Houseplant · Araceae
Split-leaf Philodendron
Philodendron bipinnatifidum
Give it warmth, steady moisture, and bright indirect light, and this big-leaved philodendron turns a corner into a small jungle.
Bright indirect
65–85°F · 18–29°C
USDA 9–11
4–15 ft · 1.2–4.6 m
Overview
The split-leaf philodendron earns its name with huge, deeply cut leaves that fan out from a single stout stem. It belongs to the arum family and grows wild in South America, where it makes a broad, semi-woody shrub rather than a climbing vine. Indoors it stays smaller and more manageable, but it still wants room to stretch.
This is an easy plant to keep happy. It asks for warmth, bright indirect light, and soil that stays evenly moist, and it forgives the odd lapse better than fussier houseplants. Over years the lower leaves drop and the trunk thickens, so an old plant takes on the look of a small tree.
One thing to know before you bring it home: every part holds calcium oxalate crystals that sting the mouth and irritate skin. That makes it a poor match for a home with pets or small children who chew on leaves, and a reason to wear gloves when you cut it back.
Care
The short version: bright indirect light, warmth above 65°F (18°C), and soil kept evenly moist but never soggy, with monthly feeding and high humidity through the growing season.
Light
Give it bright indirect light for the best growth. It puts up with everything from partial sun to deeper shade, but harsh midday sun scorches the leaves, while a dim corner leaves it thin and slow.
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist but never soggy, and never let the pot sit in standing water. This plant doesn't handle drought or a buildup of salts well, so water steadily and ease off through winter when growth slows.
Soil
Plant it in a rich, moisture-retentive mix that still drains freely and runs high in organic matter. A general potting soil works for indoor pots, and it isn't fussy about texture, taking clay, sand, or loam from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline.
Temperature
It grows best between 65°F and 85°F (18°C to 29°C) and wants steady warmth year-round. Keep it above about 70°F (21°C) in summer and above 60°F (16°C) in winter, and bring container plants indoors well before any frost.
Humidity
High humidity suits it best, which is no surprise for a plant from the tropics. It tolerates ordinary household air, but the leaves look their best when you raise the moisture around them, especially through a dry winter indoors.
Feeding
Feed once a month through spring and summer while the plant is actively growing. Use a dilute water-soluble houseplant fertilizer or a slow-release product, and don't push it, since salt buildup browns the leaf tips.
Pruning
Pruning is minimal. Cut away yellowed, damaged, or spent lower leaves at the base, and that's about all it needs. Wear gloves and keep the sap off your skin, since it can cause a rash.
Repotting
Repot only when it outgrows its container or the roots start circling the surface and pushing out the drainage holes. Large old specimens get repotted rarely. Move up into a general-purpose potting soil when you do.
Overwintering
In cold climates this plant comes indoors before frost. It's hardy outdoors only in roughly zones 9 to 11, so grow it in a container you can move, keeping it above 70°F (21°C) in summer and above 60°F (16°C) in winter.
Size & spacing
Indoors it stays modest, but it can reach 4 to 15 feet (1.2 to 4.5 m) tall and spread 6 to 15 feet (1.8 to 4.5 m) wide as a landscape plant in frost-free climates. Give it a wide, open spot, since a mature plant throws its big leaves a long way from the trunk.
Troubleshooting
Most trouble with this plant starts at the roots or shows up first on the leaves. Read the early signs and you can usually fix the cause before it spreads. Match what you see below, then act while it still does some good.
Soft black roots and a plant that wilts or collapses
Soggy soil that never drains is the fast track to root rot, and it can fell a big plant. Slide the plant out and check the roots: healthy ones are firm and pale, while rotted ones turn brown, soft, and foul. Trim away the dead roots, repot into fresh well-draining mix, and water less from then on.
Fix:
- Reduce watering
- Repot into fresh well-draining mix and trim away rotted roots
- Ensure the container drains freely
Lower leaves fading to yellow
Yellow lower leaves almost always trace back to overwatering or a spot that's too dim. Let the soil surface dry a little between waterings, make sure the pot drains freely, and move the plant somewhere with brighter indirect light. Pull off the worst leaves once they've gone fully yellow.
Fix:
- Let excess water drain and allow the soil surface to dry slightly before rewatering
- Move to a brighter spot with medium to bright indirect light
- Remove badly yellowed leaves
Sticky leaves, fine webbing, or tiny insects on the foliage
Dry indoor air invites aphids, mealybugs, scale, thrips, and spider mites, and you'll spot them as sticky honeydew, stippled leaves, or fine webbing. Wipe off a light outbreak by hand, then treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil. Move the plant away from your others until it's clean.
Fix:
- Wash or wipe off light infestations
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil
- Isolate affected plants until controlled
Leaf tips curling and browning
Brown, curling tips usually mean fertilizer salts have built up in the soil. Stop feeding, then flush the pot with plenty of plain water to wash the salts out the bottom. When you start feeding again, dilute it well.
Fix:
- Stop fertilizing
- Leach the soil by flushing thoroughly with water
- Resume feeding only at a dilute rate
Bleached or scorched patches on sun-facing leaves
Pale, scorched patches on the most exposed leaves point to too much harsh direct sun. Shift the plant into dappled light, part shade, or bright indirect light instead. If you do want to move it somewhere sunnier, step it up slowly so the leaves can adjust.
Fix:
- Move to dappled sun, part shade, or bright indirect light
- Acclimate gradually before increasing sun exposure
Dark spots scattered across the leaves
Leaf spot, whether fungal or bacterial, takes hold on foliage that stays wet in still, stagnant air. Water at the soil line so the leaves stay dry, open up the space around the plant for better airflow, and pick off the spotted leaves.
Fix:
- Improve air circulation
- Keep foliage dry when watering
- Remove affected leaves
Toxicity
This is a plant to keep away from anything that might chew it. Every part holds insoluble calcium oxalate crystals that cause an immediate burning of the mouth, heavy drooling, and swelling. No part is safe to eat, and even the sap can irritate skin, so wear gloves when you prune and keep it out of reach of pets and children.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Toxic
A cat that bites the leaves gets an immediate burning in the mouth from the calcium oxalate crystals. Watch for heavy drooling, pawing at the face, vomiting, and trouble swallowing. The mouth and throat can swell, and in rare cases that swelling makes breathing hard.
Dogs Toxic
Chewing any part of the plant leaves a dog drooling, gagging, and pawing at a sore mouth. Vomiting and a sudden loss of appetite often follow. Signs are usually mild and ease within a day, but rare airway swelling is worth a vet call.
Horses Toxic
Horses get the same painful sting in the mouth and lips from the crystals, which brings on drooling and a refusal to eat. The swollen, irritated tissue makes a horse reluctant to take feed until it settles.
Rabbits Toxic
The crystals burn a rabbit's mouth just as they do any other animal, so keep the plant well out of reach. Expect drooling and a rabbit that stops eating, which is a real worry in a small grazer.
Livestock Toxic
Cattle, goats, and sheep that nibble the foliage suffer the same oral burning, drooling, and mouth swelling. Most leave the bitter plant alone after the first taste, but don't let it grow where they graze.
Birds Toxic
Pet birds that chew the leaves get the same irritation in the mouth and throat, with drooling and obvious discomfort. Keep the plant clear of any bird allowed to roam and forage.
People Caution
No part of this plant is meant to be eaten, and biting a leaf brings a sharp burning of the mouth, lips, and tongue with swelling and drooling. Even handling it can irritate the skin, so wear gloves when you prune and keep it away from small children.
Wear gloves when pruning; the sap can cause skin irritation/contact dermatitis. Keep out of reach of pets and children
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
There aren't many named forms of this plant, but one compact cultivar shows up often enough to know.
'Lundii'
A more compact form of selloum that stays smaller and tidier than the species, which suits it to tighter spaces.
How to propagate
Making more of this philodendron is easy if you take the simple route and split off the offsets, and only worth the effort by seed if you have no other choice.
DivisionEasy
Spring to summer during active growth · Several weeks to a few months
The easiest way to make more plants is to split off the offshoots that form around the base of a parent. Do it in spring or summer while the plant is growing, and pot each piece on its own. Give the divisions several weeks to a few months to settle in and root.
Stem cuttingsModerate
Any season, best under warm growing conditions · A few weeks to root
You can also root a stem cutting or air-layer a stem, which works any time of year but takes best in warm conditions. A cutting needs a few weeks to put out roots. The tree and selloum types take to cuttings less readily than the climbing philodendrons, so this route is less reliable here.
SeedDemanding
When fresh seed is available · Slow and variable
Growing from seed is possible but rarely worth the bother at home. The seed loses viability fast unless it has been properly processed and vacuum-packed, and the seedlings are slow and uneven to come along. Reach for it only when fresh seed turns up and the easier methods are off the table.
Myths
Split-leaf philodendron and Monstera deliciosa are the same plant.
They sit in different genera, even though both belong to the arum family. People often pin the name split-leaf philodendron on Monstera deliciosa, but the two look different up close. Monstera develops holes in its mature leaves, while this philodendron has deeply cut leaves with no holes and builds a stout, trunk-like stem.
The plant has been settled into the genus Thaumatophyllum once and for all.
A 2018 study split off a group of philodendrons into the genus Thaumatophyllum, so some databases now file it as Thaumatophyllum bipinnatifidum. Kew's Plants of the World Online still treats that as a synonym and keeps Philodendron bipinnatifidum as the accepted name, so the naming is not as settled as it sounds.
Sources
- Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew
- Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
- University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS FPS473)
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control
- Pet Poison Helpline
- Clemson Cooperative Extension HGIC
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder