Philodendron Oxapapense grows silky Tri-lobbed leaves on thin stems.  This climbing house Plant is native to South American rainforests.

There it grows under the canopy of large trees. In some parts of the jungle, it grows as a tree cover.

If you want your oxapapense to grow large, then grow it outside and give it a supporter of a large tree. On the other side, if you want to keep it medium in height, then grow it in plant containers.

It needs moderate bright light, moderate watering, and Occasional fertilizers. Use neem oil to prevent root rot and other fungal and bacterial diseases.

Neem oil is also helpful to prevent nasty insects.

In this post, you’ll find complete information about caring for this plant.

How to Grow and Care for Philodendron Oxapapense?

Below are its growing needs pay close attention to them. In order to grow a disease-free thriving oxapapense plant.

Light Needs of Oxapapense

This plant has soft leaves that cannot tolerate direct sunshine. So, your first step is to protect it from the direct sun rays.

The best place will be near a sunny window where it can enjoy 6 to 7 hours of bright indirect light.

If the leaves of your plants are turning yellow and crispy brown, this means the light in the grow room is too intense for its leaves.

In this condition, move your plant to a less bright place and give it some time to heal itself.

In order to prevent all kinds of light issues, you should use a light meter to find the best place for your plant.

Use a light meter and check light energy on all the possible spaces that you have in your mind for your plant.

For best possible growth it needs light energy between 250 to 300 FC.

Watering Oxapapense Philodendron

This is not a drought-resistant plant. It needs moist Soil for its entire life. By watering it enough, you can keep the soil moist for 365 days of the year.

But there is a problem and that is the overuse of water can cause root rot. It is a deadly disease that can kill your plant in Just a week.

To prevent root rot, Overwatering, and Underwatering conditions, check the soil before watering your plant. This is an easy technique for watering philodendrons.

I prefer a soil moisture meter to test the moisture of the potting soil. Insert both probes of the soil moisture meter in the soil and turn it on. Then it will give you the exact moisture reading.

Or

Simply put your finger in the potting soil to check. If the top 2 inches of the soil are dry, then you can water your plant.

Quality of Water

The quality of water directly affects the overall health of a plant. All professional growers prefer filtered water for watering philodendrons.

Because filtered water does not contain Chlorine and Fluoride like unnecessary ingredients.

Unfortunately, our tap water contains chlorine in high amounts. This makes it damaging for the plant roots.

On the other side, use filtered water or rainwater to grow and maintain a healthy plant.

Potting Soil

When it comes to choosing potting soil for oxapapense plants. You need to pay a little extra attention to the ingredients.

The wrong choice of ingredients can kill your plant.

Choose potting soil formula that contains peat moss, perlite, and vermiculite or compost or coco coir.

These ingredients make soil fast-draining and fertile. Heavy soil absorbs too much moisture which leads to root rot.

It also put extra pressure on plant roots. They feel suffocated and plants with such roots cannot grow healthy and thrive.

Fertilizing Philodendron Oxapapense

Fertilizers help it grow easily and produce beautiful shining leaves. I prefer Dyna-Gro because it contains everything an oxapapense plant needs to grow.

Dilute the nutrient solution as per the instructions on the bottle before use. Filtered water is best for the dilution process.

Fertilize it once in 20 days in spring and summer. Stop feeding it in the cold season which is the dormancy time period of plants.

Don’t forget to dilute the solution to its half-strength to prevent overfeeding.

Ideal Temperature

The ideal room temperature is between 60 to 85 degrees F. Below 55 degrees F is too cold for it. In this case, the roots will suffer first and get damaged.

You will see dark brown spots on the oxapapense leaves. They are the result of damaged cell walls.

To prevent all temperature-related issues, try to keep the grow room temperature in the ideal range.

Temperature above 85 degrees F results in dehydrated plant. In hot weather, philodendron plants fold their leaves to save themselves.

But the sad truth is in most of the cases, they failed to save their leaves.

Humidity

As far as the humidity is concerned it would be best if you kept it above 45% throughout the year. Philodendron oxapapense absorbs moisture from the air.

In low-humidity climates, its leaves start turning yellow and its stem brown.

Green leaves with brown crispy tips are the warning sign for growers. In this case, move your plant to high humidity.

Or

Simply use a plant humidifier and increase the room humidity.

The next solution is the pebble tray technique, fill it with water and put it under your plant pot.

Pruning Needs

Prune your plant only if you want to control its size. Otherwise for oxapapense philodendrons pruning is not a must need.

Don’t just through the trimmed stems. You can use them in propagation. This way you will have multiple plants.

You can give them as a gift to your friends and family members.

Note: Use a sterilized knife or shear for trimming this plant.

Repotting Needs of Oxapapense

You should repot it once in a year for its good health. When plants grow tall, they also grow their roots.

But roots have limited space in their pot and they start growing in a circular motion.

After some days roots poke out of the drainage hole and sometimes out of the top soil layer.

Spring is an excellent season for repotting oxapapense plants.

Take a 2 inches large pot for repotting and also use a fresh bag of soil. Gently unpot your plant and cut the damaged and dry roots.

Add fresh potting soil to a new pot and place your plant in it. Tap around the plant and add some water to add a good amount of moisture to the soil.

Place the pot in its place and follow the normal care routine. For the first few days, you may see some wilting and it will go away in a few days.

Propagating Philodendron Oxapapense

You have two options to choose from. One is stem cutting in water and the other is stem propagation in potting soil.

In my experience using water for rooting stems is easy and has a higher success rate.

You can also visibly see the development of new roots. Which is not possible in the soil propagation method.

The Process:

• Carefully identify a healthy stem and cut a 4 to 5 inches long piece. Make a clean cut right under the leaf node.
• Remove the bottom leaves and apply rooting hormone on the cut.
• Take a glass jar of water, put stem cutting in it and store it in a warm and humid place.
• Regularly change the water and once the new roots grow more than an inch long, transfer the cutting to potting soil.

Troubleshooting Common Problems

Pest Infestation

Spider mites and Aphids are common enemies of Philodendron oxapapense plants. These insects attack unhygienic and weak plants.

To prevent pest attacks, keep the plant and its surroundings clean. Also, use neem oil spray once in 30 days in all seasons.

In case the plant is infected, use pest-killing liquid to rinse your plant. This solution is easily available on the Amazon.

You can use it for all types of indoor houseplants.

Yellow Leaves

Yellow leaves mean the light is too bright in the room or the roots are decaying. In the first case, you will see yellow leaves with crispy brown tips.

Move your plant to a less bright place and trim the brown leaves, it will heal in a few days.

If the roots are decaying due to root rot. Then you will only see yellow leaves and you’ll notice the bad smell when you go close to your oxapapense plants.

In this case, unpot your plant to check the roots. Use sterilized shears and cut the infected roots. Use a new pot and fresh oil to repot your plant.

Brown Spots on Leaves

In 90% of the cases, the brown spots on its leaves are caused by fungal disease. It is a curable and effective solution is copper fungicides.

Use it all over the plant and wait for results.

Wet leaves for prolonged periods of time give a chance to fungal bacteria.

To prevent leaf spots, you must not spray water on its leave. Also, use a dry soft cloth to wipe its leaves after every watering session.

Conclusion

Grow Philodendron Oxapapense indoors in terracotta pots or ceramic pots. This species is normally suitable for low-light places.

Keep the temperature and humidity in the ideal range for having a thriving plant.

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