In truth, probably not as long as it's in that grow medium, which you can't help but over-water. The over-watering/ soil compaction/ lack of oxygen are causing a Ca(lcium) deficiency, which accounts for the holes, tears, and malformed leaves. It's a CULTURAL deficiency, so adding more Ca won't fix it and would probably cause a deficiency of Mg.

Al

Actually, all of the leaves were looking perfect before the caterpillar ate into them, so it's only due to that that they have holes in them now. It grew to the size and health that it is in the medium/pot it is currently in. But I appreciate the reply!

It looks fine. The leaves of a mature Pothos have fenestrations.

https://garden.org/plants/view/76418/Pothos-Epipremnum-aureum/

Thank you for the link. Most of the leaves in the photos though do look fully-formed! My photos perhaps don't do it justice, but there are really very large chunks taken out of many of the leaves. Would love to know about prospects (if any) of them eventually being replaced by new ones.

As leaves form along a branch or stem, they're a 1-time thing. IOW, no leaf will ever grow from the spot where the original leaf was attached. The best you can hope for would be a new branch/ vine growing from dormant/ suppressed buds arranged in a row above the attachment point of any leaf. The only way to make certain new branches will form where you want them is to prune back to just above the node where you desire a new branch/ vine to grow.

Example:

This rooted Ficus cutting was pruned above the lower 2 leaves. This forced activation of buds located immediately above the mature leaves' attachment point. While these activated buds might appear to be leaves, they are actually new branches which will, also produce 1-time leaves along its length as long as the branches are extending and the tip of the branch remains in place. When the tip of the branch/ vine is removed, extension of that branch/ vine can no longer extend.

The compacted soil and the holes/ tears made me conclude too soon that a Ca deficiency was in play. Had I known about the caterpillars, I would have not mentioned the Ca deficiency, though the grow medium adds considerable support to that line of thinking. What IS that medium?

AL

Happy to share the pics, Amadeus. : )

I was curious too, maybe some kind of covering to keep pets away from the soil?

To answer your question, leaves likely will not every grow in the same place low on those stems. But you can wait until it gets longer again at the top with some new leaves, then cut those branches, root them and plant them back into the pot to kind of "start over". Hope that makes sense.

Another option is just cut the plant back hard (low on the main stem), which will force new branches to grow on the stem remaining. New leaves can never grow to replace existing leaves on any existing stem or branch - only new branches can form just above where leaves are/were attached. Best time to cut back hard is a week or 2 before the summer solstice. The new leaves that grow along the new branches (in any case) will be/ should be in pristine condition and adapted to make most efficient use of light conditions wherever the plant is placed. That isn't to say all light levels will yield equal results, only that as new leaves come on line they will be perfectly adapted to make use of whatever level of light is available.

Al

Thank you all, your answers are much appreciated. No pets, it was just a random and very hungry caterpillar that made it back with the pot from the plant market!

@popmama (Colorado, USDA z5) That's a great idea, I might do that! So basically take one of the leaves on the top, including its stem, and replant it? I guess the stem will always have a leaf on the end, right, so I'm hoping for it to continue up from the point where the leaf sprouted?

@tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a) Thank you as well. I'm tempted by your first option.. Essentially just the "broken" leaves off at the nodes where they started growing, and the expectation would then be that a new leaf would gradually grow from the stump?

Thanks again all!

Yes that's the idea. And wherever you chop, a new vine will usually start there too.

Just to be clear, note that the stem attached to the leaf, the petiole, won’t work as a cutting. You need to take a piece of the main plant stem from which the petiole it growing.

learn how to do it:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=pothos+propagation&t=ffab&iax=videos&ia=videos

large mature houseplants like this.. ALWAYS need maintenance ... yours will probably need to be repotted... old leaves die.. etc .. its not the end of the world if you get a few ugly leaves ..

where are you.. big city name.. that you get caterpillars in the middle of winter??? .. just curious ... its not like the thing has been dormant for a bunch of months.. and then all of a sudden.. when you go on vacation... it becomes incredibly hungry.. almost makes me wonder if somebody isnt messing with you ..

did yo get it from a reputable seller who should have sold it bug free .. i wonder if something didnt hatch out of the dead log its wired to?????

ken

Thanks @ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5. By repotted do you mean do something larger? Or just when the nutrients in the soil eventually disappear...

I live in Mexico City, so there are caterpillars all year around :)