DIY: how to grow your own Stephania Erecta

Are you an experienced plant parent looking for a new challenge? Then you and the Stephania erecta are a perfect match! With your green fingers, you can transform this large, potato-like bulb into a breathtaking climbing plant with stunning, coin-shaped leaves.

The Stephania erecta grows actively in spring and summer, but when winter arrives, she drops her leaves and takes a well-deserved nap. Oh, what a life – we envy her!

In this guide, we’ll show you step-by-step how to pot your Stephania erecta bulb and help her thrive into the tropical beauty she’s meant to be.

What Is a Stephania Erecta?

The Stephania erecta is native to the tropical forests of Asia and Australia. In her natural environment, she grows in peat moss and climbs up trees in search of light.

She loves a warm, bright spot with high humidity, but be careful — no direct sunlight! Once she wakes up and starts growing, she’ll surprise you with how high she can climb. A moss pole or climbing stick will make her a very happy adventurer.

How to pot and grow your Stephania Erecta

Step 1: Give your Stephania a warm bath

Welcome your Stephania home with a relaxing spa treatment! Soak the bulb in warm (not hot!) water for 24 hours. This helps rehydrate the caudex and prepares it for growth. After her bath, gently pat her dry.

Step 2: Prepare the perfect soil mix

Choose a well-draining soil. For extra drainage, you can mix in small stones or perlite. Always plant her in a pot with drainage holes! Stephania absolutely hates wet feet!

Step 3: Plant your Stephania Erecta correctly

Place the bottom of the bulb about 20% into the soil, leaving the rest above the surface. Don’t bury her completely: she likes to show off her round belly!

Not sure which side is up? Look for a woody nub or small dry circle: that’s the top. You can add some decorative stones around the bulb for support and extra charm.

Step 4: Create a tropical home

Stephania Erecta thrives in humidity. To make her feel cozy, place her under a plant dome or inside a clear plastic bag to trap moisture. This mini greenhouse effect encourages faster sprouting.

Step 5: Water with care

Stephania has a slight fear of water, she really doesn’t like getting her bulb wet! Always water around the soil only, never directly on the caudex.

Until you see signs of growth, she barely needs any water. Keep the soil lightly moist but never soggy. Once she starts sprouting, you can water her a little more often, but still with care!

Stephania just loves humidity. She will feel more at home if you place her inside a plastic back or under a plant dome. This will increase humidity and encourage growth.

Step 6: Practice patience... She’ll reward you!

Here’s the tricky part: patience. It can take a few weeks up to a few months before your Stephania sprouts. Don’t give up! She’s just testing your commitment! Once she wakes up, she’ll grow those beautiful coin-shaped leaves in no time.

The Stephania Erecta is a sensitive type that does not like wet feet at all. You could even say that she has a slight fear of water. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the ‘potato’ itself never gets wet. Only pour the water over the potting soil and not over the caudex. Water her sparingly. Until you see growth, she hardly needs any water at all. Just make sure the soil doesn’t dry out completely.

When your Stephania Erecta drops her leaves... Don’t panic!

Is your Stephania looking sad and is she dropping her leaves? No worries, she’s just fine! During autumn and winter, the Stephania erecta drops her beautiful round leaves. She prepares herself for hibernation and saves her strength so she can climb to great heights again when spring arrives.

As soon as she drops her leaves, it is important to give her less and less water. When she has lost all her leaves and goes into hibernation, all she really wants is to be left alone. We can relate; nothing more annoying than being woken up when you are peacefully asleep, right?! Just leave the bulb in the soil, but stop watering her. She feeds on the water and nutrients that she stores in her bulb and doesn’t need any water until she wakes up again in spring and starts developing new growth. After this period of hibernation, she feels like reborn – literally. When spring arrives, she should come bigger and more beautiful than ever!

Important: about Stephania Erecta and sustainability

Stephania Erecta is truly a trend in the houseplant world. The hype surrounding the Stephania Erecta has led wholesalers to start buying this beautiful plant/tuber for the European market. However, both experts and sellers now agree that they were most likely all collected from the wild.

Rogier van Vugt, Head of the Greenhouses at the Botanical Gardens in Leiden has therefore also said; "they have probably all been poached". Plant poaching is the removal of plants from their natural habitat. In the case of the Stephania Erecta, it is not illegal for local sellers in Thailand to collect the caudex plants, because in principle they are not endangered. However, the plant community generally considers it unethical to buy or sell plants that have been ripped from the wild! This is because of the harmful long-term effects that poaching can have on the population of certain species.

At PLNTS.com, we stand against plant poaching. That’s why we no longer sell Stephania Erecta bulbs. But if you already have one, treasure her! Taking great care of your Stephania is the best way to honour her journey.