The Translation: Variegation refers to the appearance of different colored zones—usually splashes of white, cream, yellow, or pink—on a plant’s leaves, caused by a genetic mutation that limits chlorophyll.
Use It In a Sentence: “I paid way too much money for this Monstera cutting just because it has stunning white variegation.”
Why You Care: Variegation makes plants look incredibly cool, and it drives the price of “rare” plants through the roof. But here is the catch: the white parts of the leaf cannot photosynthesize (make food). This means a highly variegated plant needs significantly more light than a normal green plant just to survive.
Hobby Lingo 