5 Simple Tips For Helping Your Houseplants Live Longer
There are many factors that affect the life of a houseplant. These include the type of plant, exposure to direct sunlight, watering frequency, type of pot used, and the environment it lives in. Some of the common things to do to help your plants live longer are making sure they are watered, grown in well-draining soil, and getting the right amount of sun.
Here are 5 other simple tips you can do to help your houseplants live longer:
Simple Tip 1 – Rotate Your Plants
The benefits of rotating your houseplants are numerous and are often overlooked. It allows them to grow in a more balanced manner, preventing them from growing unevenly and looking strange. This helps the plant get the right amount of sunlight, thus making the plant sturdier and stronger on all sides. Try rotating the plant 90 degrees once a month. It does not matter what direction you rotate the plant, just be sure to do the rotation in the same direction each time. Remember plants that are grown indoors only receive light from a window or from artificial light.
Simple Tip 2 – Regularly Monitor Your Plants For Disease Or Pests
Monitoring your plants for disease or pests is important to ensure that they can grow healthy and strong. Some signs of a plant that is sick or has pests are wilting, discoloration, changes in new growth development, curling leaves, and holes in the leaves or stems. It is important to monitor your plants so you can identify these signs and take appropriate action before the problem gets worse.
Simple Tip 3 – Dust Your Plants
The reason to clean your plant is to get rid of an accumulation of dust, pet dander, and spider webs on plant leaves that can prevent photosynthesis from occurring. To clean the leaves, it is best to use a damp cloth, but you can also use something like a small makeup brush to wipe plants with more sensitive leaves. Rinse off the leaves in the shower or a sink. Here is more information on how to Give Your Houseplants A Bath.
Simple Tip 4 – It’s Okay To Give Your Plants A Little Help
If you notice the foliage on your houseplant struggling to open, it is alright to assist in opening the foliage. Plants grow outside and have the sun and wind to help leaves open properly. Indoor you might find a new leaf has grown but it has not opened for weeks. Use the tip of your nail to run along the seam from top to bottom until the leaf splits away from the center and can open. If the leaf remains closed for weeks, it will rot because it has not had enough sunlight to develop chlorophyll. You might find this happening in low-light environments.
Since indoor plants do not have rain to wash away pests, foliage on plants can be susceptible. Try misting them with a mix of distilled water and a few drops of antibacterial soap. This is a great idea for your palm plants.
The last thing you can do is water around the base of the plant rather than the same spot. Doing this provides the roots with an even amount of water and prevents the soil from caving in and deteriorating the trunk of the plant.
Simple Tip 5 – Be Consistent With Care
It is important to be consistent with the care of our houseplants. If we don't do this, they will not grow well and may even die. The following tips can help us with this:
- Be mindful of the amount of water we are providing for them
- Be mindful of the kind of light they are receiving
- Be mindful about how much sun they are getting
- Be mindful about how often we fertilize them
- Be mindful of the temperature in which they live
- Be mindful of the kind of soil that we use for them
Here are some additional houseplant tips experts found on Porch.com. The article is Indoor Gardening: Expert's Advice.
