5 Secrets About Indoor Plants That Your Local Nursery Won’t Tell You

Every day when you drive back home from work, you always pass that local nursery with all the flowers, plants and trees and couldn’t resist glancing at their beauty. One evening, you go to that nursery and buy all those blooming plants, air-purifying marvels and a few more to home because it will enhance the health and beauty quotient of your house overnight. You were told that those plants will flourish with almost no maintenance but it has been four days and half of the indoor plants you bought so enthusiastically, are dead and you don’t know why. You followed the instructions from nursery to the T but still, your favourite greens refuse to survive. So, what was it? What went wrong? If you are pondering too, then keep on reading because we are going to unravel some secrets that the plant nursery won’t tell you.

1. The Water Trick

Yes, it is true that the water requirements of each plant are different. Some require water twice a day while some thrive on a weekly watering schedule but it is so hard to memorise the requirement of individual plants and adhere to the rules and that too is such a fast pace of life. It is possible that over-watering is killing your plants one at a time. Here’s the trick! Before putting water in the soil, feel it first. Take a pinch of soil from the edge of the pot, if it is crumbling, the plant needs water and if it is lumping, there is no need to drown the plant. You don’t have to remember the frequency of watering. Do it on a regular schedule, just feel the soil once before pouring in.

2. The Lighting Effect

A plant needs light to survive. While some do well under direct sunlight, some dance under the indirect light or low light conditions. Whichever source your plants are drawing from, you have to make sure that the light conditions are even and it’s not as difficult as it sounds. Just every two days, rotate the plant so that the light-facing part of the plant is now at the back and the other side is receiving light directly from the source. This little trick will make your plants live longer and healthier.

3. The Coffee Filter

Surprised? They are the game changer when it comes to caring for indoor plants. Before putting soil and plant into the pot, cover the base with a spread of coffee filter. It will keep the soil in place and let go of the excess water which will effectively avoid waterlogging. It also keeps the soil on the base moist for a long time so that it doesn’t lose the nutrients. It also avoids the mess created when soil accompanies water while making an exit from the pot. It becomes a necessity with the desktop plants in the house.

4. The Soil Saga

When soil is ripped out from its natural landscape, its natural profile gets destroyed. It starts retaining water as a binding agent which in turn, results in waterlogging. So what you could do to make the soil nutritious and healthy? The answer is an egg! While potting the plant, put the available soil up to two inches inside the pot. Over it, put one uncracked egg and cover the rest of the pot with the soil. The placed egg will act as a natural fertilizer for the plant. Surely, the local plant nursery hasn’t told you this, right?

5. Re-potting Remedy

Just like kids, plants to outgrow the basic needs to survive and ask for something bigger and better. However, a transplanted green has a 70 percent more chance to die than when it was potted in the first place and the reason is the root replacement. The root hairs absorb water and nutrients from the soil and transfer it to the plant. As important as their function is, they are quite delicate in nature and often die while the repotting process. One way to avoid the damage is to plant it in a bigger pot in the first place. Pick one with a drainage system so your precious little green does not get drowned. A larger pot will eliminate the need of re-potting once your bust buddy thrives and grows to showcase the magnetic form of its beauty.

You don’t have to be dependent on anyone to keep your plants healthy and flourishing. These little tips will keep your little greens emanating a peaceful aura in the house.