Here are the best proven tips and hands-on tricks to make your Monstera plant bushier and grow lusher leaves!
Every plant parent dreams of having a Monstera that looks like it just leapt out of a tropical rainforest. Those big, fenestrated leaves, the wild jungle vibe, are every gardener’s goals! Read on and use these hacks to achieve that result.
Top Tricks to Make a Monstera Bushier
1. Use Epsom Salt
Make a Monstera Bushier
This is a hero ingredient for all your plants in the garden or indoors. Let’s tell you why! It is a natural source of nutrition that provides plants with nutrients like magnesium and sulfur to promote healthy growth, green foliage, and fruits.
The Trick: Simply mix one tablespoon of Epsom salt into 1 gallon (4 liters) of water and spray it once a month on the foliage. This foliar application will make the leaves big and healthy.
You can also mix a pinch of Epsom salt with all-purpose liquid fertilizer before feeding the plant. Easy, right?
2. Guide Aerial Roots Back into The Soil
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Monstera are famous for those quirky aerial roots that dangle everywhere like wild hair. They may look messy to you, but they are actually nutrient powerhouses.
In the wild, these roots anchor into tree trunks and soil pockets to help the plant climb and feed itself.
The Trick: You can train the aerial roots to go back into the potting soil or stick themselves to the moss pole. They will start absorbing more nutrients and water, which in turn will benefit your plant to grow healthier and bushier.
You can also put those aerial roots in water for better growth, as shared in our post!
It is a practical and natural hack that helps by mimicking the growth in rainforests. At first, you may need to tie stems to the pole with soft plant ties gently, but in time, the roots take hold naturally.
3. Air-Layering for Extra Growth Points
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Here is an out-of-the-box trick that no one talks about! Instead of only cutting and propagating separately, you can air-layer a few sections of the stem while they are still attached to the plant.
The Trick: All you have to do is bend a healthy branch in the soil using a hook. Do it at the point where the branch touches the growing medium, making sure that it is devoid of any leaves but has a node. After placing it in the soil, cover it with a mix of soil and peat moss to speed up the process.
Note: Don’t forget to keep the plant and the cutting well watered. It will start to root in 7-14 days and form an individual plant in the same pot after a few weeks!
4. Cut and Replant in the Same Pot
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If you’re looking for the easiest trick, even for new gardeners, this is it! The new top section of a plant is the part that has most of the energy stored in it, which is why they are great for new propagations. And in situations where you cannot bend the stem for air-layering, use this trick!
The Trick: Instead of throwing the cuttings into different containers, root them and plant them right back in the same container with the mother plant. This instantly creates the look of several stems rising from a single base.
It will make the plant appear bigger and more mature without waiting months for fresh growth to fill in. Over time, the roots of the new cuttings will merge with the existing soil system, creating a healthier, bushier plant.
5. Horizontal Training (The Creeper Hack)
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Monstera naturally climb upwards, but if you allow one of the vines to grow horizontally across the pot, something interesting happens. The nodes sitting against the soil begin to sprout upward shoots.
It happens because the plant interprets the change in position as a chance to expand, and it takes advantage by activating more dormant nodes.
The Trick: Don’t always train your Monstera vertically. Gently guide one or two stems sideways across the top of the soil, securing them with small U-pins or soft ties.
As the stem lies horizontally, dormant nodes that are facing upward will begin sprouting. Fill the pot with fresh growth points. Later, you can train these verticals again for height.
6. Partial Root Pruning for a Growth Burst
Trimming the roots of a Monstera can actually encourage the plant to grow even more vigorously. When roots are slightly pruned, the plant responds by sending out fresh feeder roots. These roots are more efficient at taking up water and nutrients, which fuels faster leaf production.
The Trick: The best time to do this is when you’re repotting in spring or summer. Simply take the plant out of its pot, shake off the soil, and cut back only the longest or circling roots. No more than 10–15% of the total root mass.
Once placed back into fresh soil, the plant will quickly start producing new roots. And within weeks, you’ll notice stronger foliage and fresh growth shoots. Here’s a detailed guide on it!
7. Use a “Nutrient Wick” in the Soil
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In their natural habitat, Monsteras often spread their roots into damp pockets of organic matter where nutrients are released slowly over time. You can mimic this effect at home using a simple cotton or jute wick.
The Trick: You have to place one end of the wick into a small jar filled with very diluted organic fertilizer or even just plain water. Then, bury the other end a few inches into the potting soil and let the capillary action do its job.
The rope will steadily deliver moisture and nutrients right to the root zone, keeping conditions consistent without the risk of overwatering. This slow, even supply will create an ideal environment for the plant for bushy growth.
8. Strategic Node Burying
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A Monstera doesn’t always need to be cut to produce more plants — sometimes, simply burying a node is enough. Each node on the vine has the potential to develop roots and shoots if it comes into contact with soil or moss.
The Trick: You can pin a section of stem down and cover a bare node lightly with soil, which encourages it to establish its own root system. As it anchors in, you will see a new stem pushing upward. This is what makes the plant appear much fuller without having to add cuttings from elsewhere.
Over time, several buried nodes can create multiple new growth points in the same pot, turning what looks like a single vine into a lush, multi-stemmed plant.
9. Rotate the Pot Often
Monstera Indoor
One of the easiest ways to keep the Monstera healthy is by rotating the pot. When kept in a single position for far too long, its leaves will start leaning towards the light, making the plant appear lopsided and sparse.
The Fix: For this, an effortless way is to rotate the pot every 2-3 weeks to expose all sides of the plant to sunlight. This encourages even growth, prevents leaning, and ensures your Monstera develops into a balanced, bushy beauty. Do keep these rotation tips in mind!
10. Don’t Neglect Pruning
Prune Monstera
Pruning may sound intimidating, but for Monstera, it’s one of the fastest ways to encourage fullness. Plus, when you do it at the correct times, you start to see faster and better results.
The Fix: Start by removing yellow or damaged leaves, since they drain energy from the plant. Once that’s done, you can cut back longer, leggy stems just above a node if you want to propagate them, which also encourages branching at the cut point.
The best times for pruning are in spring and summer, when the plant is actively growing and can recover quickly. Light touch-ups can also be done in early fall, but avoid heavy pruning in winter when growth slows down.
Note: As Monstera is a slow grower, never overprune it; don’t remove more than a third of the plant at once. Otherwise, you risk stressing it instead of helping it fill out.
11. Support With a Moss Pole or Trellis
Moss Pole For Monstera
Monstera are natural climbers. In the wild, their aerial roots grip onto tree trunks and help the plant grow upward. This produces stronger stems and larger leaves as they climb higher toward the light.
Indoors, they don’t have such support and often sprawl and spread across the floor if support is not provided.
The Fix: Go for a moss pole, coir pole, or trellis that gives the plant something to latch onto. To make it easier for your Monstera to attach, you can lightly mist the pole so that it stays damp. Plus, the aerial roots love the extra moisture and will anchor themselves more quickly.
Bonus: The Neem Oil Trick
neem oil
Neem oil is widely known as a natural pest deterrent, but it does more than just keep bugs away. For Monstera, it also helps protect the leaves from fungal issues and keeps them looking glossy and healthy. And healthy leaves mean better and bushier growth.
The Trick: Mix a few drops of neem oil with water and a drop of dish soap, then wipe the leaves with a soft cloth in the evening. This helps keep pests away, reduces fungal issues, and gives the leaves a glossy finish.
Avoid doing this during the day when the sun is strong, as it can cause burns.
There’s no single magic solution for a bushy Monstera—it’s the little, consistent habits that matter most. Stick with the mentioned tricks, and your Monstera will become the centerpiece of your home.
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