Philodendron Glad Hands is a good climber plant. It is an excellent houseplant for busy growers. It needs less care and maintenance than other common houseplants.
You can easily find this plant in your local garden stores.
In today’s guide, you’ll learn how to grow and care for Philodendron Glad Hands.
What is Philodendron Glad Hands?
Philodendron Glad hands is not philodendron Pedatum it is a different plant. Its leaves are similar to the Pedatum.
But there is a difference and that is variegation. Glad hands is a variegated plant with 5 lobes. In comparison, Pedatum has more than five lobes.
Glad hands grow hands like leaves with and without variegation. Variegated Philodendron Glad Hands is rare and expensive.
In tropical regions, it grows 5 to 6 feet tall. This growth is not possible indoors in plant pots.
Grow it in your backyard if you are in USDA zones 10 to 12. Remember that glad-hands cannot tolerate frost.
In fact, none of the tropical plants can grow in extreme cold.
The leaf size depends on your care but in general, it is 6 to 12 inches long.
Indirect bright light is recommended with occasional fertilization. Unfortunately, it is prone to root rot. Therefore, before buying this plant, you need to learn the bottom watering methods.
Philodendron Glad Hands Care Guide:
Light Needs
It needs bright light for 7 to 8 hours per day. Protect it from direct sunlight to avoid sunburned leaves.
If your plant is not growing normally or you feel that it is growing slowly. In this case, place your plant to direct sunlight in the morning time.
Place it in direct sun from sunrise to 10 am. At this time the sunlight is less intense and beneficial for weak and leggy plants.
Glad-hands leaves can easily absorb warm morning light. It goes deep into the leaf tissues and increases the production of plant glucose.
More glucose means more food for your plant. When plants produce sufficient food, they naturally grow healthy, tall, and dense.
Watering Glad Hands
It is prone to root fungus which means you need to water it less. The problem is it needs moist soil for 365 days.
An extra cup of water in potting soil can result in overwatering.
To protect your plant from water-related problems you should follow the bottom watering method.
In this technique, we check the soil moisture level before watering the plant. To check soil moisture, insert your finger in the soil or use a soil moisture testing meter.
Water your plant only when the top 2 inches of the soil are completely dry. Or if the soil moisture meter reading is red.
How to Water Philodendron Glad Hands?
Fill a tub with clean water (do not use tap water). Gently lift your plant and put it in the tub.
Let your plant absorb water from the bottom drainage hole for 15 to 20 minutes. Then take it out and allow it to drain extra water.
It will take 50 minutes to drain every single drop of extra water. Then empty the bottom tray and clean below the surface.
Now you are done with watering your plant. Your plant is safe and properly hydrated.
Potting Soil
Soil is an important growth factor for glad hands. For this particular plant, any type of soil is best as long as it is well-draining, aerated, and rich in organic material.
Aroid soil mixes are perfect for growing philodendron glad hands. If you have some gardening experience then make your soil at home with the below formula.
Home-made soil:
Mix equal parts of general plant soil, perlite, peat moss, and compost. To make your soil extra rich you can use vermiculite instead of compost.
Pre-fertilized soil mixes are not recommended for this plant. Because they are costly and contain less organic material.
Fertilizing Philodendron Glad Hands
Water soluble liquid fertilizer is best to use for fertilizing Philo. Glad Hands. Spring and summer are the two seasons for fertilizing plants.
These are the active growing season of philodendrons.
10-10-10 is the perfect and less expensive balanced fertilizer that you can use. Dilute the solution in the water as per the instructions in the fertilizer bottle.
Then gently give the nutrient-rich water to the soil.
I use miracle gro fertilizer and compost tea. Compost tea acts like a miracle for potted plants.
Don’t buy costly fertilizers they are equally effective as the miracle gro and compost tea.
Temperature
Keep your plant at a normal temperature that is comfortable for humans and plants. Keep in mind if you are feeling cold so is your plant.
55 to 85 degrees F is the ideal temperature range for philodendrons.
Below 55 F is too cold for it. The sap of the plant start freezing and this block the transportation of nutrients.
Hence your plant goes into nutrient deficient state and dies in a few days.
Cold weather also affects the leaf tissues and the moisture stored in them.
Whereas temperature above 85 degrees F is hot for it. It increases the respiration and transpiration rate. This affects the immunity of your plant.
Makes your plant weak, droopy, and prone to pests.
Humidity
Above 40% is recommended for thriving P. Glad Hands. Use a hygrometer to measure the relative humidity of your grow room.
Low humidity than 40% is damaging for the plant. Your plant will lose its stores of moisture and the leaves become dry.
Dry leaves start turning yellow. After 3 to 4 days yellow leaves become crispy brown. This is a sign that tells your plant is dying.
To prevent it keep the humidity above 40% all the time.
How to deal with Low Humidity?
There are 2 effective options to deal with low humidity.
Pebble Tray:
It is a better option than misting water on plant leaves. Take a tray and fill it with small rocks then add tap water to it.
Gently lift your plant pot and place it over the pebble tray.
Keep in mind the water level of the tray should stay below the bottom plate of the plant pot.
The evaporating water vapors give nice comfort to your dying plant. Within 24 hours you will see nice improvements in your plant health.
Humidifier:
If you have a good budget then buy a plant humidifier for your lovely houseplants. They are making your house beautiful.
Move all your plants to a single room and turn ON the humidifier.
Make sure the room is well-ventilated and bright. In the absence of bright light, you should use Plant grow lights.
Pruning & Maintenance
Pruning is necessary for keeping the houseplants healthy and thriving. In pruning, we trim the dead and brown parts of houseplants.
Also, clean the plant leaves with a soft cloth.
Keep the plant pot clean and wipe under the pot.
Take a sharp knife and sterilize it before use. Then slowly cut the infected and dead parts of your plant. Wear garden gloves to avoid accidental contact with its sap.
Benefits of Pruning:
- Promotes new growth
- Prevent Pest Infestations
- Prevent Fungal Diseases
- Help to control the plant size
- Increase Plant Immunity
Toxicity
Philodendron Glad Hands is toxic to dogs, horses, and humans. The liquid of this plant contains calcium oxalate. It is a toxic substance.
Ingestion of its parts results in toxicity. Common signs are skin redness, irritation, stomach pain, excessive drooling, etc.
Immediately seek medical help if someone ingests its leaves or stems.
Repotting
Frequent repotting is not required to grow a thriving Glad Hands Philodendron.
- You must repot your Glad Hands once a year. Spring is the best season for repotting philodendrons.
- 2 inches wide and deep pot is a perfect size. Add some fresh soil to the new pot.
- Gently take the plant out of its old pot. Remove the old soil and cut the infected roots. Also, cut the roots that are dry and brown.
- Place your plant in a new pot and add fresh soil. Gently press around the main stem to help your plant stand firm.
- Add some water and you are done. Sometimes for a few days, you will observe drooping and wilting. This is normal and is called repotting stress.
- It will go away on its own in 5 to 7 days, no need to do anything just follow the regular care routine.
Philodendron Glad Hands Propagation
Stem propagation is a highly successful technique for propagating Glad Hands Philodendrons. I use this same technique for propagating costly philodendrons like
Philodendron Florida Beauty and Philodendron Red Moon.
Propagating Steps:
- Choose a healthy stem with healthy mature leaves.
- Cut the stem below the leaf node (5 to 6 inches long). Make a clean cut and do not damage the leaf node.
- Take a glass jar and fill it with filtered water.
- Put the cutting in it and place the glass jar in a warm place. The humidity should be above 55% for successful rooting.
- Cover the base of the glass with newspaper. This will prevent the build-up of algae in the water.
- Change the water when it gets unclear or dirty.
- Within 20 days you will see growing roots.
- Transfer your cuttings to potting soil when the new roots grow more than 1 inch long.
Troubleshooting
Pest Infestations
Aphids are pests that can infect your plant. If you do not follow the pruning and maintenance routine.
You will definitely face pest infestations.
To prevent all types of pests spray neem oil on your philodendron.
To kill these insects, use pest-killing liquid soap. Move your plant outside and rinse it by following the instructions.
Keep it separate until it shows new growth.
Yellow Leaves
Yellow leaves are a sign of overwatering that leads to root rot. When you give too much water to your plant or do not use a pot with good drainage.
Then the water stays in the soil for a long time.
This keeps the roots wet and this invites root fungus. The bacteria start eating the roots. Once the roots start damaging the healthy leaves start turning yellow.
To confirm root rot, you must check the soil. If it has green algae on it or smells like rotten eggs.
This means the roots under the soil are dying.
Without wasting time take your plant out of its pot and cut the infected roots. Then repot it in the new pot and new soil.
Apply a little bit of copper fungicide on the roots.
Curling and Brown Leaves
When extremely bright light strikes plant leaves. Leaves fold their tips to protect them against sharp light. In this case, you may see some yellow curling leaves.
Move your plant to a less bright place and give it some water. It will heal in 10 to 15 days.
The second reason is the lack of water and low humidity. In both conditions, the plant curls its leaves to shrink its leaf size.
Plants do so to save the available moisture in their leaves. Because they don’t know when they will get a good watering session.
This is their natural protective behavior.
Water your plant it will heal in 5 to 7 days.
Stretchy Growth
Low light in grow room results in stretchy philodendron glad hands. In this condition, the stems grow longer than normal.
The plant produces small size leaves.
To correct this problem, move your philodendron to bright light. If possible, expose it to morning sunlight.
It will take 20 days to come back on track.
