Can you help me identify this sprawling tropical?

9 years ago

I bought this at the "retired plant" sale at the Conservatory last December, when it had a spread of about 3' and was almost entirely the large, deeply dissected leaves. Unfortunately a week after I got it home my furnace went out during bitterly cold weather, and it was almost 2 weeks before I got it replaced. Despite getting a prime spot in one of two warmish rooms, I lost most of the leaves, though not the plant.

It managed to bounce back, but I've noticed that it seems to have 3 different types of leaves present at one time on the limbs. All forms are visible in the photo; a small, oval to lanceolate leaf, a larger serrated leaf, and then a very large leaf that is very deeply dissected. The shape of the leaf does not change as it ages; it doesn't emerge oval and develop the lobes later. But I'm not sure the type of leaf doesn't change as the *branch* gets older. That is, that it puts out the simple leaves first, then the more complicated ones.

This is probably a common plant -- I think it was used as a bedding plant to set off a more exotic one -- but I don't know much about tropicals, and I didn't see it at the conservatory the last time I was there.

Can anyone give me a name, and any pointers on care? It's been on a north/east sun porch all summer, and seems to be growing slowly but steadily. Cold weather's coming and I'd like to get it situated for the winter.

Thanks!

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Comments (5)

trini1trini
9 years ago
Its a philodendron, maybe P. Xanadu.
tropicbreezent
9 years ago
It's quite common amongst Philodendrons for the juvenile leaves to be very different to the adult. As the plant matures the new leaves become a new shape. Is your plant a vining one, ie. does the stem trail along above the soil surface?
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alison
Original Author
9 years ago
The new branches seem to arch up and then fall over, which certainly sounds like a vining type.

So does it look like a real philodendron? A friend suggested it was a split-leaf "philodendron" or Monstera deliciosa.
tropicbreezent
9 years ago
It definitely looks like a Philodendron, and definitely isn't a Monstera deliciosa. Doesn't look like Split-leaf Philodendron (P. bipinnatifidum), sprawling too much as a young plant. It does look like Philodendron lacerum, they develop those lobed leaves in more mature plants, and also grow right up into the tops of trees. When I was researching my plants some years ago I settled on P. lacerum as the ID, but there were still some others that looked reasonably similar. It can be difficult getting an exact ID on these plants. About the only way to be sure is to get some of the flowers to a taxonomist for examination.
alison
Original Author
9 years ago
For what it's worth, there are definitely aerial roots at the leaf junctures.

There are only two branches/vines of any length, and that's where the more complicated leaves. The rest of the leaves are in a tangled mass in the center of the pot, where all the other branches died back with last winter's cold.

Off to look up P. lacerum!