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Hey Pandas, What Are Some Plant Care Tips You Learned That You Feel Everyone Should Know? (Closed)
From outdoor to indoor plants, we each make beginner mistakes or learned during the process such as over/under water or learning about the types of soil depending on PH levels. Please keep it civil.
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When you move plants from the pots they come in to the soil in your garden, they sometimes experience a "transfer shock." During this phase, while they get acclimated to the area, they may appear to shrivel and even look dead. This is simply the roots conserving energy into the core in order to have a burst of growth during the next cycle. Be patient!
OMG I needed this. I just though my plant was about to die but this helps! Tysm!
Mainly just do your research. Every plant has different needs. It's easy to kill something if you don't know what it's natural environment is. Also, don't use fertilizer unless you are certain it's safe for your plants. Even if you have good intentions, there are some plants that die when they get fertilized. If the plant isn't looking great, my first steps are usually to make sure it's getting the appropriate sun and water levels. Not too little, but not too much either.
"Always be nasty to nasturtiums." "They like it rough?" "The rougher, the better." From the movie, Silver Streak.
If you pick off the dead leaves and flowers, your plant will thrive better. When you leave them on there, the plant is still trying to "feed" these withered pieces. If you pick them off, all that energy goes to the rest of the good plant. It helps flowering plants flower more often!
Don't water flowers by pouring it over the blossoms to prevent early withering, always water them directly at the stem from the side
But I thought they liked the feeling of rain drops on their leaves 🍃
If varmints are getting into your garden, plant plenty of forks, tines up, pointed outward, in the bed. White plastic forks will attract attention and comments from neighbors, but the garden will be saved. Clear plastic is less noticeable, and do the same job.
KEEP YOUR VENUS FLYTRAPS IN A BOWL OF WATER OUTSIDE OF THEIR POTS
Make sure that your indoor plants aren't poisonous to pets. I was surprised at the ones that were. Also if you put your indoor plants on the porch in the summer they will get bugs. you can't bring them back in or the bugs will spread.
My plants go in and out with the seasons. I just shake them off, flush them with water and they are fine.
For outside plants~ compost and mulch are two of the greatest helpers.
▪︎Homemade compost is worth it's weight in gold, it benefits all things from plants to the soil and it's so easy to do. If you're not making you're own compost simply do a little research on 'composting at home,' follow directions and make it happen. Especially if you have children and are planning to grow a food garden, participating in the full plant circle of life deepens the understanding and appreciation of all that goes into growing and all the rewards of eating a real and good earth food for humans. The true gift of producing food in your backyard is an undeniable connection to our life in the past and the history of human's existence on this earth.
▪︎Natural, aged hardwood mulch applied to flower beds, landscaping and around tree bases makes a massive positive difference in your plants health and looks great too. When mulch is applied to plant beds and tree bases it helps the soil underneath retain water during the hottest part of summer and keeps plant's roots from freezing to death during cold winter months.
And if you can't do compost for some reason, weed tea is a great fertiliser. Just fill a bucket with weeds (I use the grass that I am trying to eradicate from my garden) and pour water to cover them. Leave for 2+ weeks and then pour over garden beds.
A garden is in a constant cycle of birth, death, and change. Seedlings come up everywhere, deer will eat your hostas. Don't get upset, go with the flow. You will have plants that thrive where you put them and reward you with beauty. It's all worth it.
I get surprise plants every year, brought by wind, bird presents, biennials, it's all part of the fun
Plants you get at the grocery store, the indoor ones in potters. Shake the plant in the store, dig a little in the soil. If you see flies or anything crawling/flying out, the soil is infested and likely they're feeding on the roots. The plant will be severed in the soil and die.
Also, don't trust that the plants have been properly maintained and cared for in the store. But with proper care it may be able to thrive and be healthy again.
One of the best ways to water potted plants is to put ice cubes atop the soil, but not touching the plant leaves or stem. This prevents overwatering & possible leaks from the bottom. Good drainage is a must for any potted plant, whether indoors or out. I line the bottom of pots with a coffee filter first, then add a small layer of 'popcorn' ( the packing material type ). Pebbles or gravel could be used but that makes the pot heavier.
Clean, unused cat litter - not the crystal/scented/clumping varieties - in the bottom of pots to help with drainage and its really cheap.
It is better to sin for not watering than for watering too often. Also, try to find plants that are adapted to your climate, if they are native even better. That way it is more likely that they survive, and you won't need to take care of them as often.
If you go into someone's residence and they don't have any plants, do not get them any surprise ones on the grounds that it will "look better". Chances are, if they don't have plants, it's because they don't want them or can't spend the necessary time on them. I had friends staying who bought me a pot plant as a thank you, because I didn't have any. If you do that, like them, you're just condemning the plants to die.
If your flower pot has no hole in the bottom with a water-holding tray below (essentially, a solid bottom), dig up some small rocks/stones to place in the bottom before adding the dirt and your plant. This layer of stones creates a space for the water to settle and discourages root rot.
If you can stick your finger in the soil, and all of it is damp, your plant is well watered, if the soil is try you should water it.
Good rule of thumb! Rule of *thumb*? To stick your *finger* in the soil? See what I did there? Thank you, I'll be here all week!
Don't ask me to take care of your plants when you leave home on vacation. I can't say no and I do my very best, but they will not survive.
A lot of green indoors plants like if you shower them, especially if they've been without water for a while. It also helps getting rid off dust and other stuff that's stuck on them
African violets LOVE an occasional lukewarm shower. They should never be misted, but a gentle shower lets you wash off the dust that gets stuck in the hairy leaves. Be sure to let any excess water drain off so their delicate roots aren't sitting in waterlogged dirt.
Plan on having some of your plants getting eaten by animals / bugs. There are some basic things you can do like using taller pots and raised beds, but just pouring a bunch of pesticides can have negative knock on effects, which can in turn kill wildlife and the pollinators you need (e.g. bees and other helpful insects)
source:
https://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/pubs/az1481i.pdf
Add some nettle leaves in the hole before planting (for example tomatoes) it will nourish the plant and help it grow
Don’t water cactus. And don’t leave them outside.
According to my mother... talk to them. According to my father...cuss at them. (Me wondering why they kept such a toxic plant around the house... just dawning on me 5 decades later... oooohhh!)
Actually talking to them works. Not the physical words but rather the breath your giving them!
Prune your tomato and pepper plants. You will notice that some of the leaves are large and deep green with no fruit near them while others are lighter green and are close to a fruit. Prune the darker leaves (not all of them) so that the plants energy can go towards production of fruit. If you don't prune them, they can turn into bushes and you will miss the fruit.
Cacti and succulents don't need much water, but that DOESN'T mean you just mist them or give them a tiny bit of water. They've evolved for periods of drought followed by heavy downpour. When you water them water until water pours out the bottom of the pot, then give them time to dry out fully before the next time.
You don't "water" orchids, you soak the media (bark chips, moss, etc.) then drain. Your phal or dendro you bought at the hardware or grocery store almost certainly has a plastic liner with drainage inside the decorative ceramic pot. Don't just pour water in every week, you'll literally drown it! Fill it up, let sit for 2-5 minutes, then remove the inner liner (containing plant), let drain, and dump the water in the ceramic pot and replace the liner. Only needs to be done once a week. I've had so many people complain they can't keep a phalaenopsis (most commonly sold in grocery/hardware stores, what most people think of when they picture "orchid") alive, but they're sooo easy if you don't water them like a regular terrestrial plant!
Rose shrubs leave an enzyme in the soil that thwarts competition from other roses, because they are aggressive about water. So, if you dig up a rose shrub, you either have to remove the soil about 2 feet around the hole, or plant a different sort of plant there - not another rose. An alternative is to leave the ground fallow for a couple of years to give the enzyme time to dissipate. I didn't know this and moved my rose shrubs around like furniture, then wondered why they just couldn't seem to thrive, no matter how much care I gave them. Some of them recovered when I learned about their competitive enzymes and planted them in soil that had not had a rose shrub planted in it before.
So I am definitely no expert, just a dabbler and roadside forager, but talk to 'em. Pet 'em. Look up random info about their growth cycle or needs and chat with them about that, get excited about their quirks, compliment them on their new leaves or whatever weird s**t they're doing today. Idk if they notice but I learn and pay attention and thus improve my chances of keeping them alive. They don't seem to like it when I'm too focused on the rules. I treat them more like little alien pets than anything.
I compliment my plants all the time, especially when I notice a new bud, or spout or branch. The onther thing I do, which is simply intuitive, I arrange them so they are not touching each other. I believe they like their own personal space.
SOME PLANTS DIE IF YOU WATER THEM TOO MUCH
Root tone is awesome. Experiment with it on different cuttings you will be surprised. Roses might be the easiest but lots of plants can be grown from just a cutting.
I started a desert rose by sticking a piece that broke off into a glass of water. I didn't expect it to do anything, but it was green and I thought I would keep it until it died. It stayed green for a long time and one day I took it out of the glass and discovered one tiny root! I let it stay in the water until more roots formed and finally potted it and it's growing like a bad weed!
Patience , patience and more patience with Bonsai plant. I had to learn to leave it alone . It's thriving now. 👍
I know this is basic plant care but GIVE THEM SUNLIGHT AND WATER THEMMMMM THEY ARE LIVING THINGS THEY NEED WATER AND LIGHT
Plants have differing needs when it comes to water and light. Finding the best balance insures the best plants. Ferns like to sit in a dish with rocks filled with water. I have succulents I haven't watered since I bought them. (Will eventually) Some plants need to be in bright light, some can do with out. You just have to pay attention to how they're doing in different places.
Thank you for all of these tips! I have a brown thumb, but I'm trying to get better, so this was very helpful
You'll learn, it's only 3 years since I have a garden, inherited from the previous house owner who was a great gardener. I moved in in September so a lot was still looking great! Come winter and I went on a massive tidy up spree and hacked anything and everything and it was barren the next spring. So I made a list of the plants, using apps and help from social media, learned how to care (or not, lots of patches left to grow for wildlife) for each one and now everything looks great! Some plants are more difficult than others so start easy with herbs for instance.
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Some plants prefer benign neglect. Got my best blooms doing that to my gardenia and bird of paradise shrubs. Stopped the fertilizers and probably was over watering. Amazing transformation.
Thank you for all of these tips! I have a brown thumb, but I'm trying to get better, so this was very helpful
You'll learn, it's only 3 years since I have a garden, inherited from the previous house owner who was a great gardener. I moved in in September so a lot was still looking great! Come winter and I went on a massive tidy up spree and hacked anything and everything and it was barren the next spring. So I made a list of the plants, using apps and help from social media, learned how to care (or not, lots of patches left to grow for wildlife) for each one and now everything looks great! Some plants are more difficult than others so start easy with herbs for instance.
Load More Replies... Some plants prefer benign neglect. Got my best blooms doing that to my gardenia and bird of paradise shrubs. Stopped the fertilizers and probably was over watering. Amazing transformation.
