Houseplants over the years have become more and more of a vital piece in interior design for homes. Decorating your home interior with indoor plants brings in natural elements and vibrancy to rooms with their awesome looking leaf shapes and patterns. Check out all of the amazing options at bath garden center, I’ve got my eye on a few plants!
Lots of stay at home mums these days are looking to spice up their life by bringing plants into their homes, but finding difficulty in keeping them alive over time. Being a houseplant newbie who is new to keeping indoor plants can be quite a challenge because lots can easily go wrong. It is always important to go over the basics of gardening and fully understanding plant care techniques first before diving into plant parenthood. It can be very daunting once you find out there are requirements you have to cater to when looking after plants, but they are very easy to learn. Once you know the basic tips off the back of your head, being a plant parent will be a breeze.
Here’s 5 simple and valuable tips that all houseplant newbies should consider before taking on the responsibility of an indoor plant:
1. Watering the Plants
One of the most important aspects of taking care of an indoor plant is the process of watering them. When plants don’t get enough water, their leaves will quickly drop. Overwatering on the other hand, can result in the stems of the plant shrivelling. Different plant species will have different requirements for water, so please keep that in mind. Overwatering is one of the main reasons why people have plants that die – and for those wondering why, it is usually due to newbies who ‘over-nurture’ their plants to be on the safe side but in fact end up drowning the plant in its pot. A quick guide for watering your plants is to remember that succulent plants only need to be watered once a week at the most, whilst regular houseplants need watering every other day, usually every 2-3 days in between. You need to make sure that the soil 2cm below the surface has completely dried before you rewater the plant.
2. Types of Substrate
What you use as your planting medium is another important factor of keeping your houseplants healthy.
Keep in mind, ordinary nursery soil isn’t generally a reasonable choice as it might contain weeds and minuscule creepy crawlies. Hence, it is recommended that you set up your own or buy a prepared bag of soil from your local Bunnings or garden centre. For succulents you need a loose draining soil mixed in with perlite, whilst normal indoor plants require different soil mixed in with things like coco coir and vermiculite to hold in moisture in the soil mix. Placing pebbles or rocks on top of the soil is okay as long as it does not obstruct the water when you are watering your plants. An advantage of another layer on top of your soil is that it help to prevent fungus gnat infestations by stopping them from laying eggs in the soil.
3. Light Levels
The process of photosynthesis is important for the survival and growth of your houseplants and as vital as water for your plants. Again, there are differing light requirements depending on the species of plant, but in general terms for houseplants, a spot that gets decent amount of filtered daylight with some shade will be a good balance. Some plants such the Devil’s Ivy will have quite low light requirements and can survive and grow in rooms that don’t get too much light while succulents on the other hand will require high light levels to survive. You can supplement your low light levels by using artificial lighting or even grow lights too but you just can’t beat good old natural sunlight.
4. Levels of Humidity
If your houseplants are in a very dry environment and there is not enough moisture, the leaves of the plants can shrivel up and be lost. To ensure that your plants are getting enough moisture, you can try placing your plants closer together to maintain a little humidity in the air around them from when you water them. It is also recommended that a water spray bottle or a long water can be used so that the plants can be misted constantly to keep moisture all day without going overboard on watering the plant. Some plants however do not like having water on their leaves so look up the plants you have first before doing this.
5. Nutrients for the Plant
For fast and constant growth of your houseplants, it’s a good idea to bump them up with organic nutrients as fertilizers. Fertilizers can be conveniently purchased from all sorts of home and garden shops. If you’re after a more cost-friendly route, you can simply use compost. In using fertilizers, you’ll need to read instructions for how much quantity you need to apply to your houseplants. There are two main types of fertilizers – liquid form and pellet form. Pellet fertilisers are ‘slow-release’ which means that they take months to slowly release the nutrients to your plants.
Once you’ve taken these 5 simple and valuable tips on-board, you will have no issue with sustaining your indoor garden for years to come. Check out the Cheeky Plant Co. – Online Plant Shop for buying indoor plants – whether you’re a houseplant newbie or an expert plant parent, there’s plants for everyone. Just make sure to remember that plant requirements may differ depending on plant species so do your own research first before taking action – then you can remain focused in keeping the most optimal conditions to allow your plants to thrive in your presence.
gloria patterson says
these are some great tips and suggestions. I love plants but I have 2 windows so lot a lot of light. Some of my plants grow good others come in and die quickly. I