Five Tips for Keeping Indoor Plants Alive and Well

August 22, 2012 | Filed under: Garden,Home | Posted by: kcooper

Keeping plants indoors is a great way to spruce up your décor. They also help improve air quality and keep you close to nature. To thrive and look their best, you need to take good care of them. Fortunately, it is not that difficult to keep your plants healthy as long as you commit to doing some simple things when they need to be done.

Let Water Sit for at Least 24 Hours Before Using It on Your Plants

The water coming into your house has been treated with certain chemicals to make it safe for consumption. Plants may not respond well to these chemicals. Let water for your plants sit in an open container for at least 24 hours to allow these chemicals to evaporate. This will also ensure that water is at room temperature—the ideal temperature for watering indoor house plants.

Rotate Plants to Make Sure They Grow Straight

Even if a plant needs relatively little sunlight to thrive, it will tend to lean towards a light source. To make sure all your plants grow straight, it is a good idea to rotate them occasionally to ensure all parts and all plants get equal exposure to the sunlight.

Make Sure they Get Appropriate Amounts of Sunlight

If you have plants that need a lot of sunlight to grow, consider placing them outside for a few hours in the morning if they cannot get adequate sunlight indoors. If your house does not get good sun exposure, make sure to choose plants that need less of it.

Ensure That They Get the Right Amount of Water

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to how much and how often you should water your plants. It will depend on many individual factors, such as the type of plant, whether it is in an active or rest stage of growth, humidity levels in your home and type of soil used to name a few. In this case, more water is not necessarily better; roots can only absorb so much water and the excess will take the place of oxygen in the soil, which can kill your plant. Some basic guidelines include testing the soil with a moisture meter or just your fingers—if it feels dry, give the plant some water. It still feels moist, hold off.

If you have waterlogged your plant, tip it to the side to drain some water or place some paper towels to soak up the excess moisture.

Keep the Proper Level of Humidity

Most plants need a relatively humid environment to thrive. You can place a humidifier in rooms that contain your plants. If you can remember to do it several times a day, spray your plants with a light mist of room-temperature water—this needs to be done regularly to be effective. Place your pot containers over a tray of pebbles soaked in water—the top of the pebbles and the pot itself should remain dry; the plant will reap the benefits as the water evaporates.

Kelli Cooper is a freelance writer who enjoys helping her clients gain more exposure for their websites and grow their businesses. Check out AdvancedLights to view a selection of grow lights for indoor plants.

Photo Credit:http://www.flickr.com/photos/faroutflora/

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Posted by kcooper on August 22, 2012. Filed under Garden, Home. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry