Are your Pothos not rooting in water and you're not quite sure why? You've probably also heard that Pothos is actually one of the easiest houseplants to propagate, which is true, and this makes it even more frustrating!
This post will solve all of your Pothos water propagation problems, so have no fear! I've compiled 10 potential reasons why YOUR pothos cuttings are not rooting.
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Whether you're just not seeing any root growth, or worse yet, your Pothos is yellowing, wilting, drooping, or rotting in water, this post will solve all your woes.
Chances are that you've done at LEAST one of these things, but read through all of them because they're all important tips for propagation in general!
Table of Contents
WHY YOUR POTHOS CUTTINGS ARE NOT ROOTING
1. Your cuttings are too long
If you trimmed your Pothos and your cuttings were a foot long or more, this is much too long. Remember, you just chopped off a big section of vine, and your cutting still needs moisture to survive.
The only water available to the long cutting is from the small root tip in the water! Chances are, if you have really long cuttings, they've probably wilted and some leaves have yellowed.
Now you know why!
To increase your chances of rooting, make cuttings that are no longer than 4-6 inches (10-15cm) or so. Better yet, do single node cuttings!
This way you will get a very full plant and maximize the usage of your cuttings. Each cutting will produce a vine!
Single node cutting with a new vine starting
On that note, let's talk about nodes.
2. You didn't include a node
What is a node? It's the part where the leaf meets the vine. See the illustration below.
The node is where your cutting will form both roots AND a new vine! You can see the roots forming below the node arrow, as well as the new vine forming right above the node arrow.
3. You're keeping your cuttings too dark
Don't keep your cuttings in a very dark area. Keep them close to a window, as long as it's warm, or near grow lights.
Just avoid areas that are dark, but also areas that have too much direct sun while they're rooting.
4. You tried to let it callous over
Callousing your cuttings only applies to propagating succulents! I've heard many people make this mistake.
For those of you not familiar, when you take cuttings of succulents, you want to let them air dry for a couple days or more so that the cut dries or "callouses" over.
This helps prevent succulent leaves, which contain a lot of water, from rotting.
For leafy tropical plants like Pothos, you will quickly kill your cuttings this way.
Once you make your cuttings, they should go straight into water or soil to propagate.
5. You're lacking patience
If your cuttings still look green and healthy, but just haven't rooted yet, you may just be lacking patience!
I've seen root growth in Pothos cuttings in water in as little as a couple days, to a couple weeks or more.
It all depends on your conditions. Be sure to heed all the tips in this post though for greatest success!
6. You're keeping your cuttings too cold
Pothos likes warms temperatures to grow, so if you're keeping your cuttings too cold, it will hinder root growth!
Aim to keep your cuttings above 68F (20C) for best results, but make sure there is still some light present!
Before we replaced the window in our sunroom, it got pretty chilly in the winter and my pothos plants sulked and barely budged.
Imagine trying to take cuttings under these conditions. They will just sit there and do nothing if it's too cold.
7. You're trying to propagate in the wrong season
By the "wrong" season, I mean wintertime when many houseplants slow down. Although your pothos will probably still root, it may take much longer than you'd like!
As long as your cuttings look OK and are still green, just keep waiting. They will eventually root for you.
8. You made cuttings from old or unhealthy vines
Always make cuttings with healthy portions of your pothos vine. And make multiple cuttings because not every one will be viable!
Avoid really old vines, vines that look sickly or yellow, and even bare vines with no leaves.
The vines you choose to make cuttings from should be healthy and have green leaves.
9. You're not changing the water
Roots need air in order to grow. You should try and change the water with fresh tap water every 2-3 days or so for best results because oxygen in the water will be depleted.
Water coming out of the tap has dissolved oxygen in it. As it sits, oxygen and any dissolved gases that are present will come out of the water and be depleted.
Have you ever left a glass of water out and noticed bubbles on the side of the glass? This is why!
Changing the water also has the benefit of keeping things clean as well, such as if one cutting goes bad and makes the water dirty.
10. You used soft water
Most home water softeners remove calcium and magnesium ions from hard tap water and replace them with sodium.
Sodium is toxic to plants! Therefore, you should never use this water for your plants.
CONCLUSION
These tips apply for many other plants other than Pothos (Epipremnum aureum).
You can use these same general tips to water propagate any of the following plants:
And many others! If you'd like to explore growing Pothos permanently in water, check out my blog post showing exactly what you need to do to be successful with growing Pothos in water.
Hopefully you have discovered at least 1 or 2 things that you can change so that you can be successful if you've had problems in the past with your Pothos not rooting.
Hi, I'm Varadharajan from India, I'm a new for indoor plants, growing pothos, syngonium, caladium and a jade. Let me know why one of the 12 inch pothos one leaf tip turns brown and furl. This happened over water or under water. Plants all kept in balcony away from direct sunlight.
Hi Varadharajan. What kind of potting mix do you have your plant in? That usually happens if your soil has gone too dry. There are other causes but this is the most common. Could this be the case with yours?
Please could you help? I've had maybe 8 or 9 cuttings that have rooted perfectly, but they just will not take when I move them to soil. Roots were 4-10cm. I've tried keeping the soil more or less damp but eventually they just turn yellow and keel over. I thought these were meant to be easy!!
Hi Kate! Sorry you're having issues with that! I would recommend not waiting until they get that long. Maybe pot them up when the roots are about 2-3cm long. When you potted them up, what kind of potting mix did you use? Can you describe the light situation that you placed your plant in? And any other growing conditions (temperature, etc.)
I have a cutting with several nodes that I cut a year ago. The leaves are healthy and green. Roots grew in water. But in the last year the cutting has not grown or died. What could be wrong?
I received a cutting from a patient last June. I put in water and got roots. I placed in soil and it has never grown at all but it hasn't died either. I did place in different pot and soil about a month ago. Any thoughts? I have successfully propagated pothos in the past and don't want to lose this cutting.
Hi Michelle! Give it a little bit of time. Depending on how long your cutting was in water and if you had a single-node cutting or not, just have a little patience and it will get there. Make sure you keep it in front of a window to provide enough light. Sometimes they take a while to get going 🙂
Are you giving your plant enough light? This is the single most important factor. Also, if you did single node cuttings, it will take a bit of time before a vine forms.
I’ve had three scindapsus pictus cuttings with nodes in water for a month. Still no roots but the leaves look great. Am I being too impatient? At what point do I give up hope?
Hi Christie! It seems a little slow. How warm is the location that you have them in? If you can put them in a warmer place (at least above 70 or 75F, it may help speed things along). Also, make sure you're providing good light. These things should help a bit.
Hi Tena! You can cut the badly infested parts off. That's always a good idea. I would also spray the plant down with an insecticidal soap just in case. Be sure to cover the whole plant including the undersides of the leaves. This should help! Try and keep a close eye on the plant. Pests are much easier to eradicate before they get out of control. Hope this helps!
not completely related to the post, but I got a neon pothos back in February, and the roots have barely spread at all - The main part of the roots is still the same size as when I bought it. The plant is growing though. Why is that?
I have a Cebu blue cutting in water that I realize has the “wrong end” in the water. It is taking much longer to root than the other one I have. Should I take it out and switch the direction of the vine to what I believe is the correct way? Or should I leave it as is. I can provide photos if this doesn’t make sense. Thank you!
I'm doing all the things, but the stems in water are turning smooshy, rotting? What do I do? Cut off the squish and hope it still roots at one of the nodes? I have 2-leaf cuttings with a node below the lowest leaf in water.
I purchased an unrooted pothos online a couple of months ago and it’s still not rooted. It’s in a sunny spot and water changed regularly. The leaf is still very healthy but having read your post, there doesn’t appear to be a node. Does that mean it will never root?
I'd have to see a photo to be sure. If you want to send me an email using the contact form on my website, I will reply, and then you can attach photos.
Can i use a mature pothos vines? The ones with realy big leafs? An “adult plant”. Theres one at my local city
Yes, it should still work! 🙂
I have a umbrella tree I need help
What's wrong with your plant?
Hi, I'm Varadharajan from India, I'm a new for indoor plants, growing pothos, syngonium, caladium and a jade. Let me know why one of the 12 inch pothos one leaf tip turns brown and furl. This happened over water or under water. Plants all kept in balcony away from direct sunlight.
Hi Varadharajan. What kind of potting mix do you have your plant in? That usually happens if your soil has gone too dry. There are other causes but this is the most common. Could this be the case with yours?
Please could you help? I've had maybe 8 or 9 cuttings that have rooted perfectly, but they just will not take when I move them to soil. Roots were 4-10cm. I've tried keeping the soil more or less damp but eventually they just turn yellow and keel over. I thought these were meant to be easy!!
Hi Kate! Sorry you're having issues with that! I would recommend not waiting until they get that long. Maybe pot them up when the roots are about 2-3cm long. When you potted them up, what kind of potting mix did you use? Can you describe the light situation that you placed your plant in? And any other growing conditions (temperature, etc.)
I have a cutting with several nodes that I cut a year ago. The leaves are healthy and green. Roots grew in water. But in the last year the cutting has not grown or died. What could be wrong?
I received a cutting from a patient last June. I put in water and got roots. I placed in soil and it has never grown at all but it hasn't died either. I did place in different pot and soil about a month ago. Any thoughts? I have successfully propagated pothos in the past and don't want to lose this cutting.
Hi Michelle! Give it a little bit of time. Depending on how long your cutting was in water and if you had a single-node cutting or not, just have a little patience and it will get there. Make sure you keep it in front of a window to provide enough light. Sometimes they take a while to get going 🙂
Mine got roots just fine but its hasn't grown at all since being planted not one new leaf and its been a couple months
Are you giving your plant enough light? This is the single most important factor. Also, if you did single node cuttings, it will take a bit of time before a vine forms.
I’ve had three scindapsus pictus cuttings with nodes in water for a month. Still no roots but the leaves look great. Am I being too impatient? At what point do I give up hope?
Hi Christie! It seems a little slow. How warm is the location that you have them in? If you can put them in a warmer place (at least above 70 or 75F, it may help speed things along). Also, make sure you're providing good light. These things should help a bit.
Very detailed instructions. I'll give some of these a try
Good luck!
Great tips for.the pothos. Question. I have no leaves remaining. I'm at war with aphids right now. Can i take a cut from the vine?
Hi Tena! You can cut the badly infested parts off. That's always a good idea. I would also spray the plant down with an insecticidal soap just in case. Be sure to cover the whole plant including the undersides of the leaves. This should help! Try and keep a close eye on the plant. Pests are much easier to eradicate before they get out of control. Hope this helps!
not completely related to the post, but I got a neon pothos back in February, and the roots have barely spread at all - The main part of the roots is still the same size as when I bought it. The plant is growing though. Why is that?
Is it a cutting that you purchased?
I have a Cebu blue cutting in water that I realize has the “wrong end” in the water. It is taking much longer to root than the other one I have. Should I take it out and switch the direction of the vine to what I believe is the correct way? Or should I leave it as is. I can provide photos if this doesn’t make sense. Thank you!
Hi Frankie! I would definitely flip it!
I'm doing all the things, but the stems in water are turning smooshy, rotting? What do I do? Cut off the squish and hope it still roots at one of the nodes? I have 2-leaf cuttings with a node below the lowest leaf in water.
Hi Amanda! Can you send me some photos so I can see? Use the contact form on my website to email me, and when I reply, you can attach photos.
@Amanda Mirabella, what did you find out you were doing wrong? I’m having this same issue.
I purchased an unrooted pothos online a couple of months ago and it’s still not rooted. It’s in a sunny spot and water changed regularly. The leaf is still very healthy but having read your post, there doesn’t appear to be a node. Does that mean it will never root?
I'd have to see a photo to be sure. If you want to send me an email using the contact form on my website, I will reply, and then you can attach photos.
Propagating pothos
Mine turned black at the node
Just one cutting? Or all of them? You should always make several cuttings if you can. Not every single one of them will take.
This post was great.. I learned that my cuttings are too long and I am not changing the water enough. I need to find one of those pink plants!
Glad you enjoyed it Janine! Try again and you will have success!!