Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Common Pothos (Pothos scandens)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Solomon Islands Pothos, Wild Pothos, True Pothos.

More about common pothos

About Common Pothos

Pothos scandens · also called Solomon Islands Pothos, Wild Pothos · tropical

Pothos scandens is the true botanical Pothos — a distinct Araceae genus separate from Epipremnum — native to Southeast Asia and the Pacific. It bears glossy, ovate, irregularly shaped green leaves and climbs readily using aerial roots. Often confused with Epipremnum aureum in horticulture, it shares similar care needs. All parts are toxic to pets due to calcium oxalate crystals.

Cold limit: USDA 10-12 (indoor-only outside tropical climates) · RHS H1b (18-28°C)

What common pothos's hardiness rating actually means

Common Pothos is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10-12 (indoor-only outside tropical climates) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Common Pothos has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for common pothos as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can common pothos go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when common pothos can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Common Pothos hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is common pothos cold hardy?

Common Pothos is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Common Pothos can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10-12 (indoor-only outside tropical climates)); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature common pothos can survive?

What hardiness zone is common pothos?

Common Pothos is rated USDA 10-12 (indoor-only outside tropical climates) and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can common pothos survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to common pothos below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.