Philodendron Burle Marx [Top Care Hacks]

Philodendron Burle Marx cannot tolerate prolonged neglect as it grows fast and needs more care than before.

Ignoring the plant can rebuff the charm of its gleaming leaves.

Usually, Burle Marx is forgiving and doesn’t mind mistreatment. But you better not miss out on the tropical upkeep of the plant! 

Overview of Philodendron Burle Marx

Do you know Philodendron Burle Marx is named after a renowned Brazilian architect Roberto Burle Marx?

As a native to Brazilian rainforests, Burle Marx is a tropical aroid that prospers on moist, warm, and organic rainforest soil. 

Looking at the plant, it’s easy to tell that it loves the forest’s warm, stippled lighting areas.

But looks can be deceiving, and this one feature of the plant is not enough to tell its entire story. 

The general plant overview of Philodendron Burle Marx is given below.

Philodendron Burle Marx: Care and Growing Guide

Maintaining a tropical climate is the first step towards keeping your Burle Marx Philodendrons happy.

Additionally, the plant is a quick grower, and you must keep a frequent checkup routine.

So, improper lighting and temperatures, irregular watering and humidity, poor soil and fertilizer, and insufficient pruning and repotting can impede growth.  

1. Sunlight and Temperature

Burle Marx Philodendron likes to stay away from direct sunlight. But, a couple of hours of morning sunlight causes no harm to the plant.

Sunlight is vital for the plant as a heat source, as Burle Marx is sensitive to cold spells.

Moreover, intense or bland sunlight can increase or decrease the surrounding temperature.

Unequal lighting regimes can affect the surrounding temperature dynamics and deteriorate the plant’s health.

Signs of Extreme Light and Temperature

• Tips and peripheral burns in leaves
• Leaf curls (inward or outward)
• Brittle leaves and burn marks in stem or petioles
• Pale or yellow patches on the leaf surface
• Sagging leaves and dry soil due to water loss

Signs of Less Light and Temperature

• Discoloration of leaves (green to yellow)
• Droopy foliage (leaves and petioles)
• Leaf and flower fallouts
• Gangly leaves, stems, and petioles

Tips to Provide Adequate Light and Temperature

• Place the plant near an east-facing window for 4-6 hours daily.
• If you keep the plant in a room with southern sun exposure, fix it about 3-5 feet from the nearest window.
• Use shades to protect the plant from direct sunlight outdoors.
• Keep the plant away from north-facing drafty windows, heaters, vents, or temperature-changing outlets.
• Cover the plants with frost blankets in winter at night to prevent frost injury.

2. Water and Humidity

Philodendrons reside in warm and wet tropical rainforests and receive frequent rain showers. 

Moreover, warm temperatures evaporate the soil water, creating a humid environment where the plant grows upstanding. 

Although the plant can tolerate high humidity, it barely makes out from the declining humidity levels.

Also, over or underwatering keeps the soil soggy or dry for too long, which is stressful for the plant.

Underwatering Issues

• Progressive yellowing and browning of leaves
• Crunchy leaf edges and brown spots on stems
• Wilting leaves and petioles
• Cracks on the topsoil

Overwatering Issues

• Foul smell from the soil due to root rot
• Mushy or soggy soil
• Limpy wet leaves
• Yellowing and browning of leaf surface

Signs of Low Humidity

• Fewer and small-sized blooms and leaves
• Shrievling and curling of foliage
• Bud and flower drops

Tips to Provide Adequate Watering and Humidity

• Inspect the soil regularly and water when the top 1-2 inches of the soil is completely dry.
• Use a soil moisture sensor to measure moisture and humidity.
• Change the soil if it smells foul.
• Mist the leaves occasionally in summer.
• Wipe the water drops from the leaves and prevent watering in the morning or evening.
• Use the bottom watering approach to saturate the potting soil with moisture.
• Group the plants together or keep the plants in a ventilated bathroom for optimal humidity.

3. Soil and Fertilizer

Over time, soil quality may degrade, become clumpy and compact and lose all the nutrients.

So, Philodendron Blue Marx requires good quality soil with added minerals that can replenish the lost nutrients.

Blue Marx are heavy feeders, but in fall and winter, the plant sleeps and doesn’t need any feeding.

Heavy fertilizer application during this time can do more harm than good, affecting the leaves and stopping nutrient uptake.

Overfertilization Issues

• Fertilizer burns on the leaves and roots
• Accumulation of mineral salts on the topsoil
• Obstruction in nutrient uptake from the roots

Under fertilization Issues

• Change in leaf colors
• Stunted growth
• Poor production of blooms and leaves

Tips for Proper Fertilization and Soil

• Leach the excess salts by washing the soil 4-5 times with distilled water.
• Dilute the fertilizer concentrate to half-strength.
• Water the plant before applying the feed.
• Add pebbles at the pot’s base to provide extra drainage.
• Toss away stagnant water from the basal tray before and after watering.

You can prepare a homemade potting mix by mixing peat moss, pine bark, organic perlite, horticultural charcoal, and worm casting in the ratio of 2:1:1:1:1.

4. Casual Pruning

Philodendron Burle Marx is a speedy grower. With each new growth, the older parts become damaged or discolored.

Also, as the plant ages, it becomes weak and comes in a fistfight with pesky bugs (aphids, thrips, mealybugs, and white flies) and diseases (root rot and leaf spots).

However, you can also remove the naturally dead leaves from the plant, or they can be a medium for new diseases.

Removing the extra weight (damaged parts) assists the plant in attaining a compact and bushy form.

The normal time to prune the plant is in early spring when the plant is actively growing.

Additionally, to keep diseases and pests out of the bay, use neem oil and broad-spectrum fungicides at the site of infection.

Spray the fungicides on the infected plants every 7-14 days until the threat disappears.

Also, use the neem oil in the morning or evening so that the daytime sun and oil cannot burn the leaves.

You can also hang sticky traps around the plant to keep the hovering pets out.

5. Annual Repotting

Repotting is necessary for Blue Marx as the plant quickly becomes root bound owing to its fast-growing habit.

Additionally, causal repotting can stress the plant and give the plant a hard time to rebound.

When root-bound, Philodendrons can show the following signs of strain.

• Roots pushing out from the drainage holes of the pot.
• Cuddling of the roots on the topsoil.
• Cracks or bulges on the container.
• Stunted growth and quick seepage of water from the soil.

If your Philodendrons show these signs, step up to repot the plant.

Philodendron Burle Marx: All About the Growth

Burle Marx is a low-growing variety of clumping Philodendrons growing about 2 feet tall and 3-4 feet wide.

Due to their growth, sometimes they tend to climb and crawl over as they cannot support their growth.

It hails from the South American Rainforests and is largely grown for its oblong cordate (heart-shaped) leaves.

When young, the glossy leaves are bright-yellow with a tint of lime green but eventually get darker green on top as the plant matures.

However, as it becomes dormant, you will barely see any growth in the plant in the fall and winter.

But before getting a winter sleep, the plant shows a good flush of flowers in summer.

Interestingly, there is another variety of this plant known as Philodendron Burle Marx variegated, that entirely resembles with it, except the lime-green variegations throughout the leaves.

The flower is called an inflorescence, with leafy whitish-green Spathe and cylindrical, curved creamy white Spadix, resembling the flowers of another Philodendron variety, Philodendron rugosum.

Spadix consists of many tiny flowers that later transform into berries after pollination. But, Spathe performs the vital job of luring the pollinators.

Toxicity of Philodendron Burle Marx

Almost all Philodendrons including Philodendron Burle Marxa Fantasy are toxic to pets due to the presence of calcium oxalate crystals in their parts.

Although not so severe, the calcium oxalate in the plant parts can also irritate humans.

In pets, biting the plant parts can cause oral, skin, and ocular irritations, swelling of the esophagus, excessive drooling, vomiting, and diarrhea. 

Humans can also catch blisters or rashes when contacting the sap.

To protect your pets, wrap a cone around your pet’s neck or keep the plant on top shelves or sturdy tables.

You also wash the mouth parts with milk to subside the severity of the symptoms.

However, if first aid doesn’t work, call the following helpline numbers to register an emergency. 

• Animal Poison Control Center (ASPCA): (888) 426-4435.
• National Capital Poison Center: (800) 222-1222.

Propagation Methods for Philodendron Burle Marx

The easiest and most highly used method is stem cuttings, air layering, and seeds.

However, spring or early summer is the best time to propagate Burle Marx.

1. Propagate Via Stem Cutting

• First, cut a healthy 2-4 inches long stem about 1 cm below the node containing a node, aerial roots, and at least one leaf.
• Callous the cutting for 7-10 days in a warm location.
• Now, place the stem in a jar with rooting hormone solution, immersing node, and aerial roots without plunging the leaves.
• Change the water every 3-5 days when it turns murky.
• Cover the cutting with a humidity dome or plastic wrap to secure humidity.
• Place the setup near an east-facing window for 4-6 hours daily at around 60-79°F.
• Then, the cutting will have at least 5 cm long roots in 1-3 weeks, which can now be transferred to a pot with a suitable potting mix.
• Place the pot in a north or east-facing window and provide feed and water when the plant grows new leaves.

2. Propagate Via Air Layering

• Use a sterilized knife to make a 5 cm-long deep wound in the stem.
• The wound should be kept open for roots to grow so you can push a toothpick into the wound.
• However, if a node already has healthy aerial roots, you can skip this step and use the node for air layering.
• Tie a handful of sphagnum moss around the wound or aerial roots.
• If the moss seems dry, add water by opening the wrap.
• Plant the roots in a well-draining potting mix when they are at least 3-5 cm long.
• After planting, locate the pot in an east-facing window and provide feed and water as a normal mature Burle Marx after they grow new leaves.

3. Propagate Via Seeds

If you have a Philodendron Burle Marx, wait for them to bloom, collect seeds by summer’s end, and sow them to grow more plants.

• Separate the seeds from the pulp and soak them in lukewarm water for 24-48 hours of treatment.
• Plant the seeds 1 cm deep and 5 cm apart in a starter potting mix.
• Cover it with a humidity dome and set the container in bright sunlight.
• Maintain a temperature of around 70°F using a heating mat.
• Use a spray bottle to spray water on the soil to keep it wet (not soggy) once a week.
• Within a month, the seeds will germinate and be ready to be transplanted into a bigger pot.

Where to Buy Philodendron Burle Marx?

You can check the following links to get a potted Burle Marx directly.

FAQs About Philodendron Burle Marx

Why is My Philodendron Burle Marx Losing Leaves?

Burle Marx Philodendrons can drop their leaves in case of less light and overwatering.

Don’t water the plant to completely soak the soil or locate the plant with enough lighting.

Why is My Philodendron Not Growing?

Slow growth and small leaf size of Philodendron are mainly caused due to inadequate fertilizer supply to the plant.

Besides, inadequate watering, light, temperature, and root-bound conditions may cause similar problems.

Do I Keep or Prune the Blossoms of Burle Marx?

Philodendrons rarely bloom indoors. Also, even when they bloom, the flower is open for only two days.

After the flower start to wilt, you can cut away the spent bloom.