Question
I have a Monstera inherited from a cutting several years ago. Some of the leaves are split and some are not, but I suppose the plant is near to five or six years of age. Over the past three years I have moved twice and each time she goes through the "ick", slightly yellowed leaves and some of her higher dropping roots withered. After the last move and her more recent bout with the "ick" she bounced back quick and has thrived since growing more in the last year than she has in the last four. It took two of us to  repot her the last time, and put one of her babies in with her, it's probably two. Another baby has sprouted at the base of the mother plant, and a new leaf at the highest cluster. About six weeks after repotting her I noticed the "ick" was back. I've already lost two leaves on the baby and have two more that are seriously yellow around the edges on her. Another leaf is fighting the yellow and the green is coming back at the tip. I have also noticed dry brown spots on several of her leaves, though not on the baby's.
The only thing that we can think of is that we may have damaged her roots when repotting her. Or that my boyfriend gave her the iron that one of the other plants gets.
Please recommend something, food to give her, anything, we don't want to loose her.  

Answer
Hi Joy,

Unfortunately, there are no magic potions, elixirs or fertilizers that cure plants. A damaged plant requires time and patience and sometimes corrective action to get it back on its feet.

Unnecessary repotting is the single most common cause of plant problems. Plants do not like their roots disturbed and they grow best when they are kept in a  potbound condition. Repotting is like surgery - it should be done only when there is no other alternative and you better know how to do it correctly when you do.

So many things can go wrong when repotting, that I cannot even guess what may have happened with yours. The list includes a pot that is too big, roots that were not properly loosened, removal of delicate root hairs, use of incompatible potting soil, using drainage material in the bottom of the pot, not having a drainage hole, not adding and spreading the soil properly, et.al.

If you contact me at my address below and request my article on repotting, I think after reading it you will find out where you may have gone wrong and what you may need to do to correct it.

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.
   
Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

You can E-mail me directly at: [email protected]

Visit my web site at www.HorticulturalHelp.com

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