What to do with damaged Monstera leaves

Any portions of your Monstera’s leaves that turn brown or black are dead. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do to fix them or make them green again. Depending on the size and extent of the damage, you need to decide how to remove the damaged leaves. This will improve the health of your plant so that it can produce new leaves. Read on for tips on cutting damaged Monstera leaves.

Want to use what we use for our Monstera plants? Check out our Monstera care product recommendations that you can purchase from Amazon.

Why you should remove damaged leaves

You should cut damaged leaves off your Monstera. Besides improving the appearance of your plant, trimming dead leaves benefits its health as well.

• Dead leaves cannot photosynthesize. Any portions of your Monstera’s leaves that are brown or black no longer produce energy for the plant.
• Compared to healthy leaves, dead sections have no defense against rot and infection. Bacteria and fungi feed on the nutrients in dead plant cells. For example, you might see mold forming on dead leaves on the plant or left in the soil. Remove black or damaged tissue to help protect the rest of the plant from these diseases.

For very minor damage, such as accidentally ripping or tearing part of a leaf, it is likely that just the ripped edge will brown to seal the cut. If the damage does not impact other areas or ruin your aesthetic enjoyment of the plant, it is totally fine to leave small blemishes intact.

Damage to Monstera roots and stems can be more severe than leaf damage as it interrupts the plant’s ability to transport water and nutrients. Check out our guides to root rot and stem damage, coming soon.

Removing spots from Monstera leaves

If you suspect the damage on your Monstera leaves was caused by a fungus or bacterial infection, clean your cutting tool before and after use. I use rubbing alcohol to wipe the blades down.

Damage with other causes, like overwatering (see our watering guide), for instance, is not contagious and cannot be spread to healthy leaves by contact. In this case, you can sterilize your cutting tool proactively to prevent any microorganisms that may be starting to feed on the dead tissue from entering the cuts. I have never had a plant become infected from routine trimming and don’t usually bother with this.

For small black sections on the edges of the leaf, you can trim them carefully with scissors. For best results, follow the outline of the damage and be careful not to trim any green sections. I prefer to leave a tiny strip of brown on the leaf instead of cutting into the living tissue.

Leaving the remaining green parts of the leaf intact will help your Monstera because they can still provide food through photosynthesis. Bright yellow, curling areas are in the process of dying and can be removed now or later.

Pruning damaged or dead leaves

If the leaf is mostly damaged, or the damage is near the attachment point or main veins of the leaf, it will likely not survive. In this case, cut the leaf once the green parts are gone because it can no longer photosynthesize. You can also remove damaged leaves to improve the appearance of your Monstera.

For removing leaves, I prefer sharp pruning shears as they make the cleanest cut. Your goal when cutting should be a smooth chop without crushing the tissue around the cut. Crushed areas often die as well, so a sharp tool will help you only need to cut once.

Want to use what we use for our Monstera plants? Check out our Monstera care product recommendations that you can purchase from Amazon. Here are my recommended pruning shears. Click the image or link to check the current price.

Ultra Snip 6.7 Inch Pruning Shear with Stainless Steel Blades

Safely cutting leaves to preserve growth points

For black spots on the newest, top leaf of your Monstera, DO NOT CUT this leaf off at the base of its petiole (the stalk that holds the leaf up from the main stem). The top leaf petiole contains the top growth point, or terminal bud. If you look closely, you can see the bump on the side of the petiole where the next leaf will form. Cut off just the leaf itself, leaving this stalk intact so that your Monstera’s new growth can continue to develop.

For a lower leaf, it has already produced a new leaf from its petiole. You can safely cut a lower leaf off at the bottom where it attaches to the main stem. If you leave a portion of the petiole attached, it may die and fall off the stem eventually.

Monsteras with most leaves dead

For Monsteras where the majority of the leaves are damaged, it can be detrimental to the plant’s recovery to cut too many leaves off at once. Plants need their leaves to photosynthesize, so in this case keep any leaves with healthy green portions. Remove only the most damaged or completely dead leaves at first, so that the plant can continue to produce energy with the remaining green leaves. You can trim the other leaves off at a later time if they continue to decline.

If 100% of your plant’s leaves are dead, it’s not too late to save it. As long as the stem and roots remain healthy, an axillary bud (aka lateral bud) will activate and branch off to grow a new leaf. You can also chop and propagate your Monstera as stem cuttings to activate multiple buds. Without leaves, this process will be very slow, so it should remain your last resort.

Continuing care for damaged leaves

Most causes of black leaves on Monstera will not spread once the underlying issue is addressed. However, the already damaged leaf tissue will still die. For problems that can impact large leaf areas, like overwatering, sun damage, and frost damage, leaves may continue to turn black over time. Sadly, you cannot prevent this because the damage is already done, so focus on removing dead leaves and providing a good environment so your Monstera can put out some new growth!

Want to use what we use for our Monstera plants? Check out our Monstera care product recommendations that you can purchase from Amazon.