Arrowhead Vine is an aerobic plant, ie it grows on the body of other plants (mostly trees) and selects them as hosts to have a suitable support and habitat. Of course, Arrowhead Vine houseplants are not parasites, because they only use the host as a support and have no negative effect on them. Continue reading this article in TooPlant in order to learn more about how to grow and care for Arrowhead Vine.
Introduction of Arrowhead Vine (Syngonium Podophyllum)
Before addressing how to care for Arrowhead Vine, please allow us to give you a brief introduction about this houseplant.
| Name | Arrowhead Vine |
| Family | Araceae |
| Botanical Name | Syngonium Podophyllum |
| Native | Tropical rainforests in southern Mexico, the West Indies, Central and South America |
| Common Name(s) | Arrowhead Vine, Syngonium Podophyllum, Arrowhead Plant, Goosefoot |
How Many Types Of Syngonium Are There?
There are different types and varieties of Syngonium. In the following, we will introduce you to some types of Syngonium.
1. Syngonium Podophyllum
Syngonium Podophyllum is the most famous subfamily of the Syngonium family, first discovered in Mexico, Panama and Costa Rica. It is sometimes called goosefoot, which is derived from the special shape of its leaves. Of course, there are other names for Podophyllum, but they are not very common. Like the arrowhead philodendron, Nephthytis, whose last name is abbreviated Nephthytis Podophyllum.
There are fundamental differences between different species of Syngonium Podophyllum, so it is better to read a little about them before buying so that you can make better choices.
Types Of Syngonium Podophyllum
Types of Syngonium Podophyllum are as follows:
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Imperial White”
This type of Syngonium with its white leaves is a special and different type of Syngonium. Especially that these leaves are decorated with streaks of pale green and have given a different look to this plant.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Pixie”
Pixie is the exact opposite of Imperial white, meaning that its green leaves are adorned with white streaks. These veins start from the center and reach to the edges of the leaf. Syngonium Pixie is considered to be the most popular type of Syngonium because it is more compact than other types and does not move or grow too large after a period of growth. In fact, it does not move and will not change much in size.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “White Butterfly”
The leaves are almost white, but sometimes you can find green or very pale yellow leaves.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Emerald Gem”
The leaves of this plant are very large but have a short stem. There are also very bright white or green streaks on its leaves. One way to distinguish this plant from other types of Syngonium is the sharp tip of its leaves. A plant of Syngonium Podophyllum “Emerald Gem” has very sharp leaves, which makes it easy to identify.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Variegatum”
Beneath the clear surface of the Variegatum leaves, there is a cream-colored discharge that may, over time, resemble unusual designs. So do not worry and confuse these designs with the decay of the leaves.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Emerald Green”
As the name implies, it has very green leaves. This type of Syngonium Podophyllum is very similar to the main plant of Syngonium in nature.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Albovirens”
The leaf veins of this plant are silver or cream in color. Some of its leaves are completely cream-colored, the edges of which are covered with green.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Trileaf Wonder”
It has green leaves with silver veins.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Atrovirens”
The leaves are slightly darker than the previous type and, like it, are decorated with silver streaks.
– Syngonium Podophyllum “Green Gold”
Syngonium Podophyllum “Green Gold” has very attractive leaves. The leaves are completely yellow, covered with a dark green stripe. It is excellent as a climbing plant, especially as it is slightly more popular than other climbing plants due to its beautiful and different appearance.
Following the introduction of the Syngonium plant, we must explain that the Syngonium is not limited to the Podophyllum species and has different types, each of which has different growth, color and size. All of them are really convenient and painless to maintain, provided that the humidity is sufficient. For example, Syngonium auritum! Syngonium auritum is commonly found in Jamaica and Mexico, although it may be found in other countries. It grows slowly, and attaches to the trunk with three to five main stems. The size of its leaves varies, the leaves of young auritum are about 7×15 cm, while the leaves of mature auritum are about 30×35 cm.
2. Syngonium Auritum
Syngonium Auritum is known as the “five fingers” plant. This name is derived from its different appearance. Auritum has a main trunk in the center that grows about 20 cm, to this trunk are attached two medium stems at the top and two small stems at the bottom. In total there were five small and large stems! Syngonium auritum “Fantasy” comes in a variety of colors such as white and cream.
3. Syngonium Arrow
Syngonium arrow is a common type of Syngonium. It has green leaves that are known as Syngonium arrow because of their resemblance to the tip of an arrow. The surface of these green leaves is decorated with cream colored streaks. It is a bit like Syngonium Podophyllum “Pixie” and as compact and thick, but it seems to have less variety than Pixie. Syngonium erythrophyllum is another common type of Syngonium, it grows slowly and is an evergreen plant. Its leaves are similar to shooting arrows. The young Syngonium erythrophyllum has a slender stem that becomes thinner and more delicate as the plant grows.
4. Syngonium Vellozianum
Vellozianum is another type of Syngonium found in the pristine nature of Brazil. This plant is similar to Syngonium Podophyllum at the beginning of growth, but with time and more growth, it becomes thinner and taller than the original state.
Syngonium Angustatum “Albolineatum” has three ear leaves. Its young leaf is about 7×5 cm and the adult leaf is about 20×20 cm. The leaves are green, and if they are perfectly healthy, streaks of white can be seen in the middle of the stems attached to the trunk. S
yngonium wendlandii belongs to the country of Costa Rica. The main leaves are completely green, but the rest of the leaves have white streaks. This variety of colors and designs is well seen in the young plant that is at the beginning of its growth.
5. Syngonium Hoffmannii
Syngonium Hoffmannii is an evergreen plant native to Costa Rica. It is a strong and sturdy plant. The adult stem of this plant grows about 15 cm, but if you do not prune it, it will grow up to 30 cm. The color of the leaves is something between green and gray, adorned with white and silver streaks. Sometimes, the middle of the leaf can be the same color as the veins. So do not be too sensitive about plant leaf color changes. Of course, if these changes are around the main colors in the main composition of the leaf.
In this article, we want to provide you with information about how to care for Arrowhead Vine, so stay tuned with Tooplant.
Care for Arrowhead Vine
Arrowhead Vine belongs to the tropical and rainforests of South and Central America. The most important issue for an apartment Arrowhead Vine houseplants is light changes. Keep them away from direct light, the best light for Arrowhead Vine is low to medium light. And Syngonium Podophyllum needs a lot of moisture.
In this part, we will focus on the most important aspects which you need to take into consideration while treating this houseplant. The best methods of how to care for Arrowhead Vine include as follows:
Arrowhead Vine Light Requirements: What light is best for Syngonium?
Light is among the first important issues to care for Arrowhead Vine. Light shade is needed to maintain and cultivate the Arrowhead Plant at home or at work. In general, for the Syngonium plant, low light is far better and more suitable than high light. Direct and intense light and hot sun, especially in warm seasons such as summer and sometimes spring, can cause the tips of the leaves to burn or fade. Therefore, in the summer and during the spring months when the sun shines directly and intensely, it is necessary to keep the Syngonium (Arrowhead Vine) away from the sunny windows of your home or workplace, such as the south, east and west windows.
So, as shown above, light plays a significant role to care for Arrowhead Vine.
Arrowhead Vine Watering: How often should you water an Arrowhead Vine (Syngonium)?
In the rest, concerning the tips of caring for an Arrowhead Vine houseplant, it is better to know that the proper amount of watering for the Arrowhead Plant depends on the temperature of the air and the temperature at which the plant is kept. Therefore, the proper amount of watering for the Syngonium house plant will be different in different seasons, hot and cold of the year. In the summer and spring seasons when the temperature is high and the weather is warm, it is necessary to water your Syngonium indoor plant three times a week. Therefore, watering is another important aspect in order to care for Arrowhead Vine.
In cold seasons such as autumn and winter when the temperature is lower, the need for watering decreases. Therefore, in cold seasons, it is enough to water your Arrowhead Vine plant only once a week. In summer and in places where the weather is warmer, in addition to proper watering, maintaining the required moisture of the plant can also affect its growth. Therefore, in such environments, try to keep the leaf surface of your Syngonium indoor plant constantly moist by spraying water on its leaves. This will greatly help your Arrowhead Vine houseplant to grow better.
In this way, to care for Arrowhead Vine, watering is considered to be of great significance.
Arrowhead Vine Soil: What is the best soil for an Arrowhead Vine?
Intending to care for Arrowhead Vine, the other crucial matter is soil. Arrowhead Vine prefers light soil, but you can also use a combination of peat and compost. The best composition for this plant is a small amount of garden soil, peat moss, perlite and a very small amount of sand.
Thus, it can be said that, soil is another basic and important issue so as to care for Arrowhead Vine.
Arrowhead Vine (Syngonium Podophyllum) Temperature and Humidity Tolerance
Now, we come to temperature and humidity which are assumed to be principal to care for Arrowhead Vine in addition to light, watering and soil that are mentioned above. The ideal temperature for growing and maintaining Arrowhead Vine is slightly different in the warm and cold seasons.
In the warm seasons of the year, care should be taken not to overheat the ambient temperature in which the Syngonium plant grows. In the cold seasons of the year, care should be taken that the temperature of the maintain environment of the Arrowhead Vine does not fall below a certain level. In winter and cold seasons, the ideal temperature which the arrowhead vine is kept in is about 15 °C. Therefore, you must be careful that the ambient temperature does not fall below 15 °C in cold seasons. In warm seasons, the ambient temperature should be around 21 degrees Celsius.
Rising temperatures in the warmer seasons to temperatures above 21 °C can be annoying for the Arrowhead Vine houseplant. Therefore, it can be said that the suitable temperature for maintenance and breeding of Arrowhead Vine is between 15 and 21 °C. High heat and temperatures above 21 °C will cause the leaves of your Syngonium Podophyllum indoor plant to change color and turn brown due to the heat. In this case, you should cut the brown leaves of the Arrowhead Vine house plant and separate it from your plant.
Also, if you see such signs in your Arrowhead Vine, you should immediately move the plant to a cooler place with a lower and suitable temperature. Also in such conditions, usually due to high air temperature, the plant soil is too dry. Therefore, in addition to transferring the plant to a cooler environment with the right temperature, you should also increase its watering.
So, temperature and humidity are other important issues to care for Arrowhead Vine.
Arrowhead Vine Fertilizer: What is the best fertilizer for an Arrowhead Vine?
When you want to care for Arrowhead Vine, one of the important questions that may come to your mind is “what is the best fertilizer?” In what follows, we will address how to fertilize this plant:
If your Arrowhead Vine grows well without any fertilizer, you should be happy! In general, it is not in favor of fertilizers, and if suitable environmental conditions are provided, it will have ideal growth without the need for fertilizers.
However, if you feel the need to fertilize the Arrowhead Plant, do so once a month during the growing season (spring and summer). Autumn and winter are the dormant seasons of the plant, so it is not necessary to fertilize the plant. Use a multi-purpose fertilizer for houseplants and dilute it to half its strength. When watering, add fertilizer to the soil.
Fertilization must be done in moist soil. Another way is to use granular smart fertilizers. You can use this type of fertilizer in the spring, for the amount according to the instructions written on the packaging of fertilizer.
As a result, we could say that fertilizer is regarded as one of the fundamental issues when someone wants to care for Arrowhead Vine.
Arrowhead Vine Propagating: How to propagate Arrowhead Vine?
When you want to care for Arrowhead Vine, another important question that may come to your mind is “how to propagate it.” Arrowhead Vine is easily propagated by cuttings. The best time to propagate it is spring or summer. If your plant has aerial roots near the stem, select the part of the stem that contains these roots for propagation to greatly increase its chances of growth!
To separate a part of the plant as a cuttings, you must select healthy parts of the plant. Cut as much of the stem as needed, just below the surface node. The ideal size is to have about 2 or 3 bumps (knots) from the stem in your cuttings. Before doing this, make sure your knife/scissors are clean and sterilized. Cut off the lower leaves of the cuttings, as they will most likely be destroyed. So it is better to provide space and energy for the presence of new leaves by separating.
Place the cuttings in fresh water or soil. Place it in a well-lit environment away from direct sunlight and visit it from time to time. You will soon see the roots grow. If you have put Syngonium in water, it is best to change the water gently every few days. Syngonium is eradicated rapidly. The first roots usually appear in the first week. Once fully rooted, you can transfer it to the final pot.
To care for Arrowhead Vine, it is better to know that one of the most important issues for the successful maintenance and cultivation of a plant is to know its pests so that by identifying these pests, you can remove them from your plant in a proper and timely manner.
To maintain and care for Arrowhead Vine, you also need to be familiar with its pests so that you can react to them if they occur at the right time for your plant.
Red mites are the most important pest of Arrowhead Vine. Ticks on the back of the leaves, closed strands, and cause the leaves to turn yellow. If you see such signs in your Syngonium indoor plant, it is enough to immediately wash the pest leaves of your plant with water and get rid of these pests from your plant.
Caring for Arrowhead Vine: Common Problems With Arrowhead Vine (Syngonium Podophyllum)
After a description of taking care of an Arrowhead Vine, we will explain the problems and their solutions:
Why Are Arrowhead Vine Leaves Turning Yellow?
As “leaves turning yellow” is one of the common problems that you may face when you want to care for Arrowhead Vine, we will try to describe the reasons and the ways to solve it in details. Excessive watering and wet soil can cause this problem. If it were not for the water problem, the plant would probably be nitrogen deficient; Especially if the entire leaf surface is turning yellow. In this case, add a multi-purpose fertilizer for houseplants at half the main power to the plant.
Browning of the tips of the leaves occurs due to excessive dryness of the air. If you place the Syngonium next to a window or heating/cooling device, move it to another area. Once every few days, increase the moisture content by spraying water on the plant. This contributes to the health of young leaves but is useless for browned leaves. So it is better to separate them from the plant.
Since “leaves turning brown” is another common problem that you may face when you want to care for Arrowhead Vine, we tried to describe the reasons and the ways to solve it in details.
Why Are Arrowhead Vine Leaves Dropping? (The Main Causes Of Syngonium Dropping Leaves)
One of the most common problems for Arrowhead Vine is leaf fall. Leaf fall occurs due to lack of water and excessive dryness of the plant. Always measure soil moisture whenever you feel it is dry, water it.
How Do You Make Syngonium Grow Faster?
It is perfectly normal for plants to stop growing in the fall and winter. But if you are growing during the growing season but the plant does not have new growth, you should check its maintenance conditions. Nutrient-free soils, lack of fertilizer and very little light reduce plant growth.
- Sometimes the stems of the Arrowhead Vine indoor plant grow too long and the number of leaves decreases. In this case, the distance between the leaves increases. This makes the plant ugly due to the darkness of the environment. You can eliminate this problem and eliminate this condition in your plant by placing the pot of Arrowhead Plant in a place of light shade with suitable light.
- Occasionally, on larger Arrowhead Vine plants, the lower leaves turn yellow and fall off. Because they will need more food during their growth period. If this happens to your Syngonium house plants, you can use more nutrients to strengthen the leaves and prevent them from turning yellow and falling off.
- Do not worry if you notice that your Syngonium plant is growing indiscriminately and its leaves are shrinking. In this case, it is enough to cut the long stems of the Syngonium house plant and use these stems to propagate or multiply your Syngonium indoor plant by stem cutting method. Summer is a good time to grow Arrowhead Vine.
- Not only can you propagate Arrowhead Plant stems by placing them in water or sand, but you can also use the misplaced roots that appear on the stems to propagate the plant. To propagate using ectopic roots, you must cut the stems that have produced ectopic roots and transfer them to a pot filled with a mixture of three of us, soil and leaf litter.
- If you notice that the stems and leaves of the Arrowhead Vine are turning black and sticky, the plant has developed root rot. This happens due to wet soil and excessive watering. In this case, stopping watering will not help the roots much. If parts of the main stem are still intact, cut off a cutting for planting.
In this article, we tried to explain to you in an infographic the essential tips in the care of Arrowhead Vine, so that you can briefly and usefully learn the methods of caring for this plant.
In The End
In this article, we tried to provide you with the necessary information about the methods of caring for an Arrowhead Vine.
However, if you have any questions regarding this indoor plant or you need to get advice from our houseplant experts, please share your questions with us through the comments section below.