Aroid Care

The following is an aggregation of notes that have been shared with me by the wonderful aroid community, including many additions drawn from my own experience!

Potting Mix and Watering

Aroid Potting Mix – Option 1

• 3 Parts Lava Rock
• 3 Parts Zeolite
• 3 Parts Pumice
• Nutricote (or time-released fertilizer)

Option 1 is close to a nirvana mix for aroids – quick draining and breathes really well due. This mix is similar to PON substrate. You can water this lightly daily (or when the top is dry) or once a week thoroughly (until water drains freely out the bottom) and then spritz as needed throughout the week. I use PON and this mix for all of my plants!

This is a photo of PON mix:

Aroid Potting Mix – Option 2

• 6 Parts Orchid Bark (Pine)
• 4 Parts Coco Coir Husk Chips
• 4 Parts Pumice
• 1 Part Horticulture Charcoal
• 1 Part Worm Castings (or Zeolite)

Option 2 is very fast draining and breathes really well due to its chunky makeup. You can water this lightly daily (or when the top is dry) or once a week thoroughly (until water drains freely out the bottom) and then spritz as needed throughout the week.

Aroid Potting Mix – Option 3

• 8 Parts Pumice
• 1 Part Zeolite

Option 3 is also fast draining (a little less so than Option 2 in my experience) and breathes well, but isn’t as airy as Option 1 or 2. You can water this lightly daily (or when the top is dry) or once a week thoroughly (until water drains freely out the bottom) and then spritz as needed throughout the week.

Lighting

Bright, indirect light is best (not outside, but filtered light through a window or direct from a LED grow light). If you want to see good growth, you want mimic the plant’s natural lighting, so likely 12-15 hours of light a day during growth season.

Let’s talk about lighting! I’ve tested and actively use many types of full-spectrum LED grow lights. These are a few of my favorites and their average monthly power cost in the Portland area. You can click on the Grow Light to find the current purchase price on Amazon.

General

Leaves do die occasionally, this is normal and you can thank them for their contributions to your plant’s energy cycle (photosynthesis) and then trim them off with a sharp pruning scissors.

Repotting

You shouldn’t need to repot these for quite some time. Anthuriums and Philodendrons tend to like small pots until they get really, really big. Then they like slightly “larger” pots. A safe rule is if you are going to repot something, select a new pot that is 1-2″ greater in diameter than the current pot.

I like using net pots or 32oz plastic takeout containers (with holes poked in the bottom) as they allow air movement and you can easily lift them out of decorative pots to water or swap pots.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how much I love Lechuza products. Yes, I am wholesale partner with Lechuza – full disclosure, but their pots and PON (of course) are amazing!

Pest Control

Common pests include spider mites (tiny white insects) and fungus gnats. Since my potting mixes use very little soil/organic content, the risk is lower as the conditions aren’t ideal for fungus gnat eggs.

If you do see the pests emerge, you have a two part approach to control them:

• Knock down the initial population
  • Use Neem Oil (spray works great, but smells strong)
  • Captain Jack’s Dead Bug Brew (currently my favorite knock down spray!) – Amazon Link
  • Seabright Yellow Sticky Aphid Whitefly Trap
• Prevent the spawning lifecycle
  • Mosquito Bits
    • You can make a mixture to use in your sprayer, just skim the chunks out after soaking for 1-2 hours before using in your sprayer.
  • Predatory Mites
    • This can be a more expensive route, but is very effective. My favorites are the following from Arbico Organics:
      • Stratiolaelaps scimitus (Hypoaspis miles) [Link to Purchase]
        • Excellent fungus gnat predator “Use these beneficial mites to control fungus gnat larvae, thrips pupae and springtails in the soil.”
      • Neoseiulus (= Amblyseius) fallacis [Link to Purchase]
        • Great predator for a variet of pesky mites, survives well in soild, great to use after initially knocking down an exploding spider mite population using sprays (Neem oil, etc.).
      • Neoseiulus (= Amblyseius) californicus [Link to Purchase]
        • I like these predatory mites as they can survive better than others when their food supply is lower.
  • Lost Coast Plant Therapy [Link to Purchase]
    • Wash your plants/potting mix with a diluted mixture of this to counter pest infestations.
• Maintenance
  • Bonide Systemic Granules [Link to Purchase]
    • This isn’t a spray, I use this as a potting medium supplement. It is absorbed by the plant providing weeks of protection. Note – not labeled for use with edible plants. I only use this on my aroids currently.

Fertilizers and Plant Care

• Maxsea 722250 Plant Food (16-16-16), Seaweed-based [Link to Purchase]
• LiquiDirt Nano Powder All-Purpose Organic Fertilizer [Link to Purchase]

Root/transplant Preparation Mixture

• Southern Ag Garden Friendly Biological Fungicide [Link to Purchase]
• Real Growers Recharge [Link to Purchase]
• SuperThrive [Link to Purchase]
• Maxsea 722250 Plant Food (16-16-16), Seaweed-based [Link to Purchase]

I originally got this idea from Jackie and Clay at “Exotic Plants N Seeds”, but I used Maxsea fertilizer instead of Maxicrop Liquid Seaweed. Primarily, because I had plenty of the product already and it seems to work well. The idea is to make a mix of these four products and soak the roots (or cuttings/chonks) before planting or placing in your propagation chamber. As two of these products contain live bacteria and fungi, please make sure to use within 24 hours.

Helpful Tools:

My favorite watering tool:

• Scotts 190567 Lithium-Ion Battery Powered Pump Zero Technology Sprayer [Link to Purchase]
  • This tool is great if you aren’t fully converted to self-watering pots. A long-neck watering pot works just fine for my weekly top-offs on all my plant reservoirs now.

Awesome little temperature and humidity sensors:

• Govee Indoor Hygrometer Thermometer, 2 Pack [Link to Purchase]