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Centipede Tongavine

Epipremnum pinnatum, Araceae

Sources last read 14 September 2026.

Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.

Also called Cebu Blue, Dragon-Tail Plant, Native monstera, Silver Vine, Taro Vine and Tibatib.

Centipede Tongavine (Epipremnum pinnatum), the whole plant.
Mokkie, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Centipede Tongavine is toxic

  • Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Toxic to people. Listed as harmful to people; the details of the harm could not be read from the source. RHS

What the sources say about its care

Sources file this plant under other names: Epipremnum pinnatum 'Golden Pothos'. Citations below point at the name its source uses.

Light
Full sun, Partial shade
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Water
Moist but well-drained
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%
Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Temperature

How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.

H1B — 10–15°C 10–15 °C
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Soil
Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or Neutral
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to cats
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to dogs
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Harmful to people
Listed as harmful to people; the details of the harm could not be read from the source.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Routine care

Watering
In the growing season, water generously and feed monthly with a balanced liquid fertiliser; in winter, water moderately.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Feeding
Through the growing season, water generously and give a balanced liquid feed each month; water moderately in winter.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Repotting
It may need a new pot roughly every 2 to 3 years.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Propagation
Use stem cuttings to propagate.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Root stem-tip cuttings in summer; alternatively, layer.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pruning
In spring or early summer, trim the foliage to keep the plant's size and shape.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
In spring, prune tips to promote branching.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pests and diseases
Can be troubled by glasshouse red spider mite, scale insects and mealybugs. Diseases: usually none.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Move something and watch

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Close view of Centipede Tongavine (Epipremnum pinnatum) foliage.
Close upBeah Vega, CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Centipede Tongavine (Epipremnum pinnatum) growing wild.
In the wildMokkie, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

About the plant

Epipremnum pinnatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Araceae. It has many common names, including centipede tongavine, taro vine, silver vine and dragon-tail plant. In the Philippines, it is known in Tagalog as tibatib.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026

Native range
Trop. & Subtrop. Asia to Pacific
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Tropical and Subtropical Asia to Pacific
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Asia to Pacific
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Climate
wet tropical
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Growth form
climber
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Epiphyte, Perennial, Vine; habit climbing, creeping
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Climbing, Trailing (evergreen)
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Size
Width 228–780 in
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Height 2.5-4 metres; spread 0.5-1 metres after 5–10 years
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Flowering
Flowers cream/tan, gold/yellow, gray/silver, green, white
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Uses

What sources record people using this plant for. A traditional or medicinal use listed here is a record of use, not advice to eat it or treat anything with it.

In China it has been used for injuries, abscesses and rheumatic joint pain, and its sap for snake bites. In Singapore it is commonly sold as a medicinal plant. The bark is used for wounds, headaches and muscle pain. Anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and anticancer properties have also been found.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Other Epipremnum

More of the Araceae family

Plants with similar care

Sources

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.