it means ‘silvery.’ The plant gained its name because the leaves are darker than other variations, so the silver splotches look shinier.
- Silvery Ann: Silvery Ann looks similar to Argyraeus, except that its leaves are a lighter shade of green. The leaves are also heart-shaped and deeply variegated.
- Exotica: Exotica’s leaves are as dark as Argyraeus, but they’re a bit paler. Plus, the leaves are larger than the previous two, and they have more defined silver patches.
Silver Satin Pothos: Potting and Propagation
Now that I covered all the essential care tips for silver satin pothos, you may want to know everything that’s there is to know. Here’s an overview of potting and propagating the plant.
Potting
Pothos plants generally don’t need changing pots often. You only have to repot your plant if you see the roots coming out of the drainage holes in the soil. You may need to do that once annually or once every two years, depending on your pothos’ growth rate.
When you need to repot your plant, the best time to do it is at the start of the growing season. All you have to do is get a pot, preferably larger than your current one by one or two inches in diameter. Then, fill it with new soil mix, commercial or homemade. If it’s commercial, bear in mind that it’ll likely already contain fertilizer, so you won’t have to add any for a couple of months.
After you add the soil, it’s time for propagation.
Propagation
To propagate a silver satin pothos, you’ll need to wait until the early summer or late spring and cut a tip from your plant, or any silver pothos for that matter. The tip should be around four inches in size.
Afterward, place the tip in the pot that you prepared earlier with the soil mix, preferably one that measures four inches in diameter as well.
Water the soil, so it’s fairly moist, and place the plant under indirect light. Water it once every ten days or so, and the roots should be deeply planted after a month or so.
What Are the Common Diseases for Silver Satin Pothos?
Silver pothos seldom catches diseases or pests unless you overwater it and the leaves start to rot. It may or may not attract spider mites, but those are easy to deter by washing them off.
If your pothos is starting to show signs of infestation, start by rinsing the leaves, focusing on their undersides. Then, you may apply insecticidal soap to keep the pests from spreading further.
Generally, if you want to prevent your silver pothos from developing diseases or attracting pests, make sure not to overwater it.
How to Know When There’s Something Wrong With Your Silver Pothos
The silver pothos’ leaves immediately change appearance when something is off. That way, you’ll instantly notice when you’re doing something wrong, and you’ll be able to fix the situation.
Brown Leaves
If the leaves of your silver pothos are brown, it means the air is too dry for them. It may also indicate that you’re using more fertilizer than you should.
Yellow Leaves
When the leaves of silver pothos turn yellow, it’s an indication of overwatering. Make sure the soil isn’t soggy or overly wet so the plant doesn’t rot.
Curling Leaves
If your pothos leaves are curling, it means they need more water. Check the soil for dryness. If it’s too dry, drench it, so the leaves revive themselves.
To Sum Up
The silver satin pothos is easy to take care of, as long as you’re aware of its light and watering needs. Avoid putting it in direct sunlight, and make sure not to overwater it. If you do this, the plant will live happily in your house.