How To Water Your Houseplants
Okay so you have a houseplant or two. Or thirty. And it’s likely that you’re worried about overwatering them. I mean underwatering them. I mean watering them too often. Or actually, not enough.
…. yep. We’ve all been there. Many times. So to help you understand the amount of water your plants require, here are some basic tips.
Start With A Hole
Every indoor plant should live in a pot with a hole in it. This mitigates your chances of root rot by at least a 70% (that’s an estimation, but I’m serious about it). Here’s why: if your pot has no hole in it and you give your plant more water than it can drink within about a week, that water has nowhere to go. The wet, soupy soil becomes a breeding ground for bacteria, mold and pests. You run the risk of the roots rotting out and then boom, bye bye plant. So if your pot doesn’t come with a hole in it, drill one with a diamond tip drill bit. And use a tray to protect your furniture.
Ditch the Measuring Cup and Grab a Paper Towel
The amount of water your houseplant needs is, generally speaking, determined by: the type of plant, the soil it’s living in, its access to light, and the humidity of the room it lives in.
…whoa.
Don’t worry. There’s a trick to it and it’s better than trying to give you a complicated equation for all of these variables. It’s a paper towel. Now that your your pots all have a hole in their pot, grab your watering can and water for 3 seconds. Then wait for 5 seconds. Does any water run out of the hole at the bottom? No? Water for 3 more seconds and wait again. Keep going like this until you see water come from the bottom of the pot. Every time you water, you want just enough water in your tray that you could wipe it up with one swipe of a paper towel. That way you know that water went all the way to the bottom of the pot, but the roots of your plant aren’t swimming in overwatered soil, soon to be a breeding ground for bacteria.
Put Your Finger On The Pulse
When you go to water your houseplants again after your paper towel trick, stick your finger in the soil first. If the pot is smaller than 8”, go up to your first knuckle. Bigger than 8”, use your whole finger. If the soil is dry, great! Water. If the soil still feels wet, don’t water. Give your plant a couple days to finish up and check back. You might water a little less next time so that you can get into a weekly watering rhythm, or you might find that your plant needs to be watered less frequently.
Make it a Date
Pick a day of the week to take care of your plants. Check the soil, water the ones that need it, skip the ones that don’t. Within a few weeks you’ll get to know which plants need weekly watering, which need attention only every other week, which ones are more responsive to dehydration and which ones thrive with a little neglect. Most importantly, be consistent. If you are caring for them each week, you’ll be able to get ahead of almost any issue before it really becomes a problem.
