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How Big Do Monsteras Grow? (Indoors and Outdoors)

How Big Do Monsteras Grow? (Indoors and Outdoors)

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Did you know that Monsteras can grow to impressive heights if you don’t keep them in check? This makes you ask: How big do Monsteras grow anyway?

Depending on the amount of empty space surrounding them and whether you plant them indoors or outdoors, Monstera plants can grow 10–70 feet tall. Their width may also range from 2–20 feet!

In this guide, we’ll answer all your questions regarding Monstera size and growth, so let’s get to it!

How Big Do Indoor vs. Outdoor Monsteras Grow?

As our short answer has hinted at, there’s a huge spectrum of Monstera height possibilities. Besides being influenced by the variety of Monstera itself, the maximum height of a Monstera mainly depends on whether it’s indoors or outdoors.

This is because all environmental elements—temperature, humidity, sunlight exposure, soil type, and nutrients—highly vary inside and outside your home. With that in mind, let’s take a quick look at how big you can expect your Monstera to be in both situations.

Monstera Size: Indoors

If you take proper care of your Monstera and keep it contained in a small pot, it’ll likely grow to an average of five feet. However, without regular pruning—or if you wish for it to get really tall—it’ll keep growing until it’s 8–10 feet in height!

As for its width, you can expect it to get to a couple of feet or so, depending on the size of its container.

Monstera Size: Outdoors

The great thing about the size of outdoor Monsteras is that it’s unpredictable. You’ve got a big range here, varying from a little over 12 feet to 70 feet in height.

Monsteras in the Wild

Taller and larger Monsteras are more likely to be found in their native habitats—Central and South America. Because these locations provide the optimum conditions for these plants’ growth, Monsteras can reach more than a hundred feet!

This is especially the case if they grow next to tall trees in the wild. This additional support allows them to climb to incredible heights, searching for more sunlight.

Monsteras in Your Garden

Of course, we can’t say the same for Monsteras that you plant in your backyard. Sure, they’ll grow taller than their indoor counterparts, but they’ll still be shorter than those growing in the wild.

This is because the weather conditions will still not be the same as those in tropical regions unless you live there! So, you can expect your backyard Monsteras to become as tall as 15 feet.

For a higher chance of getting taller Monsteras, you can choose to plant them next to a tree, trellis, or any other structure. This way, you’ll encourage your pretty plant to climb whatever is next to it, helping it extend upward by giving it solid support.

Outdoors, Monsteras can reach several feet to up to 20 feet across. Yes, these gigantic plants will seem as if they’re totally unrelated to your innocent-looking indoor babies!

How to Keep Monsteras Small

Whether you have limited interior space or you’re not a fan of your Monstera reaching the ceiling, there are many ways you can help it maintain a small, cute size.

It might be a lifelong commitment, though, because Monsteras are rapid growers. Still, if you keep a schedule, you should have no trouble making their maintenance part of your routine

Consider following these steps to control your Monstera’s growth and keep it from becoming too tall:

  • Regularly prune your Monstera’s stems, leaves, and roots, especially if you notice any yellowing or browning.
  • Limit your plant’s exposure to sunlight, but don’t keep it in a dark room to prevent it from dying.
  • Always keep your Monstera in a small pot, as constantly repotting it in a larger one will encourage its growth.

What to Do When a Monstera Gets Too Big?

If your Monstera has grown out of control before you’ve learned how to keep it small in the first place, don’t fret. You can still go through a few measures to deal with its too-large size without compromising its health.

First, you’ll have to cut parts of your plant to keep it from looking disheveled and overgrown. Just be extra careful with those pruning shears—you don’t want to cut too many large sections of a Monstera, or it might become overstressed and die.

Instead, consider the parts you’ll be chopping off and make sure their removal won’t harm the plant. For example, you can start with any weak-looking parts or brown leaves.

Second of all, you may want to propagate your plant. Simply, cut a good section of the Monstera and put it in a different pot.

Surround it with soil and water it just as you would normally.

This portion can be as big as you want if you wish for it to grow fast on its own, but only cut off this large part if the original plant is already enormous. Again, you don’t want its removal to stress out your Monstera.

Now, you can either give your bigger plant as a gift to a friend who might be interested in it or move it outdoors. In both cases, you’ll have solved the issue of an overgrown plant without jeopardizing its well-being.

How Big Do Monstera Leaves Get?

Just like the plant itself, the Monstera’s leaves can vary in size in the wild, in your own garden, or inside your house.

In its native homeland, the Monstera usually grows huge leaves, exceeding two feet in width. Outside your house, the leaves will be quite large, too, but not as much as they would be in the wild.

If you grow a Monstera outdoors, you can expect its leaves to reach 18 inches or so.

On the other hand, indoor Monstera leaves are significantly smaller. Before maturing, each leaf will be only a couple of inches wide.

Then, as the plant grows with the ideal amount of sunlight, water, and nutrients, the leaves may become as big as one foot when fully grown.

Why Are My Monstera Leaves Small?

It’s nice to keep your Monstera small and adorable-looking, but ending up with too-small leaves may not be what you signed up for.

If you’re wondering why your Monstera leaves aren’t as big as you want them to be, these reasons are probably to blame:

  • Not enough sunlight: Make sure your Monstera gets its daily dose of indirect sunlight by placing it in a brightly-lit room.
  • Overwatering or underwatering: Only water your plant when the first inch of the soil has dried up while avoiding soaking it through.
  • Not being repotted: Move your plant to a slightly larger pot every now and then to give it more space to grow, but nothing too big that the Monstera will get out of hand.
  • Low water quality: Give your Monstera filtered water and steer clear of tap water to minimize its exposure to chemicals.
  • Not enough fertilizer: Keep a balanced fertilizing routine to ensure your plant gets good amounts of nutrients, especially nitrogen, potassium, and others.

Overall, all you have to do to have big Monstera leaves is to adjust all the factors that contribute to its growth. Soon enough, you’ll have the perfect care schedule to stick to in order to grow a happy and healthy plant!

Final Thoughts

If you’ve been wondering how big Monsteras grow, you should now have your detailed answer.

Monsteras have the potential to be enormous plants, reaching up to dozens of feet in height in the wild. On the contrary, they’ll grow to around eight feet inside your home.

Whether you like your Monstera tall or short, there are several ways you may achieve either goal by controlling your plant’s environment. You can always go back to this article to make sure you’re on the right track!

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