Rhaphidophora decursiva

This plant is a climbing Araceae.

Due to their lifestyle, climbing aroids are also called “nomadic” vines. They usually begin their lives on the forest floor, where they live as rather thin vines with poorly differentiated leaves and try to find a tree to climb. If they find a suitable surface to climb, they attach themselves to it with special adhesive roots (similar to ivy) and grow upwards. Only then do the leaves differentiate into their later adult form, and only then do they grow larger. Many species also form so-called aerial roots after a few meters, which, unlike adhesive roots, do not serve to attach to the substrate, but instead hang freely down to the ground, thus supplying the plant with additional nutrients. Often, after a few years and several meters of stem length, the lower part of the stem that connects the plant to the ground also dies off, and it is then only in contact with the soil via the aerial roots. The plant now lives as a so-called hemiepiphyte, or “half-epiphyte.”
In this way, nomadic vines climb large primeval forest trees over many years, finally reaching their maximum size and flowering in the treetop.

This way of life should be imitated in cultivation (at least to some extent) to obtain beautiful and healthy plants. Many climbing aroids are easy to care for in indoor cultivation, despite their unusual lifestyle.

This plant grows as a young plant in shady undergrowth and as an adult plant in the much brighter canopies of primeval forest trees. With too little light and without climbing aid, it remains in its juvenile form and becomes etiolated. Bright to very bright indirect light, e.g. next to a west or east-facing window or somewhat protected by a south-facing window, is ideal.

When cultivated under grow lights, e.g. in a plant display case, terrarium or grow tent, it requires quite strong lighting. At 5000 to 10,000 lux or 90 to 180 PPFD (µmol/m²/s), it grows well.

Supplemental lighting to help it get through the dark winter months is very beneficial for this plant. Otherwise, it will produce significantly smaller leaves during the winter, which look unsightly overall.

This vine prefers humidity of 60% or more and still grows well at over 90% RH. It is not sensitive to cool temperatures and can even tolerate night temperatures of 5°C, but it only grows well at 20°C or more.

This plant prefers a coarse to very coarse, airy yet consistently moist substrate. It should be potted in a loose, acidic (pH below 7), and very airy mix. For this plant, we recommend our Aroid Mix or, for larger specimens with a pot size of 30 cm or more, pure coconut chips.

The pot for this plant does not need to be particularly large. A pot that is too large will cause the substrate to dry out on top while remaining wet at the bottom. This can lead to overwatering, as one might mistakenly believe the plant needs more water when it is already sufficiently moist. Finding the right pot size requires some experimentation. As a guideline: If you can water approximately every 5 to 10 days, and the substrate is almost completely dry in between (just bügelfeucht, meaning slightly damp like clothes after ironing), the size is well chosen.

As this is a climbing plant, a climbing aid should be provided to allow it to exhibit its natural growth. For this, you can either offer a coir pole as a pure support for aerial roots or (even better) a moss pole filled with Sphagnum moss or a mix of Sphagnum and coconut chips. The moss pole not only serves as a climbing support but also provides extra root space for the plant if the pole is kept consistently moist.

This plant should never completely dry out, but how moist it likes to be depends heavily on the (substrate) temperature. At over 25°C, it can be kept consistently moist to wet. If it is kept as a houseplant (especially on a windowsill), it should be watered sparingly in winter, as the combination of colder temperatures and moisture weakens it and can lead to rot.

It is a fast-growing species that requires a lot of fertilizer. Fertilization should occur during the main growing season, from approximately May to September. If no additional lighting is provided, this plant will barely grow from October to April and does not need to be fertilized. No special fertilizer is required. A normal complete fertilizer (N-P-K + trace elements) for houseplants is sufficient. We recommend using the dosage specified by the manufacturer (this corresponds to about 1000 µS/cm conductivity of fertilizer).

When cared for under grow lights, it can be fertilized year-round.