When I first got my Monstera manny years ago now I thought it would just naturally grow into a full, gorgeous plant. Instead, what I got was a leggy mess.
The problem is that monsteras don’t naturally grow bushy. In the wild they climb and so are programmed to grow UP, not OUT. So if you want a very full and bushy one? Well then you’ve got to trick it a bit.
So follow these tips that will work in a regular apartment with just normal lighting and still get your monstera bushy and full.
1. Prune to Encourage Multiple Growth Points
This is probably the most important one but it took me forever to work up the courage to actually do it. Cutting a perfectly healthy Monstera felt wrong. Like I was hurting it.
But pruning is the single most effective way to force your Monstera to branch out.
When you cut the main stem just above a node the plant reacts by turning on dormant growth points lower down the stem. I pruned mine in the early spring and within six weeks it had two new growth spots emerging from nodes I didn’t even know were working.
You must make your cut about a quarter of an inch above a node at a slight angle. Don’t be too afraid about it either. A clean cut heals faster than one that’s jagged because you were nervous when cutting.
2. Plant Multiple Cuttings in One Pot
This feels a little like cheating but it’s actually brilliant. Instead of trying to make one plant bushier you start with multiple plants in the same pot.
I propagated three cuttings from my original Monstera and once they rooted I then planted all three in one big pot. It looked full almost straightaway.
As each cutting grew they made this layered effect that a single plant would have taken years to do. Monsteras usually only grow 1 to 2 new leaves every season when they’re young so merging multiple plants is probably the quickest way to get a bushy plant.
Space them out about 4 to 6 inches apart in the pot – close enough to look full but far enough that they’re not tighting over resources. And yes, they will eventually fight a bit, but by then you’ll have the fullness you wanted anyway.
3. Improve the Light
I had my Monstera in a north facing window for the first year. It grew but it was stretching toward the light and that made it look sparse. When I moved it to an east facing window where it got bright, indirect light in the morning it made a huge difference.
Monsteras that don’t get enough light will ‘etiolate’ which is a fancy way of saying they’ll get leggy and stretch out. They try to get more light which makes the stems longer with fewer leaves. But give them bright, indirect light and that space between the leaves tightens up.
What worked for me: morning sun (before 10am) is fine for Monsteras. That east facing window I mentioned gave mine about 2 to 3 hours of direct sun, then bright indirect light for the rest of the day. The leaves came in closer together and it just looked healthier overall.
If you don’t have the right windows then a grow light can work too. I used one during the winter when the days got short and it definitely helped maintain that the tighter pattern and growth.
4. Stake It Down Instead of Up
This may sound wrong but give it a chance. Everything you read about Monsteras talks about moss poles and letting them climb.
And that’s great if you want a tall plant. But if you want bushy? Well try training the stems horizontally instead.
I used garden velcro (the soft kind) to secure the vines along the edge of the pot or even draping over the sides of it. When the stems are horizontal the nodes along that stem get more light and the plant often turns on more of those points. You’re sort of tricking the plant into thinking it’s growing across the floor instead of climbing a tree.
This does takes patience though and you’ll need to adjust the ties as the plant grows. But I’ve got at least three new growth points from stems I trained this way.
5. Feed Consistently During the Growing Season
I was terrible about fertilizing at first. I’d remember every few months, chuck in some plant food and then forget about it again. But when I started feeding my Monstera consistently (so every 2 to 3 weeks during the spring and summer), the difference was impossible to ignore.
A well fed Monstera has more energy and so can make more growth points and bigger leaves. I use a balanced liquid fertilizer diluted to half strength – something like a 20-20-20 NPK ratio.
The nitrogen helps with the leaves growing, phosphorus with the roots and potassium keeps the plant healthy overall.
Monsteras like regular, diluted fertilizer rather than infrequent but heavy. Basically it’s better to feed it a little and often than to hit them with fertilizer once in a while.
I set an alarm to off on my phone for every other Saturday during the growing season. It works!
6. Keep the Humidity Levels High
Monsteras are tropical plants and they will almost always do better with the humidity above 60%. But I don’t live in a greenhouse – my apartment hovers around 40 to 45% humidity most of the year. However there are a few changes I made that helped.
I got a small humidifier that I run near my Monstera (and other plants) during the dry winter months. I also grouped my Monstera with other plants as together they made the humidity a little bit higher.
I’m pretty sure it made a difference in how healthy the plant looked overall, which then made the growth better too.
Higher humidity means the plant doesn’t have to work as hard to holding on to moisture so it can put more energy into new growth. I’m not saying you need to turn your home into a rainforest but if you can increase the humidity by as little as 10-15% your Monstera will probably give you fuller growth.
7. Repot When Root Bound (But Not Too Often)
Here’s a mistake I made: I repotted my Monstera into a huge pot way too early because I wanted it to grow faster.
What then happened was it’s growth slowed down massively because the plant was putting all its energy into growing the roots in all the new soil.
Monsteras actually grow better when they’re slightly root bound. It encourages growth of the leaves rather than just continuously focusing on the roots. But there’s a point where being too root bound starts stopping it from taking up nutrients and holding on to water.
I now check mine every spring. If the roots are growing in circles at the bottom of the pot or coming out of drainage holes then I know it needs a bigger pot.
Although I only go up by 2 inches in diameter. That gives it room to grow without overwhelming the plant with too much space to fill.
When I repot it I also tease out some of the roots because that encourages new feeder roots to grow. More healthy roots means it takes up more nutrients and that will help with getting bushier growth.
8. Air Layer to Create New Growth Points on the Existing Plant
This is a bit of a more advanced technique but it’s very effective if you can do it. Air layering is basically propagating a new plant while it’s still attached to the mother plant.
You wrap a node in moist sphagnum moss, cover it with plastic, and wait for roots to develop. Once they do you can either cut it off and plant it separately or leave it attached.
I tried this on a very leggy stem and doing the air layering actually got the plant to give me new growth below where I’d wrapped it. Even before I cut the layer off I had a new shoot popping out.
It does take a few weeks to a couple months to do this though and you need to keep the moss moist throughout. But if you’re patient it’s a great way to get multiple growth points without removing parts of your plant.
9. Control Temperature Fluctuations
This was something I didn’t consider until I noticed my Monstera stalled during the winter. It turns out that major swings in the temperature stresses plants out, and stressed plants don’t put energy into new growth – they’re too busy trying to survive.
Monsteras like temperature to stay consistent between 65 to 85°F (18 to 29°C). In my apartment that meant moving the plant away from the radiator in the winter and away from the air conditioning in the summer. Those temperature fluctuations were causing the plant to pause its growth every time things changed.
Once I found a spot with stable temperatures all year the growth became more consistent and better. The plant wasn’t constantly having to adjust to new conditions so it could focus on growing new leaves and filling out.
Also don’t put your Monstera in a spot that gets drafts or near doors that open frequently in cold weather. Each hit of cold air is a small stress for the plant.
Final Thoughts
Making a Monstera really bushy takes time. Even with all these tips it’s going to be a few months to a year before you see proper results.
Monsteras in ideal conditions might produce one new leaf every 4 to 6 weeks during the growing season. So if you’re hoping for a big change overnight you’re going to be disappointed.
But if you’re patient and consistent with these techniques – especially pruning and getting the light right – you absolutely can create a much more full plant. My Monstera went from a sad single vine to a plant that fills its space rather than looking sparse.
The most important thing to remember is to stop waiting for the plant to magically do what you want. You have to take initiative for how it grows. Monsteras like to climb but you can coax them into being the big and bushy plants they have the potential to become.
Its probably best to start with the easier methods before you go straight to air layering though.