Why do Pothos Leaves Drip Water? – What Should You Do?


A pothos in a pot on the article Why do Pothos Leaves Drip Water

Pothos technically called Epipremnum aureum, belonging to the Arum family, is a beautiful ornamental plant with distinguishing features that make it distinct from other household plants.

It has attractive heart-shaped leaves on trailing vines. The plant comes in many different varieties with different shades of green and white and yellow freckles. The leaves provide a pop of green to every scene.

The Pothos plants are quite hardy and are native to Southeastern Asia. They are grown in pots and also in hangers. They can be kept in a compact bush by pruning or allowed to trail or climb.

These plants are one of the easiest house plants to take care of and do not bother the owner that much.

They have minimal watering requirements and they are one of the most common houseplants in North America.

They require low to medium sunlight or bright indirect sunlight to grow. Avoid placing them in bright light because the sun may burn the leaves.

The plants are natural air purifiers which makes them suitable for offices and indoors but why do your pothos leaves drip water?

The process of dripping water from the leaves of plants is called guttation.

Pothos leaves will drip water for two reasons, the first being that your pothos is in a high moisture environment and removes the excess water through it’s leaves by sweating.

The second reason being overwatering or too humid which again your pothos will remove the excess water through it’s leaves. 

We got into more detail below on why this happens to give you a better understanding of why your pothos leaves drip as well as is dripping bad and more.

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Why do Pothos Leaves Drip Water?

A hanging pothosPothos plant is quite famous for its dripping behavior. However, if you are concerned that your Pothos plant is dripping water or sweating excessively, then it is probably because you’re overwatering it or the environment is humid.

This process of dripping water from the leaves of plants is called guttation. Guttation is a common phenomenon in houseplants.

This process mainly occurs at night when the stomata of the plant leaves are closed and water normally comes out at the tip of the leaves. The main reasons why excess guttation takes place include:

1) Air Moisture

Moisture governs the intake and removal of water in plants. Moisture in the soil and the air affects the process of guttation.

When the air moisture changes it alters the pressure difference between the roots and leaves.

The Pothos plant removes the extra pressure of water forming inside its stems and roots by forcing the water through the leaves.

The water is thus removed and subsequently evaporates. The difference in air pressure is more in the humid summers than in winters. So, you’ll notice that your pothos leaves will mostly drip water in the summertime.

2) Overwatering

The difference in water pressure between the roots and the leaves of your Pothos plant is the major factor that controls the guttation process.

If you are providing your plant with too much water than it needs, it becomes saturated with the excess water creating extra pressure at its roots. The plant then compensates by removing water through the pores of its leaves.

We have an article on how to save an overwatered pothos to help you.

Is Dripping Water from your Pothos Bad?

Water dripping out of your Pothos may indicate overwatering or moist conditions. It is a coping mechanism the plant has to excess moisture.

It indicates overwatering or excess moisture. The process of dripping water is not harmful or bad since the plant is regulating its internal water contents.

The plant removes water as required.  The Pothos Plant in fact only uses about 0.5%-3% of the water you provide it showing it is quite hardy and drought-resistant.

That means it removes 97%-99.5% of the water you provide it. Therefore, it is a natural phenomenon for the Pothos plant to drip out the excess water it doesn’t use.

The dripping or crying is not a sign of major damage to the plant and is very natural.

The plant is commonly called Devils Ivy. This is because the Pothos plant is toxic and can harm your pets and children.

It is not fatal but is irritating to the skin when touched. It can cause swelling of the lips. Take care to not let it be ingested by children.

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Is the Dripping from your Pothos Toxic?

A golden pothosThe water dripping from Pothos as a result of guttation is not toxic. One may assume the liquid to be toxic as the plant itself is toxic. But that is not the case.

The liquid dripping from the plant is merely water with dissolved nutrients as well as sugars. You can wipe off the droplets to keep the leaves clean from mold and to prevent the drops from staining your tabletop or furniture.

However, it is not necessary. You should keep cats and other pets and your children away from the plant because it is toxic, although the droplets do not harm.

You may also like: How to Make a Pothos Climb

Can I or Should I Prevent my Pothos from Dripping Water from its Leaves?

Since dripping water from the leaves is quite natural so there is no need to temper with the plant.

However, if you are really concerned that your plant is dripping a lot of water than usual then there may be an underlying problem. So, you might want to take the following two steps, whatever works best for your plant:

1) Change the position

If you think your Pothos plant is dripping water due to the humid location, try changing its position.

If it’s placed near an open window, moving it indoors or near an air-conditioned room will definitely reduce the sweating.

Keep in mind to gradually shift the position from outdoors to indoors. It is difficult to create an ideal environment for your Pothos plant indoors.

The plant is a humidity lover but can survive easily without too much humidity if the conditions don’t provide it. By keeping your home or office temperature between 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit, your Pothos should be fine.

You can mist the plant if you think it needs more humidity. If however the temperature drops too much try providing a suitable temperature artificially.

2) Do not overwater

If overwatering is the cause try limiting the amount of water you give to your Pothos. Let the soil dry out in between the waterings.

The plants use guttation to get rid of the excess water you provide it with. Use a finger test to see if the soil needs watering or not.

For this dip your finger 2 inches into the soil if you find the soil wet then wait a bit longer for the soil to dry out.

You can also remove the excess water from the pot 15 minutes after you have watered it. Water when the soil is dry. Be careful not to let the soil dry up too much.

Underwatering is also problematic for the Pothos plant. It can lead to sagging of the leaves and the leaves eventually turn yellow and wilt.

If overwatering is the cause of excessive guttation, then keep an eye out for root rot because root rot symptoms might not take too long to appear.

Get Your Pothos Here!

 

Final Thoughts

A pothosThe pothos plant is an attractive ornamental plant used for decoration purposes. It drips out water natural from its leaves through the process of guttation.

Guttation is a method the plant uses to remove excess water the plant accumulates either due to overwatering or excess air humidity.

The dripping water is not toxic and only contains sugars. The plant itself is toxic and can irritate if handled bare-handed. You can change the location of the plant or reduce watering to reduce the water dripping from the plant.

Before you go, here are some more related articles I encourage you to read below to help solve more of your gardening issues:

Pothos N Joy vs Pearls and Jade

How Fast do Pothos Grow?

Can Pothos Live Outside

Pothos vs Scindapsus

Pothos vs Monstera

Hawaiian Pothos Vs Golden Pothos

About the Author:

Saad Ansar

Saad is an avid gardener himself and is a great lover of plants, animals, photography, & people. Currently, he is focused on photographing indoor plants & captioning beautiful outdoor sceneries. He writes and rewrites in-depth articles on nature and science.

Bean Growing

We provide a wide range of information from indoor to outdoor plants to product recommendations to make your gardening experience the best it can possibly be. We are not experts in gardening but through extensive research and experience we will give you the best information to provide the best care for your plants.

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