Houseplant · Araceae
Arrowhead Plant
Syngonium podophyllum
It's easygoing and quick to fill out, and the arrowhead plant will climb or trail wherever you point it, as long as it gets bright indirect light.
Bright indirect
64–81°F · 18–27°C
USDA 10–12
3–6 ft · 0.9–1.8 m
Overview
Ever wondered where the arrowhead plant gets its name? It's the young leaves, which come up shaped like little arrowheads on a low, bushy plant. It's native from Mexico all the way through tropical America, it's part of the arum family, and it's about as forgiving as houseplants get. You'll find it in green, variegated, and pink-veined types, so there's plenty to pick from.
Here's the fun part: it doesn't stay that tidy little plant forever. As it ages, the compact juvenile turns into a climbing vine, with longer stems and leaves that split into several leaflets. The shape is totally up to you. Train it up a moss pole, let it spill out of a hanging basket, or just keep pinching it back for a tight, leafy mound.
And it really doesn't ask for much. Bright indirect light, soil that's kept lightly moist, and warm air keep it happy, and it'll shrug off a missed watering now and then. The one thing you can't ignore is the sap, since it's got calcium oxalate crystals that irritate mouths and skin, so put it somewhere pets and little kids can't chew on the leaves.
Care
The short version: give it bright indirect light, keep the soil lightly moist but not soggy, and keep the air warm and humid. Back off the water in winter, and hand it a pole or basket once it starts to vine.
Light
Go for bright, indirect light if you want the best color and the fullest growth. It'll deal with medium light and even low light just fine, but direct sun scorches the leaves, so keep it back from a hot window.
Water
Keep the soil lightly moist but not soggy while it's growing, and water once the top starts to dry out. Ease off from fall through late winter, though, because the plant slows down then and wet soil turns to root rot pretty fast.
Soil
Pot it up in a light, well-draining potting mix with a soil base. Drainage is really the thing that matters here, since water sitting at the roots is the quickest way to lose this plant.
Temperature
It's happy with normal room warmth, somewhere around 64°F to 81°F (18°C to 27°C). Just keep it clear of cold drafts and chilly windowsills in winter, because it can't handle frost at all.
Humidity
It's a tropical plant, so it loves high humidity, ideally 60% or more. It gets by in average household air, but the leaves look their best with a humidifier nearby or a spot in a steamy bathroom or kitchen.
Feeding
Feed it during active growth in the warmer months with a balanced foliage-plant fertilizer. A few feedings across the growing season are plenty, and you can quit once growth slows down in fall.
Pruning
Don't worry about cutting it back hard, because it takes it without a fuss. Pinch and prune to shape it however you like, whether that's a compact mound, a trailing basket, or a vine running up a moss pole or trellis.
Repotting
No need to rush it. Repot only when the plant outgrows its pot and the roots get crowded, since there's no fixed schedule, and you just move it up a size whenever it starts looking cramped.
Size & spacing
Indoors it gets to about 3 to 6 feet (91 to 183 cm) as a climbing or trailing vine, and it spreads around 1 to 2 feet (30 to 61 cm). Give it room to vine or something to climb, and let some air move around the leaves.
Troubleshooting
Arrowhead plants are pretty tough, and honestly most of what goes wrong comes down to light or water. Keep an eye on the leaves and stems for early signs, match what you're seeing below, and sort out the cause before it spreads.
Stems and roots gone soft, mushy, and rotting
Soggy soil opens the door to soft rot, a bacterial decay that turns stems and roots to mush. Cut away the rotted bits, then fix what caused it: switch to a light, well-draining mix and let the pot drain freely. Go easy on the water through fall and winter, since the plant drinks way less then.
Fix:
- Remove affected tissue
- Improve drainage and avoid waterlogged soil
- Reduce watering, especially from fall through late winter
Faded or crispy patches showing up on leaves
That's usually too much direct sun, which scorches arrowhead leaves and leaves washed-out or crisp patches wherever the light's hitting hardest. Move it somewhere with bright indirect light or dappled shade, and the new growth comes in clean.
Fix:
- Move plant out of direct sun to a bright indirect or part-shade location
Black or brown spots showing up on leaves
Distinct dark lesions usually mean bacterial leaf spot, which travels on wet foliage. Pick off the spotted leaves and keep water off the leaves from there on out. Good air movement around the plant does most of the work of stopping it.
Fix:
- Remove affected leaves
- Avoid wetting foliage and improve air circulation
Webbing, fuzzy specks, or gummy warped new leaves
A handful of common pests like to go after arrowhead plants, and each one leaves its own little clue. Spider mites stipple the leaves and spin fine webbing, mealybugs show up as white cottony tufts, aphids cluster on soft new growth, and scale sits on the stems as hard little bumps. The second you spot any of them, isolate the plant, wash the pests off, and follow up with an insecticidal treatment.
Fix:
- Inspect and isolate the plant
- Wash off pests and treat with an appropriate insecticidal control
Stems gone long and bare, leaves thinning
Good news, nothing's wrong here, it's just the arrowhead plant growing up. It starts off bushy and compact, then settles into its natural vining habit as it matures, so the stems stretch out and trail. Hand it a moss pole or trellis to climb, let it cascade from a hanging basket, or pinch the stems back to keep it full and tidy, whatever you're going for.
Fix:
- Provide a moss pole or trellis for the plant to climb
- Grow in a hanging basket to let stems cascade
- Prune or pinch stems to keep the plant compact and bushy
Toxicity
This one's best kept out of reach. Every part of it has insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, and a single bite stings the mouth right away. The sap can bug your skin too, so handle cuttings carefully and set it somewhere pets and kids can't get to it.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Moderate
If a cat bites a leaf, it feels the sting almost right away. You'll see heavy drooling, pawing at the mouth, and a sore, swollen tongue and lips, often with vomiting and trouble swallowing soon after.
Dogs Moderate
Dogs react the same way cats do. The mouth burns on contact, so keep an eye out for drooling, swelling around the lips and tongue, vomiting, and a reluctance to swallow.
Horses Moderate
The crystals irritate a horse's mouth and throat, which brings on drooling, swelling, and trouble swallowing. Horses can't vomit, so the trouble stays in the mouth and gut.
Rabbits Toxic
Keep the arrowhead plant well away from any rabbit. The same calcium oxalate crystals that hurt cats and dogs irritate a rabbit's sensitive mouth and gut, and it's just not a safe green to offer.
Livestock Toxic
Grazing animals that chew the foliage end up with a painful mouthful of oxalate crystals, and drooling and oral swelling are the usual result. Fence the plant off from any livestock that might browse it.
Birds Toxic
The sap's no safer for birds, either. A pet bird that nibbles the leaves can get the same mouth irritation and swelling, so keep cages and perches clear of the plant.
People Caution
No part of this plant is meant to be eaten. Bite a leaf and you'll get a sharp burning in the mouth, and the sap can leave skin irritated, so wash your hands after taking cuttings and keep it away from small kids.
All parts contain insoluble calcium oxalate crystals; sap can irritate. UF/IFAS notes the toxic sap makes mechanical handling (e.g., string trimming) inadvisable outdoors
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
Growers have picked the arrowhead plant for its leaf color and pattern over the years, anywhere from near-white to bright green to deep pink veins. Here are a few of the named cultivars you'll run into.
'White Butterfly'
Its greenish-white leaves are washed with creamy white-yellow veins and edged in dark green, which makes it the palest one of the bunch.
'Pink Allusion'
It was bred in Florida, and it's got deep pink veins running down the centers of light olive-green leaves, with that pink holding its color as the leaves age.
'Robusta'
It's a named cultivar grown in the commercial Syngonium trade under UF/IFAS production guidelines.
'Neon'
It's another commercial selection listed in the UF/IFAS production guidelines for interiorscape Syngonium.
'Lemon Lime'
It's a production cultivar from those same UF/IFAS guidelines, named for its bright green coloring.
How to propagate
Want more of these? You're in luck, because few houseplants are this easy to copy. A cutting taken in the warm months pretty much roots on its own, and if you've got the patience, you can air-layer a longer stem for a fuller new plant.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Spring to summer · Roots in a few weeks
This is the easy way, and the plant pretty much handles it for you. Take a tip or nodal cutting in spring or summer as long as it's got a node, and any aerial roots already on the stem give it a head start. Stand it in water or moist potting mix and it'll root within a few weeks.
Air layeringModerate
Spring to summer · Several weeks
Air layering takes a bit more patience, but it works great, and it's the method commercial growers use to bulk up Syngonium. Wound a stem and wrap it in spring or summer, then wait several weeks for roots to form before you cut the new plant free.
Myths
An arrowhead plant is basically a philodendron with a fancier name.
They do share the arum family, so it's an easy mix-up, but the arrowhead plant is Syngonium podophyllum, a separate genus from Philodendron. Want the giveaway? It's the foliage: young leaves wear the arrowhead shape behind the name, then mature into compound leaves split into 3 to 11 leaflets, which is something philodendrons just don't do.
Sources
- Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control
- Atlas of Florida Plants, Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida
- UF/IFAS Plant Directory
- UF/IFAS EDIS (EP244, Cultural Guidelines for Commercial Production of Interiorscape Syngonium)