Poor life choices

I was so naive!

For a short while I truly believed that my Monstera deliciosa ‘variegata’ had learned somehow from its past mistake of producing an all white leaf as its third leaf. For a young plant it’s not the wisest thing to do. The plant struggled to survive winter, but oh my, this spring she developed a beautiful leaf that was half green. Perfect. She immediately started improving. Fresh photosynthesis does a lot. The plant grew more upright and as a whole feels bushier. Then it quite quickly grew another leaf!

Another all-white leaf…

I certainly hope there’s room for one more leaf with green in it this year. These stupid all-white leaves shrivel away into a brown and ugly crisp, with only the base holding some shape and life.

I don’t know what’s up with this plant, but the meristem certainly has little room for green in it, so it seems that whatever side the leaf is on determines what the leaf looks like. I’m gonna need to see some more growth in the years to come to better understand patterns – if there are any.

It is an absolutely marvellous plant though. I even have to admit I kinda like the all-white leaves, for as long as they last. I just think I’m gonna need a whole lot more green before the plant will actually sustain the white reliably… And that seems very unlikely