How to be the Best Houseplant Mum
Houseplants can be extremely temperamental and notoriously frustrating to keep alive, depending on the type of plant you have. Most of the time, it comes down to balance and research when helping your houseplants cling onto dear life, but it's not always as complicated as you think it is (or will be). I'm only 25 years old, but Gardeners World and good ol' Monty Don has taught me a lot by way of looking after different plants, including those that are meant to stay indoors - so let's get down to it.
Prepare and nurture the soil
Like a house, plants need a good foundation in order to grow and thrive. I like to buy the soil from places such as Homebase or B&Q (yes, they sell soil) instead of making up my own using compost. I often find this is the quickest, most effective way of providing your indoor plants with decent soil. If you aren't sure whether the soil you're choosing is appropriate, ask a customer assistant, they're often very knowledgeable when it comes to the products they sell.
Don't water your houseplants too often
Most of the time, houseplant parents will over-water their plants. Plants don't take too well to having "wet feet" as it's often called. Make sure they aren't sat in a pool of water so as not to kill them off way before their time. In fact, you can tell whether or not a houseplant needs watering by testing its weight (as silly as that sounds).
If it's particularly light in comparison to when you first planted/potted it, then it needs to be watered. However, you should always do some research and see whether or not that specific type of plant needs watering at a different rate to a more basic, easy-to-look-after houseplant. It's a general rule of thumb that houseplants prefer to be slightly more dry rather than being over-moist.
Give your houseplant a water no more than twice a week to keep your houseplants alive. When watering, don't pour water onto the plant and don't let it gush into the soil. Instead, let the water slowly trickle into the soil and distribute it evenly around the pot. Stop watering when you see water starting to escape through the drainage holes in the bottom of the plant pot.
During the winter months, watering should be even more infrequent. Perhaps only water it once a week or every ten days so as not to over-moisten it. A spray bottle is also great for houseplants, lightly mist the leaves once a day (especially if they're more tropical) OR you can run a hot shower (with all the windows closed) so as to fill the room with steam then leave your plants in there until the steam dissipates. It will also make your bathroom smells like a rain forest (beaut)! But again, read up about the plant you have because this method may not be suitable.
Keep them in a well-lit place
Exposing your houseplants to a decent amount of natural light is just as important as watering them. Light plays an important part in the all-important biological process - photosynthesis. Some plants may also require more natural light than others, so again, research this to give your plant the best chance of survival. It's always a good idea to think about their native environment and how they'd naturally thrive when it comes to looking after your houseplants.
Don't be afraid to move your plants around the house in order for them to get as much natural light as possible. Depending on the plant, it may need anywhere between 3 and 12 hours of light a day in a bid to grow and be as healthy as possible. Some may even require filtered light (which comes through a net curtain or thin blind) so it's always good to know the basics about the plant you're attempting to grow.
Plants won't die if they don't receive much light, in theory. Instead their growth could be stunted meaning it won't produce new flowers or leaves, so you could be left with a rather small plant that will refuse to blossom.
Fertilise your plants to give them the best chance
Just as you'd fertilise plants out in the garden, it's important that your houseplants are fertilised too. Where it's not absolutely detrimental to the growth of your houseplant, it will greatly improve its overall health, meaning it could last and continue to grow for a considerable amount of time. You'll even find that it flowers at around the same time every single year, which is always satisfying.
The easiest way to do this is to add the fertiliser to the water you feed your plant. Generally, water-soluble fertilisers should be used no more than twice a month to give your plants the best chance. Don't apply fertilisers every time you water the plants as this could kill it off, and you don't want that! Always read the label on the fertiliser you buy and follow the instructions to protect both yourself and your houseplant.
Consider other environmental aspects
You should take the following into account when it comes to looking after your houseplants:
*Room temperature
*Airflow
*Finding and rotating the face
*Keeping them dust-free
Generally, houseplants like to be kept somewhere warm(ish) in a room with good airflow. You should also find its face and then keep rotating it so that every angle of the plant is exposed to some natural light a few times throughout the day. Keep the plants away from cold or draughty areas in the colder months, the warmer the better when it comes to the survival of houseplants.
It's also important to gently wipe down the leaves of your houseplants so that dust doesn't gather over the top of them. Believe it or not, this can greatly impact the health of your plant so keep them free of dust and debris, but be careful when doing this so as not to damage any flowers or general foliage.
***
I hope you enjoyed this blog post. Let me know if you have anymore tips for looking after houseplants by leaving them in the comment section below. I will see you again really soon with a brand new blog post for you all :)
***
WHERE TO FIND ME
PREVIOUS BLOG POST
Another National Trust Treasure | Hardwick Hall
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Comments
Post a Comment