Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) is the most forgiving houseplant in the standard rotation — fluorescent office light, weeks of missed watering, the occasional dramatic dehydration. It survives all of it. It also happens to be an aggressive invasive species in Florida when it escapes outdoors. Keep it indoors, keep it out of reach of pets, and it will outlive most of your other plants.
Disclosure: I buy what I recommend and test it personally. Amazon links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you — it does not affect picks. See the full affiliate disclosure.
What it is
Epipremnum aureum (Linden & André) G.S.Bunting is the accepted name per Kew POWO, in the family Araceae. The plant has been renamed multiple times — older sources sell it as Scindapsus aureus, Pothos aureus, or Raphidophora aurea. All are now synonyms per MBG.
Native range is unexpectedly tiny: the Society Islands (specifically Mo'orea) in the South Pacific, per Kew POWO. It's a climbing aroid that grows up tree trunks via aerial roots and also spreads as a ground cover.
The Florida invasive problem
When kept in its pot indoors, pothos is ecologically harmless. When planted outdoors in frost-free climates — or when cuttings get tossed into yard waste that ends up in natural areas — it's a different plant.
UF IFAS Extension's invasiveness assessment classifies Epipremnum aureum as invasive in south Florida and a caution-list species in central Florida. It climbs trees, smothers canopies, displaces native vegetation, and propagates aggressively from fragments. UF IFAS Sarasota County's master gardener guidance is direct: "If you do have a pothos plant, please be responsible: protect the environment by keeping it inside so it can't escape."
The common name "Devil's Ivy" references precisely this behavior — the plant's ability to escape cultivation and take over.
Light
Bright indirect light or part shade. UW Extension and MBG both note pothos tolerates low light including fluorescent office light, but with one important caveat — variegated cultivars lose their variegation in low light. The yellow and white sections of leaves on Golden, Marble Queen, and similar cultivars fade toward solid green when the plant doesn't get enough light.
If you want the variegation, give it bright indirect. If you don't care, low light is fine.
Watering
Allow the soil to dry out between waterings. MBG recommends "consistently moist during the growing season, but reduce watering somewhat from fall to late winter."
UW Extension flags overwatering as the primary failure mode. Root rot and blackened leaf margins are usually the result. Blackened tips can also come from underwatering or fertilizer salt buildup — but overwatering is more common.
Soil
Well-aerated, peaty potting mix with good drainage.
Standard houseplant mix with extra perlite works. The soil pH preference isn't documented in primary extension sources for pothos specifically.
Temperature
70–90°F per UW Extension. Avoid cold drafts and abrupt temperature changes — UW Extension notes that sudden drops can cause scattered brown patches in the centers of leaves, especially on vigorously growing plants.
Pet safety
Toxic to dogs and toxic to cats per the ASPCA. Toxic principle is insoluble calcium oxalates. Symptoms are oral irritation, intense burning of mouth/tongue/lips, drooling, vomiting, and difficulty swallowing. NC State also notes contact dermatitis from the sap.
Cultivars
Per UW Extension, the four most common cultivars in the houseplant trade:
| Cultivar | Leaf | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Pothos | Green leaves streaked with yellow | The standard supermarket pothos; variegation fades in low light |
| 'Marble Queen' | Green streaked with white; stems also streaked | Slower growing; needs more light to hold variegation |
| 'Neon' | Uniformly chartreuse | Pigment variant, not a chimera; color stays in lower light |
| 'Jade' | Solid dark green | Best for genuinely dim spots; nothing to lose |
Marble Queen and Neon are often confused but behave differently — Marble Queen's white markings are a chimera (different tissue lines), so they require adequate light to maintain. Neon is a pigment variant where every cell is chartreuse, so its color holds up in lower light.
Common problems
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Yellowing or blackened lower leaves | Overwatering, the #1 pothos killer per UW Extension | Let soil dry further; check drainage; trim damaged leaves |
| Variegation fading toward solid green | Light too low per UW Extension | Move closer to a bright indirect window |
| Brown leaf tips/margins | Fertilizer salt buildup, underwatering, or low humidity | Flush the pot with extra water quarterly; halve fertilizer; switch to filtered water if your tap is heavily treated |
| Scattered brown patches in leaf centers | Cold drafts or abrupt temperature change per UW Extension | Move away from drafty windows or AC vents |
| Mealybugs, scale, spider mites | Standard houseplant pests | Wipe leaves; insecticidal soap or neem; repeat weekly for 3–4 cycles |
Propagation
Pothos roots in water more readily than almost any houseplant. Use a clear propagation vase so you can watch roots develop. Snip a 4–6 inch stem cutting just below a node (the bump where a leaf meets the stem), strip the lowest leaf, drop the node in a glass of water. Roots appear in 1–2 weeks. Pot up when roots are 2 inches long.
You can also propagate by sticking cuttings directly into moist potting mix — slightly slower but it skips the transition from water roots to soil roots, which sometimes shocks the plant.