Philodendron Domesticum needs bright light for 7 to 8 hours to grow variegated leaves. High humidity is required to keep its leaves shining, and velvety.
General houseplant fertilizer is best to use in order to boost the growth of P. Domesticum.
It needs less care as compared to other philodendrons.
The strong roots of Domesticum keep it healthy and strong even in low light and unhygienic conditions.
Further growing and caring details are discussed below. It is important to know about its caring methods before buying it from a garden store.
What is Philodendron Domesticum?
It is a philodendron plant with spade-shaped variegated leaves. In the initial stage, your plant will only grow green leaves.
As the plant matures it will develop nice variegation on its leaves.
There is also a hybrid version of this philodendron that grows variegated leaves from the very first day.
Other Common Names:
- Burgundy Philodendron
- Spadeleaf Philodendron
Give it a sufficient amount of light, water, and fertilizers to grow it tall. The normal height of this philodendron is 6 to 8 feet.
Whereas the leaf size is 15 to 20 inches long and 6 to 9 inches wide (matured plant size).
Light purple stems and purple leaves edges make it an extraordinary ornamental plant.
P. Domesticum has a long waiting time for blooming. Only mature plants produce beautiful flowers. But the sad part is it took more than 18 years to bloom.
If you like flowering plants then choose the following best varieties.
I am growing it as a foliage plant and I like variegated foliage plants more than flowering houseplants.
Because foliage plants are easy to grow and need less care and attention.
Moreover, a general-purpose houseplant fertilizer is good for all types of foliage varieties. But in the case of flower plants, you have to buy separate blooming fertilizers for each variety of plants.
This increases the growing cost which I don’t like.
How to Care for Spadeleaf Philodendron?
Light Needs
Bright-filtered light is recommended for this plant. But there is a problem with this recommendation.
In bright light Philodendron Domesticum start growing rapidly. We all know when a plant grows at a faster rate.
It demands more water, fertilizers, and pruning sessions.
In my experience, the best place for the Domesticum plant is moderately bright light. In moderate light, it grows slowly and this reduces your workload.
Do not place it in dim light, it is suggested in my guides. Dim light results in droopy and weak leaves. Domesticum leaves will lose their shine and glossy texture.
Just put your plant in filtered bright light for some days. If it develops yellow leaves and the soil dries out quickly.
This means the light is too bright and moves to other less bright locations.
Potting Soil
Philodendron Burgundy (Domesticum) needs highly fertile soil to grow happily. You can choose soil with lots of organic material.
It is good to have organic nutrients in the soil than to supply synthetic fertilizers. This reduces fertilizing expenses.
Mix the following ingredients in equal parts, if you want, you can add compost in limited quantities:
- Perlite
- Vermiculite
- Sphagnum Moss
Use terracotta plant pots to improve drainage. The above-listed 3 ingredients are loose and well-draining.
Philodendron roots will not feel suffocated and congested. To full fill its moisture needs there is a perlite in my soil formula.
Watering
This philodendron plant needs more water than other philodendrons. The reason is its fast-growing habit and large size glossy leaves.
The glossiness of leaves is due to the stored moisture in them. When you do not give proper water, its leaves look dull and lose their shining appearance.
How to water effectively?
First of all, give it a good amount of water in each watering session. Water it and give it 30 minutes to absorb it.
If after 30 minutes your plants do not drain extra water in the saucer. This means it needs more water and water it again.
Stop watering when you see water draining out of the drainage hole.
Best Water:
The best water to use for watering this plant is filtered water. Stop using tap water for watering plants.
The ingredients like chlorine and fluoride put a negative effect on its health. These salts block the root function and as a result, your plant turns yellow leaves.
Fertilizing
Fertilizers are important to maintain plant health and looks. But not all fertilizers are the same in terms of use and results.
The best fertilizer for Spadeleaf philodendron is slow-releasing fertilizer.
When the growing season starts you must fertilize your plant by slowly releasing fertilizer. This way you can make a continuous chain of nutrient supply.
This directly impacts its leaves and stem health.
Strong stems that are holding the weight are the result of regular fertilization.
Once in 30 days is sufficient to prevent overfertilization problems. Yellow-burned leaves mean you are over-supplementing your lovely plant.
There are many inexpensive organic plant food supplements available on Amazon. Let’s check.
Ideal Temperature
50 to 80 degrees F is the perfect temperature range. Use a thermometer to measure the temperature of the grow room.
Then adjust the temperature or move your place accordingly.
Even though it has strong roots but still, philodendron Domesticum can go under temperature stress. To prevent stress, move your plant from doors, vents, and from large windows in the winter season.
Also do not place it near the heat vents to increase warmth. The artificial heat increases respiration in plants.
Increased respiration in the winter season is deadly for philodendron plants.
You can cover the plant pot with a cloth or place a mat under the pot to give it nice warmth.
No need to do fancy stuff.
Humidity
It needs humidity above 50% for moderate growth. To grow it faster you need to increase the humidity level to 70% or more.
I think most of the growers will stick to 50%. To maintain humidity between 45% to 50% you have to work a little bit extra.
First of all, use a hygrometer and measure the grow room humidity. If it’s 45% then in this case group the plant together.
They will make a humidity balloon around them with their evaporating water.
If your meter shows humidity at 40% then put a pebble tray filled with water under your plant. Keep the water level below the mark.
But in case the humidity of the grow room is below 40%. In this case, there is only one solution and that is using a humidifier.
Or
Measure the humidity in other rooms and place it there except in the bathroom.
Repotting
Philodendron Domesticum is a fast-growing plant and it needs frequent repotting.
To repot your plant safely follow the below steps:
- Water you plant a day before repotting.
- Use a knife or your finger to lose the potting soil and gently unpot your plant. Tap around the pot and tilt it to do things the easy way.
- Remove the old soil and wash your plant roots. Inspect them and cut the infected roots if any.
- Fill the new large pot with fresh potting soil to its half.
- Place your plant in it and fill the remaining pot with fresh soil.
- Tap around the plant and give some water to add moisture to the soil.
- Wash the old pot and store it, mix the old soil in your backyard or throw it.
- Place your plant back in its location and follow the regular routine.
Pruning
As I mentioned this plant is fast growing indoor plant. This clears that you need to prune regularly to keep it healthy.
Pruning also helps us to keep our plants in desired shape and size.
It also encourages new growth and speeds up the development of new leaves.
For pruning your philodendron, you should use sterilized tools only. This prevents many infections to plant leaves.
Identify the dry, yellow, and damaged parts of Domesticum Philodendron. Slowly cut them without damaging the stems and other healthy leaves.
Collect them in a bag and throw them in the garbage bag.
Toxicity
This plant is toxic to cats, dogs, horses, and humans. All parts of this plant contain calcium oxalate crystals.
They are toxic in nature and cause vomiting, nausea, burning, stomach pain, etc.
It is advised to wear garden gloves while working on your plant. Gloves reduce the chances of toxicity.
Call the doctor or poison control center for help.
Propagating Philodendron Domesticum
For propagation, stem cutting is the perfect method and most successful practice.
Take a healthy stem cutting 5 to 6 inches long with a few leaves and some leaf nodes. Use water or soil to propagate it.
Place the stem in a warm and humid location away from direct sunlight.
Then once the stem grows new roots, let it grow them at least 1 inch long. Before transferring them to the potting soil.
Water propagation is more successful than soil propagation.
Once you shift the stem into a plant pot. Follow regular care to grow it into a large plant.
Troubleshooting
Pest Infestations
Normal sap-sucking pests are common on Philodendron Domesticum plants. You can get rid of them in various ways.
The best method is to use insecticidal soap and rinse your plant. This method is useful when there are colonies of pests are present.
Simply use the soap and wash your plant using tap water.
If you catch the pest infestation on time and there are few pests under the leaves. Then use rubbing alcohol and wipe the leaves.
Pests will die instantly when they come in contact with rubbing alcohol.
It is safe to use on philodendrons plants.
High-grade pest-killing sprays are not recommended to use on indoor houseplants. They are also harmful to humans.
Decaying Roots
Yellow leaves and wet soggy soil indicate root decaying under the soil. There is a root fungus bacterium that decays wet roots.
Improve the drainage of your potting soil to prevent this condition.
Let’s say your plant is infected with root rot, in this case repotting it in fresh soil is the only solution.
Take the plant out of its pot and cut the infected roots. Apply cinnamon powder on the roots and plant in the new pot by using fresh soil.
Droopy Leaves
Low light and underwatering result in droopy leaves. In the absence of an adequate amount of bright light. This philodendron becomes unable to make a sufficient amount of plant food.
Lack of plant food production turns its beautiful happy leaves into droopy leaves.
This is the indication by the plant that it needs your help.
Next underwatering burgundy philodendrons shrink their leaf size to save the remaining moisture. This gives them a droopy appearance.
Dark and Dull leaves
Low light is the cause of stretchy, dark, and dull leaves. Light is associated with glucose production in plants.
In low light, plants try to stretch themselves toward the light to full fill their light needs. This gives them leggy growth.
And also turns the leaves into dark green color and they look dull and lifeless.
Conclusion
Spadeleaf Philodendron is a brilliant ornamental houseplant. Expose it to bright light to speed up its growth.
Keep the soil moist and let it enjoy high humidity for a long time.
Regular fertilizing and inspecting will keep it healthy and vibrant for years.
