Philodendron Cream Splash is a perfect plant for indoor spaces. It is not the best plant for office buildings but is perfect for patios and balconies.
The variegated leaves need bright light to stay disease-free. You can speed up its growth by supplying a few ounces of fertilizer in the active season.
It is a beginner’s plant and needs less care and attention.
Today I’ll talk about its Growing needs, Maintenance steps, and Propagation method. With the help of this guide, you can easily grow a healthy and variegated philodendron cream splash indoors.
What is Philodendron Cream Splash?
Philodendron cream splash is cultivated from philodendron hederaceum. It is artificially produced in the laboratory and added to the genus philodendron.
It is an evergreen tropical plant and is easily available in garden centers.
In ideal growing conditions, it can achieve an impressive height of 4 to 5 feet with leaf sizes 8 to 12 inches long.
When growing indoors the leaf size generally remains between 7 to 10 inches. This is due to the change in its natural growing environment.
Every philodendron cream splash is not similar. Some cream splash plants produce good variegation whereas some varieties are less variegated.
We cannot mimic the tropical jungle-like environment at home. This results in differences in plant height and size.
It is a flowering plant and produces white color spadix and spathe in ideal conditions.
The good thing is you can grow it in many ways. My philodendron cream splash is growing in hanging baskets.
If you want you can grow it in plant pots and let it trail on the floor.
Both ways are equally good and it depends on you how you like your plant to grow.
If you are planning to grow it on a patio or on a balcony. In my experience, the best way is to use a hanging basket.
Cream Splash Philo is an inexpensive plant and is suitable for beginners. It needs less care and maintenance than other tropical plants.
How to Grow and Care for Philodendron Cream Splash?
It is easy to grow Philo. Cream splash if you know what it needs to grow. Below is the complete guide to help you to grow and maintain it.
Light Needs of Cream Splash Philodendron
Bright filtered light is necessary to keep the cream splash philodendron happy and healthy. Bright indirect light is also required for good variegation.
The creamy part of the leaves is the result of variegation and a good amount of bright light triggers it.
It can tolerate low light but this directly affects the variegation and overall health and size of the plant.
In low light, your plant will only produce green flowers and fewer leaves per stem. It stays short in height with small size leaves.
To boost the growth protect it from direct sunlight and expose it to morning sunlight for 2 to 3 hours.
It is a misconception that variegation plants need more light. Because they have fewer green parts to absorb light.
The truth is there is a light green membrane under the variegated portion. It can only be seen under a microscope. This light green membrane helps the plant to absorb a sufficient amount of light in less time.
To avoid light-related issues,
Just remember that cream splash philodendron needs bright indirect light for 7 to 8 hours per day.
What to do if there is No Bright Light in the Room?
In this situation, the only solution is, a grow light. These lights are not very expensive and are easy to use and consume less energy.
To save some electric energy always use LED grow lights. These lights are very efficient and consume very less energy (less than a fan).
Have years of life span and you can use one LED grow light to grow multiple types of plants.
For plants like philodendrons and other tropical plants of the same height, 250 watts of power grow light is sufficient.
Install it above the plant roughly 20 to 24 inches depending on the instruction manual of the product.
How to Water Philodendron Cream Splash?
There is not a particular number of watering sessions per week for this plant.
Because the number of watering applications per week depends on the type of weather or growing conditions. If the growing environment is warm you need to give more water to your plant.
In cold weather, it needs less water because it is dormancy time. It stops growing and in the inactive season plants like cream splash philodendron need less water.
The simple solution is: Check the soil and give water.
To check the soil moisture, use your finger and insert it into the soil. If the soil has moisture no need to water your plant.
If the top 2 inches of potting soil are dry, give some water to add moisture to it.
Beginners and less experienced growers can use Soil Moisture Testing Kits.
Drought Tolerance of Philodendron Cream Splash:
The good news is Philo. Cream splash is a drought-tolerant plant. Generally, tropical plants cannot tolerate dry conditions.
But cream splash is a little different, its leaves help it to stay hydrated for a long once they store a sufficient amount of water.
Best Water For Philodendrons
Clean filtered water that does not contain unnecessary substances like chlorine or fluoride. These two are commonly found in our tap water.
But are not required to grow tropical plants. In fact, they are harmful to the plant roots.
Roots cannot absorb these substances and they get collected underneath the soil. Their presence in huge amounts interferes with the root functions.
When they stick to the root pores the philodendron roots stop working. As a result, the lack of water and essential nutrients makes your plant dehydrated and nutrient deficient.
It slowly starts dying if you do not catch the problem on time.
Potting Soil
Aerated soil is beneficial because that helps soil to dry quickly and also stores a good amount of moisture without being wet.
To choose such a type of soil you need to look for some particular ingredients in the soil formula.
Peat moss, coco coir, and perlite are 3 magical ingredients that can make your soil well-draining and aerated.
Look for these ingredients in your ready-to-use soil formula.
I do not buy ready-to-use soil mixes. Because I know how to make the best soil for tropical plants.
I use regular potting soil and mix 40% perlite and 20% compost in it.
Perlite holds a good amount of moisture for a long time. To make the soil highly fertilized and to reduce the fertilizer expenses I use compost.
Compost is a material that is easy to make and inexpensive to buy. It has a good amount of nitrogen and other essential nutrients.
Organic fertilizers like compost regularly supply nutrients to the growing plant. This chain of nutrients helps the plant to grow without worrying about the nutrients and their availability.
Ideal Temperature
Being a tropical plant, it needs a warm environment. To keep the grow room warm, maintain the room temperature between 65 to 85 degrees F.
This is the general home temperature range of most houses in the United States.
The natural habitat of philodendron cream splash stays warm for 365 days. There is no winter season and snowfall in tropical jungles.
This means cream splash philodendron is not frost resistant. Even it cannot tolerate the cold wind of the air conditioner.
It is best to bring your plant inside in the winter season. Also do not place it near the heating vents. The artificial hot air increases the evaporation of water.
This makes the plant leaves dry, small and curling.
Dehydration is the main cause of philodendron death.
To prevent this issue, you must place your plant away from doorways, air conditioners, and heating vents.
Humidity
Maintain the room humidity above 50% if you like your plant to produce multiple variegated leaves.
In its natural birthplace philodendron cream splash enjoys humidity above 90%. But this is too much for humans and is hard to maintain indoors.
The minimum air moisture that is required to stay healthy is 45%.
Do not allow the humidity to drop below 45%. In low air moisture cream splash, philodendron starts losing its stored water.
As a result, the beautiful leaves shrink their size and their tips turn brown.
If you do not fix low humid conditions then the entire plant will turn crispy brown. This means your plant is almost dead and it is hard to revive it.
Methods to increase humidity:
Use pebble tray:
In this method, we use a tray filled with pebbles and water. Place our plant pot over it. The evaporating water from the tray adds a good amount of moisture to the air.
This technique is good to save plants when the humidity is slightly low.
Humidifier:
A humidifier is the best solution to low air moisture. Collect all our plants in one room and turn ON the humidifier.
Within in few minutes, it will maintain the correct level of moisture in the room air.
Fertilizing Philodendron Cream Splash
General-purpose houseplant fertilizer is perfect to boost the growth of philodendron cream splash. General plant supplements have all the essential nutrients that are required for evergreen plants.
Flowering plants need high phosphorous and blooming fertilizers at the time of blooming.
It is a flowering plant but does not produce true flowers. Spadix and spathes are forms of flowers but they are not pretty.
Fertilize it once in spring and thrice in the summer season.
I prefer liquid fertilizers because they are easy to use and you can control the potency of fertilizer as per the plant growth.
Pruning
Pruning is necessary to keep it in good shape. Moreover, by removing damaged and yellow leaves you can reduce the chances of plant disease and pest infestations.
For pruning use a sharp and sterilized knife or shears.
Then cut the overly grown parts and damaged parts.
To keep your plant healthy, keep the surroundings clean and hygienic. Also, use a clean cloth to wipe its leaves.
This way your philodendron always stays healthy and bright.
Toxicity
Ingestion of philodendron cream splash is toxic to humans and animals. Its sap contains calcium oxalate which is an insoluble substance.
It causes irritation when goes into the stomach.
Sore throat, red tongue, skin irritation, stomach pain, vomiting, and nausea are some toxic signs.
To avoid accidental toxicity, keep your kids and pets away from the cream splash philodendron plant.
Flowering
Flowering is a late stage of its life cycle. First, it takes years to get mature, and then comes the blooming state.
Philodendron cream splash flowers are inflorescences like Peace Lily flowers. They consist of spadix and spathe.
No particular fertilization is required to make it bloom. Just follow the regular care and it will bloom when the time comes.
Repotting Cream Splash Philodendron
The repotting depends on the growth of philodendron cream splash. We all know it is a fast-growing plant.
But the growth and rate of growth depend on light, fertilizer, and water.
Generally, it needs to be repotted once in 2 years until it gets matured.
To check its condition, Lift the plant pot and see the bottom hole. If there are roots coming out of the drainage hole.
This indicates that the current pot is small for its roots and it needs a new big size pot.
Choose 2 inches wide and deep pot than the existing one and use fresh soil to repot the plant.
Also, check the roots for damage and diseases. You can cut the damaged roots before repotting. Do not repot it with damaged roots this will result in many unwanted problems.
Root cutting is a natural and safe method of helping plants to stay healthy.
Propagating Philodendron Cream Splash
Stem cutting is the most successful method of propagating philodendron cream splash. I prefer using water for rooting cuttings.
It is easier than potting soil and you can see the growth of new roots.
But if you are comfortable with potting soil, you can use soil to propagate instead of water.
Below is the entire process:
- Choose a healthy stem 5 to 6 inches long or cut a long stem into multiple pieces of 6 inches.
- Remove the leaves that are at the bottom, we need 2 to 3 leaves at the top for propagation.
- Take a glass of water and dip the stem cuttings, make sure that the cut edge is always submerged in water.
- Put the glass in a warm location away from direct sunlight.
- If the light is too bright in the room, then cover the base of the glass with paper. The bright light can result in fungus build-up.
- Change the water of the glass once it gets unclear or dirty.
- Within a few days, you will see tiny new roots.
- Once new roots grow 1 inch long you can transfer cuttings into the pot.
Common Problems
Pest infestations
Pests like aphids, mealybugs, and scales are the common enemies of houseplants. Dirty and unhygienic places are the invitation to pests.
Their life depends on the asp of the plant. Once they suck all the plant glucose the philodendron cream splash becomes weak and dies.
Once you see pests on your cream splash philodendron immediately separate it from other healthy plants.
Use insecticidal soap and wash your plant. Then spray neem oil on it and let it drain all the extra water. Place it separately and follow the regular care.
It will heal itself in 15 to 20 days.
Small Size Leaves
Small leaves are a result of two conditions one is low light and the second is lack of support.
In low light plants get insufficient light to make their food. When cream splash philodendron is exposed to little bright light.
It becomes unable to make a good amount of plant glucose. Which is an energy source of a plant.
Due to the lack of plant glucose, you see small leaves on your plant.
This condition is easy to fix, just increase the brightness of the light or move it to a brighter place. You will see large size leaves in a month.
Use a moss pole to support its structure and to tie its branches. This way your plant spends its energy on growing its parts.
Discolored Leaves or Lack of Variegation
Both the problems have a single cause and that is the lack of proper light in the grow room. Light energy is required to develop variegation.
In the absence of adequate light philodendron leaves turn dark green and lose their variegation and vibrant looks.
Increase the amount of light and your plant will heal in a few days. To measure the intensity of light in a room you can use a light meter.
Yellow Leaves
This is the sign of underwatering or overwatering. In most cases, excessive use of water is the main cause of yellow-turning leaves of philodendron cream splash.
The extra water makes the soil wet which results in root fungus. Once the roots get damaged, they start decaying.
Yellow leaves are the early warning signs of root rot and overly wet soil.
Whereas in underwatering first the leaves turn yellow and in 2 to 3 days, they also develop brown tips and dark brown spots on them.
To correct this issue, give a good amount of water to your plant.
Conclusion
Philodendron Cream Splash needs a good amount of light, water, and fertilizers to grow. It is a good piece of decoration and stays green throughout the year.
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