With proper care and timely preventive measures, the disease will rarely infect the leaves and bushes of monstera, however, in case of violation of the conditions of the plant, the plant will inform you about the problems with its appearance.
In most cases, the plant changes color, discards leaves, dries quickly, and changes shape.
Therefore, let us now consider the most common diseases of this plant, pay attention to its pests and find out what exactly to pay attention to at the slightest changes in the state of the plant.
Monstera: description
In the wild, a monster is called a large liana that belongs to the aroid family. This species grows in tropical forests, which are located in the equatorial regions of South and Central America and even in Brazil.
Did you know? In Europe, the flower came from Asia, in which it was brought back in the XVII century.In modern floriculture, Monstera is an evergreen indoor flower, distinguished by its exotic appearance and unpretentiousness in terms of care. When creating good conditions for growth and development, even at home, the plant can reach four meters, and in just 5-6 years.
However, given that Monstera is a liana, it always needs a stable support, which will take the shape of a tree, save space and give the plant a more impressive appearance.
The diameter of the carved leaves of this plant often reaches 45 cm. The young foliage is whole, but over time, holes appear in the leaf plates, which increase with the growth of the leaf.
In addition to the usual root system, due to which the vine grows to the tree, aerial roots are also of great importance. They reach the ground surface and feed the plant from the ground.
Beautifully hanging or curling in our homes will be diplomatic, hoya, sincapsus, passionflower, tunbergia, jasmine.
Monstera flowering is similar to other aroid blooms and is characterized by an original inflorescence, similar to a corncob wrapped in a bedspread.
The fruit of Monstera is represented by a 20-centimeter berry with banana-pineapple flavor. By the way, in some countries, the plant is valued precisely for its taste. Of course, indoor monstera is unlikely to impress you with a tasty fruit, because in such conditions the plant rarely blooms.
Description and photo pests Monstera
Despite the fact that Monstera is undemanding in care, to combat various diseases and pests that often infect the plant, you need to know about adequate methods for their treatment and elimination.
Shchitovka
Shchitovka - one of the first enemies of a grower, which affects a huge number of home plants. An insect is dangerous because it is very difficult to detect it at the initial stages, because it is very mobile and does not stay in one place for a long time.
Original Lithops, fictitious ficuses, unforgettable echmeas, delicate violets, exotic nolina, cheerful Hoveya, charming plumeria, modest airyprison, bright miltonia, charming epiphyllum, mysterious black orchid, aristocratic clivia, ancient cemetery can decorate your home.There are many types of various scarab, but all of them are united by the presence of a kind of wax shield that covers the body of an insect. As for Monsteras, then most often you have to fight with the ivy shield, which quickly spreads on creeping shoots, adventitious roots and of course on the leaves themselves.
If you are already suspicious of problems with your monster and are looking for signs of illness or pests on its leaves, then it is likely that you will notice their depression, loss of decorativeness and yellowing of the leaf plates, which will soon begin to fall.All this testifies to the presence of a scythosite, and the appearance of a black fungus that occurs on insect honeydew will help confirm your guesswork.
To eliminate such trouble, monster leaves are wiped with a cotton swab or a clean cloth previously soaked in soapy water. An increase in humidity in the room, combined with a simultaneous decrease in temperature, will also help.
With a strong infection of the plant it should be processed. 0.2% solution of rogora, but here it is very difficult to fight the shield at this stage, and sometimes it is already impossible. If all the activities carried out do not bring the desired effect, the affected parts will have to be removed.
Thrips
Thrips, which are often referred to as "buboporny", are small insects that inhabit almost all continents. Monstera is only one of the many plants suffering from these pests and the diseases caused by them. 
It is very difficult to determine exactly which species settled on your flower, since there are more than 300 species of these insects on the territory of the post-Soviet space, and their small sizes do not clearly mark intraspecific differences.
The most famous of them are the so-called ornamental, rassyednyh, rosanny, bulbous, tobacco, dracenic and some other species.
As soon as bright silver spots appear on the leaves of the plant, this is a sure sign that insecticides cannot be dispensed with, because these changes indicate that the plant has been affected by thrips.
The first thing you can do is wash the bush under a warm shower., but with a strong defeat, only the treatment with special means will help. For example, you can dissolve 2 ml of Fitoverma in 200 ml of water and spray the plant with the resulting solution. After the procedure, a transparent plastic bag is put on the monstera, under which it should be kept for at least 24 hours.
Alternatively, it is often used "Vertimek" (2.5 ml of the drug is diluted in 10 liters of water), after processing which also put a plastic bag on the plant.
To cope with thrips help other modern drugs, among which emit "Agravertin". However, in this case, it is worth remembering that at temperatures below +18 ° C, it does not penetrate well into the plant tissue.
Reproduction of these insects occurs very quickly, and at the optimum temperature (for most species it is + 20- + 25 ° C), they easily double their numbers in 4-6 days.
Important! When thrips are found on the monster, it is necessary to immediately examine all the plants growing nearby, since these pests can easily move to the neighboring flowers.
Spider mite
The spider mite often lives on the underside of Monstera leaves, weaving them with thin cobwebs, due to which they dry out and lose their attractiveness. In addition, its appearance on the plant can be judged by the pale green dots on the surface of the leaf plate, which eventually merge into a continuous spot.
Affected leaves acquire an uneven pale green color, after which they turn yellow and die. In the fight against this pest helps "Fitoverm", and as a preventive measure, you can regularly spray a monster with water at room temperature and maintain a high humidity in the room.
Folk remedies to combat plant pests - onion peels, garlic infusions, tobacco infusions, soap solution.With a strong infection with spider mites, Actellic will help to deal with the pest: 15 drops of the drug are diluted in 1 liter of water and sprayed on the plant.
Airing the room will also be useful for monsters, but just remember that the edges of the leaves can also dry out from the effects of drafts.
Mealybug
The mealybug is very similar to woodlice, but only on top it is covered with white wax flux protecting the insect from insecticides on the body. These parasites can move freely around the plant, although in most cases they occupy a fixed state, gathering in the leaf sinuses. 
With a serious infection, monsters will not only dry the tips of the leaves, but also the damaged leaf plates will completely fall off, and the plant itself will stop its growth and development. Most often, small cotton balls, and it looks like a worm, are located on the underside of the sheet, but often get to the root system.
In the latter case, they simply create a huge problem, since the insects remain almost imperceptible and can only be seen by removing the plant from the pot (a white fluffy mass formed by the colonies of pests is clearly visible on the roots).
As a preventive measure, you can regularly wash the leaves, while examining their inner surface. Also, do not forget about other plants that are close to the monster: cacti and succulents are in the main risk group.
Houseplants from insects are treated with insecticides Inta-vir, Aktara, Fitoverm, Calypso, Konfidor, Fufanon, Decis, Aktellik, sulfur.
At the first signs of life of the mealybug, the injured plant is isolated and several times treated with any preparation intended to combat sucking pests. Spraying is carried out with an interval of 4-6 days. 
Did you know? Monstera does not have poisonous juice, but there are fine needle-like formations on the leaves, which may well cause a lot of discomfort if you suddenly want to chew the leaf.
Major Monstera Diseases
While providing proper care for a monster, the disease seldom affects it, but this does not mean that they will not disturb you. The most common ailments are fusarium, blight, chlorosis, anthracnose and rot.
Fusarium
This is a fairly common infectious fungal disease, which is often found in houseplants. The fungus is in the soil and affects flowers at any age, although it manifests itself in different ways. In young plants, rotting of the roots and root system is often observed (in the affected areas, the tissues begin to grow brown, and the stem becomes thinner, the leaves turn yellow).
Soon the plant completely fades and perishes. In most cases, diseases are susceptible to weakened flowers, especially if they grow in conditions of high humidity and air. If you have noticed the wilting of individual parts of the plant or can not understand why the monstera leaves dry, it's time to suspect fusarium.
Phytophthora
Phytophthora (or late blight) is better known as a disease of solanaceous crops, however, it is often found in room floriculture. This fungus affects any part of the plant, but most often manifests itself in the form of root and stem rot. 
Infection of plants occurs through the soil, planting material, equipment and even water. Monstera can be infected long before the onset of the disease, and in the initial stages it simply stops its development.
However, after a few months you will notice the wilting of the flower. Of course, these terms are inaccurate, since much in this matter depends on the type of fungal pathogen and the susceptibility of the plant, which, in turn, is a consequence of adverse soil conditions.
Important! A characteristic sign of the development of late blight is purple-brown spots on the leaves and stalks of the Monstera, around which the pale green zone is clearly visible. On the lower part of the leaf plate, especially in wet weather, a white moldy plaque of mycelium is formed.Excessive irrigation or too dense a substrate can provoke the occurrence of late blight, and since there is simply no effective way to combat this disease, then you just have to throw the monster along with the pot and the soil.
Chlorosis
Chlorosis of plants is manifested in the violation of the formation of chlorophyll in the leaves and in the decrease in the activity of photosynthesis. For this reason, the leaf color of a diseased monstera changes from light green to yellow, and over time the leaf plate can become completely transparent. 
Nevertheless, you should not panic right away, since such a phenomenon can be observed even if the plant is in a too bright place for a long time.
If, after transferring the pot to a less illuminated area, the leaf plates continue to turn yellow, then it is necessary to proceed to the treatment of the disease. For these purposes, usually used iron chelate which can be easily purchased at any specialized store (the dosage is indicated in the instructions).
Anthracnose
Before novice florists often the question arises: why do the monsteras turn black? In fact, there may be several reasons for discoloration, and the shape of the blackened parts of the sheet plate plays a significant role.
For example, with anthracnose it is impossible to say that the leaves become completely black, but they are dotted with bright yellow spots, surrounded by dark brown concentric rings.
The diseased plant loses all of its decorative properties, which is why they immediately start fighting the ailment immediately after the first signs appear.
In the initial stages, before the disease spreads completely through the plant, the affected parts should be removed, and then with an interval of one and a half to three weeks, treat the monstera 2-3 times with fungicidal preparations (for example, “Oxyhom” or copper sulphate).
If you missed the beginning of the development of anthracnose and its signs are noticeable throughout the plant, then it is better to destroy the flower immediately, which will help to avoid contamination of other plants.
As a preventive measure, it is necessary to remove dry leaves from the plant in a timely manner, and you can also spray the monster copper oxide or cuproxate.
Since this disease is easily tolerated with inventory, pests, or even precipitation, then, when caring for a flower, you need to pay attention to these factors.
Rot
Often, monstera leaves turn black or white completely or partially, and in order to understand what to do, it is necessary to understand the causes of this phenomenon. First of all, one should pay attention to the irrigation regime, because with a lack of moisture, the leaves of the plant first turn yellow and then darken, but if there is too much moisture, then blackness appears on the green leaves.
In this case, there are two main types of rot: dry and wet. It will be enough just to watch the monster, and as soon as you find the guttation, you need to immediately reduce watering.
Houseplants are often struck and gray rot, and although the monstera is sufficiently resistant to diseases, it is not immune from it. In the initial stages of the disease, gray spots appear predominantly on the dying parts of the monstera, but very quickly pass to healthy ones.
For domestic plants from fungicides, gamir P, trichodermine, alirin-B, phytosporin are preferred.In the fight against this disease use systemic fungicides or copper soap solutionwhich process the plant in two stages with a break of 1-2 weeks.
The most common mistakes in the care of the monster at home
It is no secret that for the well-being of all indoor or garden plants they need proper care, taking into account the basic needs of a particular species. Monstera in this regard is no exception, so any changes in the usual type of plant, most likely, are caused by errors made during the care of him. 
For example, if the monstera leaves turn yellow and dry, then it is likely that:
- in winter, watering should be reduced (provided that the problem was noticed in the winter);
- an increase in the amount of applied fluid is required, especially if brown spots appear on the plant besides yellow leaves;
- it is necessary to reduce the air temperature and increase the humidity in the room, because quite often these factors are the cause of yellowing and fast falling of the leaves.
If the leaves of Monstera changed color to a pale yellow, then the plant needs a shade.
In addition, the monstera often begins to "cry." Transparent drops protrude on the leaves of the plant, indicating excessive wetting of the earthen coma. To solve this problem, it is necessary to allow the soil to dry slightly and increase the intervals between watering.
Did you know? Drops on the leaves of Monstera often appear before the onset of precipitation or just on cloudy weather.In case of insufficient lighting, Monstera stops growing, therefore, in order to stimulate this process, it is necessary to provide the plant with sufficient lighting and optimum air temperature.
In addition, experts recommend periodically moisturize the leaves, which uses regular spraying. It is better to water the soil only after the top layer is completely dry, although the application of the liquid itself should be abundant.
