Monstera 'Esqueleto'

A cultivated Monstera once confused with another species

For many years, Monstera ‘Esqueleto’ was mistaken for Monstera epipremnoides. The true M. epipremnoides in Costa Rica has a different growth habit and leaf form.

Monstera ‘Esqueleto’ plant care

Support and leaf handling

• Give the vine a broad, stable support that can carry increasingly large leaves. Hold the stem close to the surface and leave every leaf stalk free to turn towards the light.
• Handle expanding leaves carefully and allow them to open in their own time. Pulling at a rolled leaf can tear the narrow bands of tissue around the openings.

Light for thin perforated leaves

• Place it in bright, diffuse light. The broad, perforated blades need enough light for steady growth, while their thin remaining tissue can mark or scorch in intense direct sun.
• Increase exposure gradually after a move or during seasonal changes, especially when the newest leaf formed in a shadier position.

Watering Monstera ‘Esqueleto’

• Keep the potting mix lightly and evenly moist, allowing the surface to dry a little before watering again. Rewet the whole rootball and let it drain completely.
• Avoid dense, airless potting mix. Constant saturation and poor drainage damage the roots and weaken the plant’s large, heavily perforated leaves.

Humidity, warmth and airflow

• Moderate to high humidity supports the unfolding of its large, delicate leaves. Pair humid air with gentle circulation and keep water from sitting on the blades.
• Keep the plant warm and away from cold glass, draughts and strong bursts of heated air.

Potting mix and feeding Esqueleto

• Choose an airy aroid substrate that holds some moisture between its coarse particles. Use a pot with clear drainage and size it to the root system.
• During active growth, use a complete fertilizer at low strength. Heavy feeding cannot compensate for weak light or an unhealthy root system.

Moving or propagating Esqueleto

• Move it to a larger pot when roots fill the existing one, drainage changes noticeably or the support is no longer stable. Preserve as much of the attached root system as possible during the move.
• Each propagation piece must include a healthy node; a detached leaf and its stalk cannot grow into a new vine. Top cuttings and air-layered nodes usually make the easiest starts.

Damaged or declining growth on Monstera ‘Esqueleto’

Holes, narrow bridges and tears

• Esqueleto’s broad blades naturally contain many enclosed openings with clean, healed edges. Recent feeding looks raw or ragged and may be accompanied by droppings or insects.
• The thin green bridges between holes tear easily when an emerging leaf catches. Do not pull the roll apart or force it around a pole.
• An old tear remains visible. Repeated damage on fresh leaves points to continued rubbing, a leaf opening while the plant is too dry, or feeding inside the roll.

Leaves losing size or perforation

• One simpler leaf can follow a change in growing conditions. A continuing decline across several leaves needs attention to attachment, light and roots.
• Secure the vine to a broad climbing surface and correct root stress. Removing healthy leaves will not make the replacements larger.

Crisp edges and wilting leaves

• Thin margins become crisp after a dry rootball, damaged roots, concentrated fertilizer or hot exposure. Check the moisture throughout the pot to help identify the cause.
• Wilt while the substrate is wet means damaged roots may no longer supply the broad leaf. Drain the pot and inspect them before watering again.

Marks made before a leaf opened

• Silver lines with black dots suggest thrips when insects are present inside the folded growth. Fine pale speckling needs a close search for mites and eggs.
• A stable dry scar beside the support is physical damage. Separate it from the rest of the collection if wet or soft marks continue to grow, and keep the leaves dry.

Handling Monstera ‘Esqueleto’ safely

Chewed or crushed leaves, stems and roots can release irritating calcium oxalate crystals. A bite may cause immediate mouth pain, drooling or swelling.

Keep the long vine and its cuttings out of reach of children and animals. Wash the hands after pruning, and rinse the mouth if a piece is chewed. Breathing or swallowing difficulty is urgent.

Esqueleto: the Spanish word for skeleton

The name describes the mature leaf’s rib-like network of veins and green tissue around its large holes.

Jody Benicek gave the cultivated plant the name ‘Esqueleto’ in 2018.