Hello! I have a philodendron that is ~5 years old. It recently has started turning very yellow and losing leaves. It is also extremely long with new growth at the ends but very bare and leggy at the top. It’s always been in the same sunny spot and I need advice on how to make it look healthier and fuller! It’s looking quite sad these days.
When was the last time it was repotted (is that what the first pic is showing?) Does the pot it is sitting in have drainage holes? (I'm guessing the gold pot is a decorative shell?). Might be time to make some cuttings and get some new plants going, just in case this can't be resolved...
Is it losing old leaves or new leaves? It looks pretty good from the photo. Old leaves will always turn yellow, then wither and drop off. You could cut parts of it way back to encourage new growth at the top to fill in the loss of old leaves. Anything healthy looking that you cut off could be used to start the new plants, or if there is room in the pot, you can try pushing them into the soil to see if they will take. Remove the leaves from one or two nodes that will go into the soil. For cuttings, just use the last 8 inches or so.
It's losing the old leaves. What is left on it looks healthy, it is just so bare at the top. I think I will go the route of cutting it back and repotting the cuttings. I'll also try pushing a few in to see if that works.
It was repotted about six months ago. The pot doesn't have drainage holes but there are some stones at the bottom. I'm going to try taking some cuttings and see if that works.
Is there any way you can get holes into that pot? I think Daniel posted some link recently indicating that stones at the bottom are not a good idea, and not having drainage is really not a good idea. These plants can put up with a lot of abuse, though, and you've figured out how to deal with its situation so far. For the cuttings, give them pots with drainage holes.
The roots are likely rotting from lack of oxygen, and can't sustain the size of the plant anymore (so it is naturally pruning itself, if you like). If you like that pot, use the pot within a pot method (the one inside having the drainage holes, preferably elevated on a dish) so that you still have the exterior one to look at.
