The PILF-opedia

“The one that wears its heart on its leaf.”

Heartleaf Philodendron

Philodendron hederaceum

Hearts that open bronze and darken to green, on stems that trail or climb. Copes with low light better than most vines.

Also called sweetheart plant

Forever

3.9/5

how easy it is to care for

3.7/5

how much it stands out visually

: Dim to bright

Gets by in a dim room; grows fuller by a window

Very low light won’t stop it, even for long stretches, but medium light is what it prefers: a few feet from a window, where direct rays can’t burn its glossy leaves.

Its home range runs from Mexico and the Caribbean through Central America to Brazil and Bolivia (NC State). Indoors, try the sill of a north window, or set it well back from an east, south or west one, out of reach of the rays.

If its leaves turn yellow, UF names two usual suspects: too little light, or too much water. When the soil hasn’t been soggy, more light is the first thing to try.

Cold worries it more than shade. UF finds anything under 50°F too cool, so in winter, keep its hearts from pressing against frosty glass.

: 2-3× a month

Keep it slightly moist, every 7-10 days; less in winter

About every 7-10 days in summer and 10-14 in winter, as a rough guide; NC State’s aim is soil that stays slightly moist. UF calls it about as fool-proof as houseplants get.

Radiator-dry winter air is something this vine tolerates, though NC State says it prefers medium humidity and appreciates a misting. If you enjoy the ritual, mist the glossy hearts now and then; if not, it carries on without it.

Gone for a while? Two weeks is fine if it’s watered the day you leave. Set it back from a sunny window and it lasts a little longer.

: Large

Quick vines of hearts, about 4 feet indoors

Missouri Botanical Garden puts it around 4 feet indoors, its hearts opening bronze along thin stems that spill from a shelf or climb a moss pole. It grows quickly; a trim now and then keeps its shape.

Wild plants climb to 13 feet (NC State), even 20 (Missouri Botanical Garden). Indoors, trailing vines can run past 4 feet, and how big it gets on a support comes down to training and pruning (UF).

Give it something to climb and it changes. Leaves on young trailing plants stay around 4 inches, but as stems climb a trunk or a pole, they can reach 12 inches or more (UF; Missouri Botanical Garden).

The little roots along its stems are its grip; NC State lists its climbing method as clinging. They also make it easy to multiply by layering: pin a vine to the soil, in its own pot or a neighbor’s, and let it root before you cut it free.

Left long, a vine set on top of a bookcase can drop most of the way to the floor in a curtain of hearts; UF suggests a wall bracket or high shelf for the same cascade.

: Mildly irritating

Chewing can sting the mouths of dogs, cats or kids

A bite frees needle-shaped calcium oxalate crystals that may leave a pet’s or child’s mouth sore and swollen, with drooling or vomiting. The ASPCA lists it as toxic to dogs and cats; NC State rates it low severity.

Some sources mention kidney or nerve effects, mostly in cats, but they aren’t the usual course.

Every part of the plant carries the crystals, from leaf to root (NC State), and the sap holds protein-dissolving enzymes as well (UF). NC State also notes the sap can cause a skin rash, so wash your hands after pruning or taking cuttings.

The soreness and drooling usually settle on their own at home. If they don’t, or anything worries you, call Poison Control at 1‑800‑222‑1222 for a child, or your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426‑4435 (a fee may apply) for a pet.

The dangling vines are the part within reach. If you’d like one anyway, hang it high and trim the vines so they stay above where pets and small children can reach. A wall bracket or top shelf still gives you the full cascade.

ASPCA: mild for dogs.
Merck Veterinary Manual: toxic for dogs (rates the whole genus).
Pet Poison Helpline: mild for dogs.
ASPCA: mild for cats.
Merck Veterinary Manual: toxic for cats (rates the whole genus).
Pet Poison Helpline: mild for cats.
Poison Control: mild for kids.

Cats and dogs: Most of the leading sources agree.

Kids: Poison Control lists it; the effect is mouth pain from oxalate crystals.

: Dry OK

65-85°F; dry air is fine

Happiest at 65-85°F, and it shouldn’t sit below 50°F. It likes 40-60% humidity and gets by at 20%.

Temperature: 65-85°F
Humidity: 40-60%

: Pest-resistant

Rarely bothered; check leaf joints and new tips

Rarely bothered. Mealybugs tuck into leaf axils, stem nodes and stipule sheaths, scale clings to stems and leaf veins below, and aphids favor new tips. Mites and thrips hide under leaves, so flip a few.

Mealybugs
Scale
Aphids
Spider mites
Banded greenhouse thrips

Few. Aphids, mealybugs, scale and spider mites turn up now and then, and root rot if the soil stays wet.

Mealybugs look like tufts of white cotton where the leaves meet the vine; scale looks like small brown bumps stuck to the stems. Wipe them off with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol (a fingernail lifts scale), then check again next week.

Aphids are soft green or black specks clustered on new growth; spider mites leave fine webbing and pale speckles, mostly in warm, dry air. Rinse the plant in the shower, undersides of the leaves included; if they come back, an insecticidal soap spray is the next step.

Its diseases are leaf spot and root rot. Rot starts in soggy soil: leaves yellow and drop and vines wilt while the pot is still wet, so let it dry out and water less often. For leaf spot, cut off the spotted leaves and keep water off the rest.

: Little

Feed 3× and prune 2× in spring-summer; repot when crowded

Feed with dilute fertilizer 3 times in spring and summer, and cut leggy vines back near the pot 2 times to force branching. Pick off dried stipules and yellow leaves 2 times a year; repot when crowded.

Feed3× a year
Prune2× a year
Clean leaves2× a year
Repot1× a year

A light potting mix that drains fast, in a pot with a drainage hole, so the roots never sit wet.

Repot when the roots crowd the pot, one pot size up, at any time of year.

Food is optional: a houseplant fertilizer at half strength every few months keeps it looking its best. Too much browns and curls the leaf tips.

: Simple

Plain green hearts with some sheen, trailing and full

Each heart opens bronze, then darkens to one plain green. The leaves have a gentle sheen, and the trailing or climbing stems carry so many that the soil disappears from view.

Heartleaf Philodendron, the leaf up close

Fun fact

Philodendron or pothos? Check the leaf stalk: a philodendron’s isn’t grooved, and new growth carries conspicuous leaf-base flaps that fall away as it ages.

Designer tips

Soft and graceful, the vine for spilling down a bookcase, framing a mirror or trailing over a doorway.

The lineFrames a mirror or a doorway, one hook at a timeFour to eight feet of soft vine is enough to run along the top of a door frame or around a mirror. Small clear hooks hold it, and the deep green softens the hard edge it follows.

The spotTakes the office shelf no window reachesIt’s one of the few vines that keeps growing under office lights, so it can cover the top of a file cabinet or a high shelf where nothing else lasts. Trim the longest vines now and then to keep it full.

The textureSoftens an exposed brick wall in a loftThin vines and soft hearts read as the opposite of rough brick and raw steel, so a little goes a long way. Let it trail down from a shelf bracket so the vines lie against the brick.

Troubleshooting

The lower leaves are turning yellow

Too much water or too little light, most often; Clemson names both. If the pot has stayed damp, give it longer between drinks and empty the saucer; if it’s been dry and the plant sits far from a window, a spot closer in usually helps.

Why are the leaves small and far apart?

It wants more light. Nearer a window, still out of the sun’s reach, and with the long vines pinched back, new growth usually comes in fuller; the snipped pieces root in water.

It’s drooping

Most often thirst, if it’s been a while: a good soak usually lifts it again. If the pot has stayed wet, the roots may be rotting instead, so let it dry out and water less often.

See all 8

The leaf tips are brown and curled

Too much fertilizer, most often; UF/IFAS and Clemson both name it. A good watering rinses the extra through the pot, and feeding less, a dilute dose a few times in spring and summer, usually keeps it from coming back.

My cat chewed a leaf

Expect drooling and a sore, swollen mouth, maybe some vomiting: calcium oxalate crystals make it mildly irritating, and NC State rates it low severity. If it keeps vomiting, or has trouble swallowing or breathing, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435.

Can it live in a room with no window?

Better than most plants: Clemson says it tolerates very low light, and UF/IFAS rates its low-light tolerance very high. Under overhead lights alone it grows slowly, with smaller leaves.

Is it a pothos?

No, though they’re easy to mix up. Its leaves are thinner and softer, its leaf stalks are smooth where a pothos’s are grooved, and each new leaf comes out of a thin sheath; it also takes a darker room than a pothos.

Can it go outside for the summer?

Yes, in the shade: UConn suggests hanging it under a covered porch, where rain can’t overwater it. Bring it in before fall nights drop below 50°F, and check it for bugs first.

Propagation

Easy: a piece of vine becomes a new plant.

Cut just below a node (where a leaf meets the vine), with a leaf or two attached, and stand it in water or push it into damp potting mix.
Growers see roots in 4-6 weeks.
Plant several rooted pieces in one pot for a full plant sooner.