Best Soil For Syngonium Plants – How To Mix Guide
Welcome to our guide to the best soil for syngonium (aka arrowhead plant aka syngonium podophyllum), whether you want an off the shelf soil, or you want to mix your own, I cover all you need to know…
Introduction
I have loads of syngoniums and I mix my own soil for them. They’re really easy to care for, and they love an airy, well draining chunky mix full of organic matter and drainage material. Also know as the arrowhead houseplant or syngonium podophyllum, these are amazing tropical plants from South America and easy to look after as indoor plants. I’ll run through all you need to know to about a good syngonium soil mixture, whether mixing your own or buying the right soil mix.
Syngonium Soil Requirements
It’s a good ideas to try to mimic their natural environment as much as possible, they grow around and vine up tree, so they love organic mater and bark. They are hemi-epiphytic – they start off in the ground and can grow up tree bark and root int it too.
They need a well draining mix as they do not sit in heavy wet soil in the wild. They can get root rot if allowed to sit in very wet soil for too long. But they are much more resilient than other aroid like philodendrons.
I cover 3 different types of soil: a commercially available store bought mix, an easy DIY syngonium soil recipe, and a ‘pro’ DIY mix!
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Best Commercially Available Syngonium Compost
If you’re looking to buy a compost from a store, you can order an orchid mix, as orchids are also and mixes for them will do well (sometimes sphagnum moss is listed, but you don’t want that you want a dedicated orchid substrate). You can actually find some good pre-mixed syngonium soil on Etsy too.
A Cheap And Easy DIY Syngonium Soil Mix
If you’re looking for a cheap and easy soil mix for your syngoniums…
Use a mix of:
- 3 parts orchid bark
- 2 parts perlite
- 2 parts potting mix
Best Syngonium Soil Mix
Here’s our recipe for the best syngonium soil mix, mix them in these quantities:
- 2 parts orchid bark
- 2 parts perlite
- 2 part potting mix
- 1 coir / coconut fiber
- 1 worm castings
You will need:
Steps To Make The Syngonium Soil Mix:
- Wash and rinse the perlite: rinse it it in a sieve under a tap to get rid of the chalk residue. Rinse it again.
- Put all the ingredients in a large bin or bucket.
- It is best that it is twice the volume needed so you have room to mix.
- I use a round trash bin with a lid that clips shut, then add all the ingredients, close the bin, and put it on it’s side, then roll it to the mix the ingredients. I turn the bin upside down a couple of times in between rolling to help it mix well.
- Bag it up and you’re done.
For more on syngonium see our syngonium category with all our care guides.
Syngonium Soil Frequently Asked Questions
Do not water syngoniums on a schedule but check the soil regularly. Oly water them if the soil is almost dry. And make sure the excess water can drain off.
Repot a syngonium when you see roots growing out the bottom, they grow very quickly and can put out large root systems. The best time of year is Easter time or late spring so they have space to grow over the warmer growing season.
A normal syngonium mix of perlite, orchid bark and standard potting compost in equal parts.
A pink syngonium needs a chunky and airy, well draining mix. You can use perlite, orchid bark and standard potting compost in equal parts.
Use a mix of perlite, orchid bark and standard potting compost in equal parts.
You can grow syngoniums in regular soil, but be really careful as they can get root rot easily. It’s a good idea to add some perlite and orchid bark to get air to the roots and make the mix airier and much better draining.
The ideal pH for syngonium soil is 5.5 to 6.5.
You can root and grow some syngonium in water, they grow and root very easily. You can keep them there in definitely. They looks great in a glass vase with their rotos on show. They grow faster in soil though, as they get more nutrients.
Don’t use garden soil, you want a well draining and chunky mix, with orchid bark and perlite alongside a normal potting mix.
They can get spider mites, thrips, mealybugs and aphids, check both sides of their leaves each time you water the plant to keep on top of it.
For more on soil and soil propagation see our soil propagation category.
Other Articles You Might Like
There you have it, here ends our guide to making soil for syngonium albo. You might also like our other articles:
Alocasia Soil, Succulent Soil, Monstera Soil, Hoya Soil, Anthurium Soil, Philodendron Soil.
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