Philodendron verrucosum has some of the most beautiful foliage, with its velvety iridescent green leaves, brightly colored veins, red underside and hairy petioles. Thrives in bright indirect light & needs high humidity, frequent watering in a fast draining soil. Feed monthly with a liquid fertilizer. Our Philodendron have been grown from cuttings under shaded, greenhouse conditions.
Note to customers juvenile foliage exhibits distinct structural adaptations known as extrafloral nectaries (EFNs), which present as minute, yellowish or translucent spots distributed along the petioles, stems and leaf surfaces. Unlike floral nectaries, these specialized glandular structures serve a purely vegetative, mutualistic function. EFNs produce carbohydrate rich nectar secretions to recruit beneficial predatory insects, such as ants to defend the foliage against herbivores. These markings are anatomical features, not symptoms of fungal pathogens or pest damage. The evaporated nectar often forms tiny, sticky, amber colored sap droplets, and indicates a highly active, healthy plant metabolism. High humidity directly influences the rate of nectar secretion and evaporation from the EFNs. In their native tropical rainforest habitats, these ambient conditions optimize the plants mutualistic defense mechanism. These are Florida grown plants, it’s very humid in our greenhouse and these plants are extremely happy! These are starter plants and said spots are present on all of their parts as they would be most at risk of herbivory. As plant climbs and distances itself from the reach of most herbivores, the mature foliage usually does not exhibit the same spotting.
~Philodendron are considerably hardy & tolerant of a wide range of growing conditions, but for the best growth it is recommended to provide higher levels of humidity.
~If trying to get Philodendron to mature, give them a moss pole or wood board to climb! Make sure to keep the pole or board saturated though so aerial roots can attach & actually climb!