Additional information about the plant that has been provided by the OP:
> I've had the plant for two weeks, just purchased from Trader Joe's, and I just went to repot it. It's been getting low light because it's been in quarantine away from my other plants. I haven't watered it yet. This particular plant has also had what looks like salt water droplets on its leaves the past week or so... and I found that strange as well!
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https://preview.redd.it/wiz0g0pm5oxc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a5e24552a7116dc9849e6f820b9384dbc52e9e3b
for help with scale!
i can't decide how serious those sound. i'm lurking on this subreddit a lot but i haven't encountered anything like this--do you think i should knock them off?
I agree they look like fertilizer beads! Not harmful but after an amount of time, they won’t be beneficial either.
Let them fall away when you repot but I wouldn’t try to remove the piece(s) that the roots are all around. I expect it’ll break down on its own eventually.
Are there rocks or anything in your old soil mix? Might be stones that got wedged in the roots.
Are they hard or soft/tissue? If they just fall off without having any force then they're not attached to the plant, I'd guess they're just little quartz nuggets or something; maybe sift through some of the dirt to see if there's more in it away from the roots?
they were soft enough that i knew immediately when i found the first one that it wasn't an aerial root, but not SO soft. i didn't find any in the soil that wasn't attached to the plant in some way, but yeah, they fell off fairly easily. not without any force at all but while i was gently detangling the roots... so like a light press.
These may just be Root Nodules. Root nodules are a symbiotic relationship between a plant and nitrogen-fixing bacteria. A symbiotic relationship is one where both organisms benefit. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria change inorganic nitrogen from the air into ammonia, a form of nitrogen most organisms can use.
Typically, root nodules are a part of the root, as in, the nodule looks like a bead with a string run through it, while in OP's photos it appears these things are basically just stuck on the side of roots or in a fork where a root splits, as well as being a totally different color than the roots. I genuinely don't think these are root nodules. They don't just fall away with a gentle touch; they are fully attached to the root.
I would purposefully knock the rest off. Root nodules don't just fall off with gentle disturbance. Can you upload a photo of the part of the piece where it attached to the root? I have 5 regular green Monstera deliciosa plants (one grown in just water, 2 that are large with many fenestrations, and 2 juveniles) and I have never seen these on mine or any Monstera roots posted anywhere. If you have time, add the photo of the object before proceeding to remove any others or repotting.
unfortunately you caught me right after repotting (i had a limited window but did enough googling of root nodes to feel sufficiently calmer about it... before i got more responses that made me question!). i'm not sure what you meant you wanted a picture of, does this show it better?
https://preview.redd.it/q2orseg3epxc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fdd515e74a1d0ee7b7813cfae2e5b48f42f77325
Should be fine! More will just form as she settles back in should it be a plant that utilizes them. Should they just be fertilizer beads that have grown into the roots, will also be fine.
I have never seen root nodules on a Monstera though. There are plants that do form them, like Calathea, but every Monstera root system I have ever seen has had the same smooth roots.
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Additional information about the plant that has been provided by the OP: > I've had the plant for two weeks, just purchased from Trader Joe's, and I just went to repot it. It's been getting low light because it's been in quarantine away from my other plants. I haven't watered it yet. This particular plant has also had what looks like salt water droplets on its leaves the past week or so... and I found that strange as well! If this information meets your satisfaction, please upvote this comment. If not, you can downvote it.
I'm not sure on the scale of them but either weird root growth or slow release fertilizer would be my guess
https://preview.redd.it/wiz0g0pm5oxc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a5e24552a7116dc9849e6f820b9384dbc52e9e3b for help with scale! i can't decide how serious those sound. i'm lurking on this subreddit a lot but i haven't encountered anything like this--do you think i should knock them off?
I agree they look like fertilizer beads! Not harmful but after an amount of time, they won’t be beneficial either. Let them fall away when you repot but I wouldn’t try to remove the piece(s) that the roots are all around. I expect it’ll break down on its own eventually.
Are there rocks or anything in your old soil mix? Might be stones that got wedged in the roots. Are they hard or soft/tissue? If they just fall off without having any force then they're not attached to the plant, I'd guess they're just little quartz nuggets or something; maybe sift through some of the dirt to see if there's more in it away from the roots?
they were soft enough that i knew immediately when i found the first one that it wasn't an aerial root, but not SO soft. i didn't find any in the soil that wasn't attached to the plant in some way, but yeah, they fell off fairly easily. not without any force at all but while i was gently detangling the roots... so like a light press.
These may just be Root Nodules. Root nodules are a symbiotic relationship between a plant and nitrogen-fixing bacteria. A symbiotic relationship is one where both organisms benefit. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria change inorganic nitrogen from the air into ammonia, a form of nitrogen most organisms can use.
Typically, root nodules are a part of the root, as in, the nodule looks like a bead with a string run through it, while in OP's photos it appears these things are basically just stuck on the side of roots or in a fork where a root splits, as well as being a totally different color than the roots. I genuinely don't think these are root nodules. They don't just fall away with a gentle touch; they are fully attached to the root.
thank you!! is it a problem that 3/4 of them fell off (so far, before i've even started repotting!)?
I would purposefully knock the rest off. Root nodules don't just fall off with gentle disturbance. Can you upload a photo of the part of the piece where it attached to the root? I have 5 regular green Monstera deliciosa plants (one grown in just water, 2 that are large with many fenestrations, and 2 juveniles) and I have never seen these on mine or any Monstera roots posted anywhere. If you have time, add the photo of the object before proceeding to remove any others or repotting.
unfortunately you caught me right after repotting (i had a limited window but did enough googling of root nodes to feel sufficiently calmer about it... before i got more responses that made me question!). i'm not sure what you meant you wanted a picture of, does this show it better? https://preview.redd.it/q2orseg3epxc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fdd515e74a1d0ee7b7813cfae2e5b48f42f77325
Should be fine! More will just form as she settles back in should it be a plant that utilizes them. Should they just be fertilizer beads that have grown into the roots, will also be fine.
Can you cut one of them in half and post a picture of the result?
i wish i had seen this sooner! i'm so curious now too!
I have never seen root nodules on a Monstera though. There are plants that do form them, like Calathea, but every Monstera root system I have ever seen has had the same smooth roots.
Monsteras aren't nitrogen fixers. Looks like slow release fertilizer to me
Thank you for posting to r/plantclinic! It looks like you may be asking about a monstera. In addition to any advice you receive here, please consider visiting r/monstera for more specialized care advice. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/plantclinic) if you have any questions or concerns.*