Trying not to kill my new Monstera

I recently got a Monstera plant and am generally new to plant care. It was looking great for the past two weeks. It doesn’t get much sun as I’ve heard it doesn’t particularly need. My room’s window faces north. In addition, the nursery I got it from said to water it every 7-10 days which is what I’ve also seen online. It does have a few new leaves. Today I saw some browing and don’t know what to do. There are also quite a few tiny baby spiders ):
I also don’t know if I should re-pot it yet. This is how the nursery helped put it together for me temporarily. It’s in a fairly small pot with drainage & a drainage tray underneath (hard to show at the given time, if more pictures would help please let me know). It is propped up on styrofoam to hold well in the bigger pot.
I can use any advice and tips! (:

Hi Megan. Your plant looks nice and green. Are you sure those are spiders and not spider mites?

Hello Cville_Gardener !
I’m not sure, they are very tiny (like a piece of cracked pepper) & black.
Is the brown near the stems okay?

Probably spiders if you can see them. Spider mites are often hard to see since they are so small - you will notice some damage to the leaves and small webbing if you have mites. Brown at the base of the leaves is more than likely okay as it is probably debris. Is that Spanish Moss around the base? Spanish Moss is known to harbor chiggers so take care with it. Water when the soil dries out. Size of pot won't matter much other than anchor the plant. Mine is in a slightly bigger pot and I have to cut the aerial roots since they root readily in other pots or the ground when I bring it indoors for winter. Very tough plant requiring little care.

Pardon If I disagree. Monsteras are a super challenge. They are very salt sensitive and San Diego has terrible water in that regard. Nurseries use RO (reverse osmosis) water to maintain stock. I grow orchids and know growers there that complain continually about poor water quality. It appears this plant may be in a drainage tray but is it sitting in a pot with no drainage?

Agree, Spanish moss needs to go. It's for decorative floral plants and not for maintenance of houseplants. But that said, Monsteras are very predisposed to bacterial issues. I think that might be your problem. Spider mites would be busy at work on the leaves. You would see more general decline there and not those brown areas on the stems. I have one that is probably forty years old and I get it going well and then it dies down to four leaves. It's only not been pitched because it has great sentimental value.

I lived in San Diego for a number of years and didn't have too much difficulty with Monsteras. However, they do need more attention than some indoor plants. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/grow-monstera-deliciosa-indoors-66081.html


This message was edited Feb 7, 2018 4:20 PM

I guess don't live near salt water is the answer? HAHA!

Or maybe have a huge atrium? (Okay the first two are from Okinawa Botanical Garden and Aquarium in 2012)

I've had mine for a few years now (not 40) without any issues other than rooting in the ground in summer and finding enough space for it in the basement in winter. I now ask myself why I got it since it will eventually become a monster(a) of a plant. It doesn't look too big 4 years ago next to some of my begonias outdoors though.

Is this mold? What do I do?