You've probably seen a Golden Pothos trailing down a dusty bookshelf in a doctor's office or hanging in your friend’s bathroom. It's the "unkillable" plant. But honestly, the world of different types of pothos plants is way weirder and more beautiful than that one basic yellow-and-green vine. Most people think a pothos is just a pothos, but if you start looking at the leaf texture or the way the variegation hits the light, you realize there’s a massive difference between a common Jade and a high-end Teruno series cultivar.
Pothos belong to the genus Epipremnum. Specifically, Epipremnum aureum. They’re aroids. They climb. In the wild, these things turn into monsters with three-foot-wide leaves that develop massive splits called fenestrations. Inside your apartment? They stay small and cute. But choosing the right variety actually matters for your light levels and how much patience you have for slow-growing leaves.
The Classics and Why They Still Dominate
The Golden Pothos is the blueprint. It's the one that started it all. If you ignore it for three weeks, it just kind of looks at you and keeps growing. It has those heart-shaped leaves with yellow splashes.
Then you have the Jade. It's basically a Golden that lost its "sparkle." It’s solid green. Some people find it boring, but it’s actually a powerhouse for low-light corners where variegated plants would eventually starve or turn green anyway. Without sunlight, those fancy white splotches on other varieties can’t photosynthesize. The Jade doesn't care. It’s a tank.
Marble Queen vs. Snow Queen: Is There Actually a Difference?
This is where it gets confusing. You go to a big-box store and see a "Snow Queen" and it looks exactly like the "Marble Queen" next to it.
✨ Don't miss: How to Sign Someone Up for Scientology: What Actually Happens and What You Need to Know
Here is the truth: they are technically the same plant.
The "Snow Queen" is just a Marble Queen that grew up in incredibly bright, indirect light. When the plant gets more light, it produces more white (chlorophyll-free) patches to regulate its energy. If you take a Snow Queen and put it in a dark hallway, the new leaves will eventually come out looking like a standard Marble Queen. It’s all about the light exposure.
- Marble Queen: Creamy, "marbled" look. More green than white.
- Snow Queen: Stark white dominance. Slower grower because it lacks chlorophyll.
Neon Pothos and the Blue-Gray Outliers
If you want a plant that looks like it’s plugged into a wall outlet, get a Neon. It is shockingly bright. We’re talking electric lime green. It doesn’t have variegation, so you don't have to worry about it reverting. It just stays that loud color.
But then things get moody.
🔗 Read more: Wire brush for cleaning: What most people get wrong about choosing the right bristles
Enter the Cebu Blue. Now, technically, this is Epipremnum pinnatum, not aureum. It’s a cousin. The leaves aren't heart-shaped; they’re narrow, lance-like, and have this stunning silvery-blue sheen. It feels more "industrial" or "modern" than the cozy Golden Pothos. If you give it a moss pole to climb, the leaves will actually start to get those cool Swiss-cheese holes as it matures. It’s a total vibe shift from the traditional trailing plant.
The High-Variegation Struggle: N'Joy, Pearls and Jade, and Manjula
These are the "fancy" ones. They stay smaller. They grow slow. They are also the ones most likely to break your heart by getting brown crispy edges the second your humidity drops below 40 percent.
- N'Joy: Developed by Anneke Vlieland in the Netherlands. It has very distinct, crisp patches of white and green. No speckling.
- Pearls and Jade: A mutation of the N'Joy found by the University of Florida. It has "pearls" (white spots) and "jade" (green spots) inside the variegation. It looks "messier" than the N'Joy, but in a charming, speckled way.
- Manjula: This is the holy grail for many. The leaves are wider, almost round, and the edges are wavy. The variegation is a chaotic mix of cream, silver, white, and green. It’s patented by the University of Florida and can be a bit harder to find in some regions.
Why Your Pothos is Dying (It's Probably Not the Water)
Actually, it usually is the water, but not the way you think. Most people overwater because they think the plant looks "sad." Pothos love to dry out. If the soil is damp and the leaves are yellowing and falling off, you have root rot. You need to pull that thing out of the pot, snip the mushy black roots, and start over in fresh, chunky soil.
Expert tip: use a mix of potting soil, orchid bark, and perlite. Pothos are epiphytes. In the wild, they grow on trees, not in thick mud. They want air around their roots.
💡 You might also like: Images of Thanksgiving Holiday: What Most People Get Wrong
The Teruno Series and Rare Cultivars
If you go down the rabbit hole of different types of pothos plants, you’ll eventually hit the Japanese cultivars. The Teruno series is legendary. You have the Teruno Fanfare, Teruno Robin, and the Teruno Shangri-La.
The Shangri-La is particularly weird. The leaves look like they’ve been crumpled up or like they never fully unfurled. It looks almost like a spinach plant. It’s polarizing. You either love the texture or you think it looks like it’s suffering from a virus. But that’s the beauty of the species—it mutates constantly.
Light Requirements for Variegated Types
You can't treat a Manjula like a Jade.
If you have a plant with a lot of white, it needs more light. White parts of the leaf don't help the plant eat. They are essentially dead weight. To keep that white color, you need bright, indirect sunlight. If you put a highly variegated pothos in a dark corner, the plant will start producing more green to survive. This is called "reverting."
Once a vine reverts to solid green, it’s hard to get the variegation back on that specific strand. You usually have to chop it back to the last variegated leaf to encourage the plant to try again.
Actionable Steps for Pothos Success
- Check the Nodes: Before buying, look at the "nodes"—the little brown bumps where the leaf meets the stem. If the nodes look healthy and thick, the plant will propagate easily in water.
- The Finger Test: Stick your finger two inches into the soil. If it feels even slightly damp, don't water it. Wait until the leaves just barely start to limp. That is the plant telling you it's thirsty.
- Rotate for Even Growth: Pothos will grow toward the light. If you don't rotate the pot every week, you'll end up with a "lopsided" plant that is bald on one side.
- Clean the Leaves: Dust blocks sunlight. Every few months, take a damp cloth and wipe down the leaves. It makes them shine and helps them breathe.
- Propagate Early: If a vine gets too "leggy" (lots of stem, no leaves), cut it. Put the cuttings in a jar of water. Within two weeks, you'll have roots, and you can plant them back into the top of the pot to make the mother plant look fuller.
Pothos are more than just "beginner plants." They are a massive family of diverse textures and colors. Whether you want the neon pop of a Lime or the sophisticated silver of a Cebu Blue, there is a variety that fits your specific home environment. Stop settling for the first green vine you see at the grocery store and look for the weird mutations that make this genus so addictive for collectors.