Have you ever heard about monstera karstenianum peru? It is a rare monstera plant that produces unique leaves. Let me clear it first it is an expensive plant. You need to learn how to care for it before buying it.
In this article, I will walk you through the complete growing process of monstera karstenianum peru.
It needs bright light, less quantity of fertilizers, and a temperature between 60 to 80 Degrees F. Water and soil propagations are the 2 options to multiply this plant. Sap-sucking pests are common problems. Neem oil and rubbing alcohol will kill them all in a few seconds.
Let’s talk in brief
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What is Monstera karstenianum Peru?
It is native to the tropical jungles of America. Monstera karstenianum peru is a family member of the Calla family.
Monstera sp. Peru is a climber plant therefore, it needs support in the pot to climb upwards. In ideal growing conditions, the Peru monstera plant grows up to 6 meters in height. It has beautiful 6 to 8-cm long thick monstera leaves.
As we all know plants grown in containers do not grow tall. The same rule applies to Peru plants when growing in a plant container it grows 30 to 35 cm tall. But it produces large size beautiful leaves.
Peru plant has small size roots. They are weak and not deeply rooted in the soil. This means the frequent movement of the pot can damage the plant roots. Once they get damaged you cannot expect healthy growth and shining leaves.
Monstera Peru Care Guide
The care of this expensive monstera plant is simple. If you are new to indoor gardening then you should try to grow other plants first. Because you may damage it without proper knowledge of its growing requirements.
Below is the complete list of its requirements, problems, and solutions.
Light requirements
A little extra light can burn the leaves of the monstera Peru plant. Therefore, you need to be very careful while positioning it.
If we look at its natural home there it grows under the canopy of large trees. This means there it only receives a small amount of sunlight. This clears that you also need to give it limited filtered light.
A north-facing window will work best for peru plant. The light coming through it will not burn the leaves. Leaf burn is the main problem in the Monstera karstenianum peru care. According to a recent study in Bengaluru. The best light source for the peru plant will be indoor grow lights.
To produce green color leaves and monstera pattern it needs low intense bright light. Whereas the sun emits high intense sharp light waves.
The only option left is LED grow lights. They are easy to use and required no maintenance, consume less energy.
Bestva, Mars hydro, Platinum, King LED are the few brands that offer inexpensive but high-quality grow lights. Buy a 150 to 200 watts light and grow a maximum of 2 Peru plants under it.
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Watering monstera Peru
Monstera karstenianum peru needs moist soil to grow large and to produce beautiful leaves. Moist soil is only possible when you give water to your plants.
You need to be careful of the soil dryness. Because this plant cannot handle dry soil. It has large thick leaves but it does not store enough water in them like peperomias. You need to learn the technique of watering or you will lose your plants forever.
The best Watering technique is checking the soil condition before watering. If the soil has some moisture and is a little wet then no need to water it.
The top 2 inches of the soil must be dry before watering.
You can check it by using a soil moisture meter or by poking your finger in the potting soil. Drinkable water is the best for watering plants.
Soil for monstera Peru
Because it is a jungle plant it needs fertile soil that has the ability to retain water. Such soil gives it a continuous supply of nutrients. It is best to use general-purpose potting soil. You can buy it from Amazon or from your local garden store.
If possible, add some kind of organic material to the potting soil. This will ensure a good percentage of nutrients in the soil.
I use compost to increase soil fertility. It is easily available all over the globe and you can buy a bag of compost in few dollars.
Do not use your garden soil instead of commercial soil. Because the garden soil has tightly packed soil particles. When you use it in pots such soil puts pressure on the roots. It blocks the air circulation to the roots and your plant roots easily get infected by root fungus.
Fertilizing Peru plants
For good care of Monstera karstenianum peru you should use slow-realizing organic fertilizers. Organic fertilizers release nutrients at a slower rate. This way your plant always has a bunch of nutrients available.
Moreover, these nutrients are cheap to buy than synthetic fertilizers.
Another benefit is organic fertilizers do not burn the plant roots and plant leaves. If you accidentally give a high dose of natural fertilizer. It will cause no harm to the peru plants.
Spring and summer are the two important seasons for boosting your plant growth with nutrients.
Stop fertilizing in winter because this is the dormancy period. Fertilizing in at this time will only result in fertilizer burn.
Temperature for Monstera Peru plant
65 to 80 degrees F is the ideal range for the monstera Peru plants. Because it is a tropical jungle plant it likes to live in little warm temperatures.
Actually, the temperature drops below 55 Degrees F damage the internal structure of the peru plant.
In the USA the general home temperature throughout the year is great for growing monstera.
You need to be careful on winter days. Protect your plant from freezing temperatures and cold winds. If you are growing it in an outdoor container. Bring it inside your home or in the garage to protect it.
If your garage is cold then you need to insulate the plant pot to keep the soil warm. Use straws or an insulating bubble cover.
Humidity
Tropical plants need high humidity to thrive. But they can survive in low humidity if grown in containers. Large size peru plants need proper high humidity. But as we know indoor Peru plant grows a maximum of 35 cm tall. Therefore, it needs less humidity in the air.
Large size plants need air moisture above 70 %. But your indoor monstera Peru can survive in 50% or above range.
To increase the room humidity, you can use a pebble tray and place plants over it.
Do not use a spray bottle and spray water on its leaves and stems. This will cause leaf rot and invite leaf fungal disease.
The last option is electric plant humidifiers. Install one in the grow room and no need to worry about the low humidity. Plant humidifiers are different from regular room humidifiers.
Toxicity
Monstera Peru is toxic to pets and humans. All Monstera plants are toxic they contain Calcium Oxalates. This chemical causes swelling, burning, skin irritations, stomach pain if ingested.
Keep the monstera Peru plant away from pets and children. If you see any sign of discomfort due to the Peru plant ingestion. Immediately call the doctor and tell them that you have a Peru plant at home.
Monstera Peru propagation
Like other monstera plants you have two options one is soil propagation and the second is water propagation of monstera peru. Both techniques are equally successful. In water propagation, you have to use water instead of soil. All other steps are the same for both methods.
- First of all, you need to look for a healthy plant with and healthy stem.
- Then cut the 6 inches long stem below the leaf node.
- The cutting should have at least one green leaf.
- Now prepare the pot, fill it with potting soil
- Or
- Take a glass of water and put the cutting in the glass and store the glass in a warm and humid location. Change the water of the glass once in 7 days.
- In case of soil propagation, Plant the stem cutting in the pot, give it some water, and place the pot in a warm and humid location.
- In both methods, the Cutting will develop the roots in 10 to 15 days. Once the roots grow 1 inch long. You can take them out of the glass and transfer them into the potting soil.
- Monstera Peru propagation is finished.
Pests and Diseases
Root rot is the main disease that infects the peru plants. This is the result of over-watering. Therefore, you need to learn how to water Monsters peru plants. If you control the water applications your plant will never face root rot-like problems. I have already mentioned that you need to check the soil before watering the plant.
Let’s say your plant is infected by root rot. Then in this condition, you have to take the plant out of its pot and cut the infected part of roots with sharp shears.
Then change the potting soil and plant it in the same pot after washing the pot with soap.
Note: At a time, you cannot cut more than 30% of the root ball.
If we talk about common insects. Then there are only two insects that can infect the plant. These insects are aphids and mealybugs.
These are the tiny insects that hide under the plant leaves. At the time of watering, you should inspect your plant leaves for any sign of pest infestation.
Let’s say your plant is infected by insects. Here you have two options one is to use insecticidal soap Other is to follow the traditional method.
Traditional method
In the traditional method, we use rubbing alcohol and cotton cloth. Pour some alcohol on the cloth and wipe the plant leaves. This will kill all the insects in a few seconds. Rubbing alcohol is safe to use on houseplants but only in limited amounts.
Buy rubbing alcohol from Amazon at half price.
Insecticidal soap treatment
The second option is the use of insecticidal soap. Buy the best insecticidal soap from the market or from Amazon. Rinse your plant with soap just make sure that you need to wash your plant away from the other indoor plants. Otherwise, the disease will spread to other plants.
Keep your infected plant away from other healthy plants until it heals from the damage.
After both treatments, you should spray neem oil and water solution over the plant. Neem has natural antibacterial and antifungal properties. It helps your plant to heal faster.
Moreover, it prevents common pests and diseases. You should spray Neem oil on your plants at least once in 30 days.
This is all about the monster Peru plant care and maintenance guide. I hope you have enjoyed this article. For more information on houseplants Visit us again.
