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What to do with a leggy pothos is to prune it back and propagate the cuttings to encourage fuller, bushier growth.
If you’ve been staring at your pothos with long, bare stems and just a few leaves at the tips, you’re dealing with a leggy pothos.
That’s a common issue with this otherwise easy plant, but the good news is a leggy pothos can be fixed in just a few steps.
In this post, we’ll cover exactly what to do with a leggy pothos, why it happens, how to prune and propagate, and how to keep your plant full and healthy going forward.
Let’s walk through reviving your leggy pothos.
Why Your Pothos Becomes Leggy
A leggy pothos usually happens when the plant isn’t getting enough light.
Pothos stretch toward the light, and when that light is weak, the spaces between leaves (called internodes) get longer.
That elongation is what creates a leggy pothos with long, thin stems and fewer leaves.
Another reason your pothos becomes leggy is lack of regular pruning.
Without trimming, the plant puts energy into the longest vines instead of branching out.
Over time, you’re left with a leggy pothos that looks sparse and unruly.
Sometimes a leggy pothos is also a sign that the plant is rootbound or needs fresh soil.
But in most cases, light and pruning habits are the main causes of a leggy pothos.
Understanding why your pothos gets leggy is the first step in knowing what to do with a leggy pothos to restore its fullness.
How to Fix a Leggy Pothos
Now that you know the cause, here’s what to do with a leggy pothos to make it lush again.
The process involves pruning, propagating, and improving conditions.
1. Prune the Leggy Stems
Grab a clean pair of scissors or pruning shears and identify the longest, most bare stems on your leggy pothos.
Cut each stem back to just above a leaf node — that’s the little bump where leaves or roots can grow.
Leave at least two or three leaves on each vine so the plant can still photosynthesize while it recovers.
Don’t be shy about heavy pruning — a leggy pothos needs a hard trim to reset its shape.
What you remove from your leggy pothos can be used to create new plants.
2. Propagate the Cuttings
Instead of throwing away the trimmed stems, turn them into more plants to fill out the pot.
Take each cutting so it has at least one node and one leaf.
Place the cuttings in water, making sure the node is submerged but the leaf stays dry.
Within a couple of weeks, roots will form, and you’ll have new pothos vines.
Once roots are a couple inches long, plant them back into the same pot as your leggy pothos.
This is the single most effective thing to do with a leggy pothos — you reuse the leggy growth to create a bushy plant.
3. Move Your Pothos to Brighter Light
After pruning and propagating, prevent future legginess by giving your pothos more light.
A leggy pothos that doesn’t get enough light will just stretch again.
Place it in bright, indirect sunlight for best results.
A north or east-facing window is ideal.
If natural light is limited, consider using a grow light to stop your pothos from becoming leggy again.
How to Prevent a Leggy Pothos in the Future
Once you’ve fixed your current leggy pothos, you’ll want to keep it full and compact.
Here are ongoing care tips to avoid dealing with a leggy pothos again.
1. Rotate Your Plant Regularly
Pothos naturally grow toward light.
If you leave it in one spot, only one side gets light, and the back side becomes a leggy pothos.
Rotate the pot a quarter turn every week so all sides receive equal light.
This simple habit keeps the growth even and reduces the chance of a leggy pothos.
2. Prune on a Schedule
Don’t wait until your pothos is already leggy to trim it.
Every few months, cut back the tips of the vines to encourage branching.
Regular pruning tells the plant to produce more side shoots, which prevents a leggy pothos from forming.
Always propagate what you prune so you can fill out the pot even more.
3. Use Proper Fertilizer
A nutrient imbalance can also lead to a leggy pothos.
If the plant gets too much nitrogen, it grows quickly but weakly, with long, thin stems.
Use a balanced houseplant fertilizer diluted to half strength during the growing season.
That supports compact, healthy growth instead of a leggy pothos.
4. Check for Rootbound Conditions
When roots fill the pot, the plant can’t absorb enough water and nutrients.
The result is stressed growth, which often looks like a leggy pothos.
Repot your pothos every year or two into a pot one size larger.
Fresh soil and more space help the plant stay vigorous and full.
So, What To Do With A Leggy Pothos?
What to do with a leggy pothos is to prune back the bare stems, propagate the cuttings for more plants, and improve the light conditions.
A leggy pothos doesn’t have to stay that way — with a few snips and some patience, you can turn it into a full, trailing beauty.
Follow the steps above to fix your current leggy pothos and keep it lush for years to come.
Happy planting.