Houseplants: RHS advises on watering techniques
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Winter is the time houseplants need some rest as they enter a dormant period. Preparing houseplants for the colder months is simple but also vital in ensuring they stay alive. Growth is much slower during these months and so giving them too much water can trigger root rot, which is one of the biggest killers of indoor plants.
Maryam Ghani, indoor plant expert at luxury flower gifting service Haute Florist, said: “It can be hard to tell just by looking at your plant if it needs water and some people are reluctant to plunge their fingers into the soil to check how dry it is.
“Consider using a chopstick instead. Insert it deep into the soil and if it’s clean when you remove it, this means the soil is dry and your plant needs watering.
“If the chopstick has soil stuck to it then it’s already moist enough and it doesn’t need a top up.
“Overwatering is the most common reason for houseplants dying so it is important to check. Equally, you don’t want your plants going thirsty.”
A pencil can also be used to check if the houseplant is dry, using the same trick.
The houseplant expert recommended watering plants “gently” rather than giving them large amounts of water frequently and allowing them to sit in it.
Ideally, plant owners need to work out a good routine they can stick to, ensuring the soil is well drained.
If you are short on time when watering plants, the expert said to use an ice cube trick.
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Maryam explained: “It’s a little unconventional but you can place an ice cube on the surface of the soil, ensuring it isn’t touching any of the leaves.
“As the ice cube melts slowly, the plant becomes hydrated over time. This isn’t the best for large, thirsty plants, but if you have smaller varieties it can be a nice little trick which saves time and ensures your plant gets a gentle, gradual drink.”
If you are falling short of time when it comes to caring for your foliage, the expert recommended purchasing a plant which requires minimal maintenance.
This includes the snake plant, which needs far less watering. Varieties of succulent can also thrive without attention for several weeks.
The houseplant expert added: “Houseplants are great at injecting a bit of life into homes and research has suggested they can even make them happier, healthy places to live.
“Whether you’re green-fingered or a total novice, there will aways be a plant to suit you.”
However, due to a change in weather, houseplants may become more susceptible to pests, including mealybugs.
Experts at Essential Living have said it is important to know which pest you are dealing with before trying to solve the problem.
The experts said: “Mealybugs, often mistaken for fungus or mould on indoor plants, look like cotton of white powder on houseplants and tend to cluster on the stems and leaf joints, or along the veins on the leaves.
“Damage usually includes stunted or deformed new growth of your plant.”
Spider mites are another common plant pest that can be spotted by fine webbing on the plant. This usually begins on the underside of the leaves, or at the tips of new growth.
The experts added: “The damage causes normally deformed, dead and dried out leaves, or the leaves and flower buds start dropping.”
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