Philodendron Dark Lord Variegated Care
ABOUT
Variegated Dark Lord Philodendron is a sport of Philodendron Erubescens "Dark Lord" featuring beautiful sectoral variegation in many different shades of pink, cream and even orange on dark green leaves (that come in a lovely bronze color.)
FAMILY
Araceae
LIGHT REQUIREMENTS
Bright indirect to medium light. (Mine are under grow lights at around 150 ppfd.) If he's getting too much light you'll noticing bleaching (a slightly yellow tinge) to the non-variegated segments. At WAY too much light the variegated parts of the leaf will burn. So try and avoid that if possible.
TEMP / HUMIDTY
They're pretty forgiving on temperature. 70-80º F (21 - 26.5° C) is ideal. I'd avoid letting them sit colder than 65º for any duration.
For humidity, above 60% for optimal growth, they can tolerate lower humidity (and temperatures) but will be slower going in those conditions.
WATERING
If in soil, I'd water when the top 2" or so of the soil is dry. For mine, I just lift the pots and if they feel light, they get a drink. They're much more tolerant of under-watering than over-watering, so when in doubt.
GROW MEDIA
They'd do well in a nice chunky aroid mix, something with plenty of bark, coco husk and/or perlite or in semi-hydro. I grow all my props in chunky perlite (I also have some in moss, props I mean, and they're doing just fine in that as well.) My mother plant is in my DIY chunky Pon (aka Pon XL.)
GROWTH RATE
As with most tropical plants, they'll do better (grow faster) grown in warm / humid conditions (winter growth is definitely much slower) but they're pretty steady on average. Not too fast, not too slow.
EASE OF PROPAGATION
I find them pretty easy to propagate where survival is concerned, especially if you've got an existing aerial root, however, the variegation can be tricky. These guys are a bit more prone to reversion than some others, though that could be down to the genetics of my mother. Of all the props I've taken this is the only one I have ever had for sale, so. I got really lucky here 😅
TOXICITY
Mildly toxic - Like many Philodendron, Dark Lord contain calcium oxalate crystals which may cause oral irritation, burning of the mouth, tongue, and lips if swallowed or chewed. (Unless you're our cat, in which case it's apparently delicious. Spicy. Yum!)
ADDITIONAL INFO
This is a climbing plant, so they definitely benefit from having a support, whether that be a moss or coir pole or even a plank.
If you have any questions, or some advice of your own to offer, please feel free to comment below.
Thanks so much for stopping by!