Indoor Plants Maintenance Tips - What You've Been Doing Wrong

    

My local community center recently hosted a plant workshop for active older adults.  Boy, did I learn a lot about what I was doing wrong with my plants. Too much water. Not enough water. Fertilizer. The wrong pots. It's no wonder so many of my plants died! 

The workshop was so informative!  The presenter works full-time at Plants a la Carte, a company that provides plants and plant maintenance for corporate clients. If you work in an office environment, you've probably seen someone like her come around to service your plants. I've even gone in the trash can and taken plant clippings after our plant lady had done her thing. That's how I started a Pothos plant years ago. 

As I was saying, the presenter seemed very knowledgeable. She brought a variety of plants with her.  Class size was limited to about 12 people, so we each received a lot of personal attention. Registration for the class was only $10. I learned so much!

We were shown plants that were in bad shape. Some needed pruning, re-potting, and some were on their last legs due to overwatering or neglect.

Some of the major takeaways included:

• Plants need light. Different plants need different amounts of light. Know your plant
• Plants need water. 
• The #1 killer of plants is OVERWATERING.  Water your plant when it needs it. If you water your plant on Wednesdays just because that's your usual housekeeping day, then you're doing it all wrong. Plants should be watered on THEIR schedule, not yours.

                                            

• Don't overdo it on fertilizer. Pay attention to your plant's instructions. Fertilizer should be kept to minimum, like once a year (I definitely have been a little heavy-handed with the MiracleGro)

                                                

• Too much sunlight can be a bad thing.  Plants that get too much direct sunlight are subject to sun burn. They will not recover from this
  
  
• Rotate your plant. If you decide to place a plant in a corner, remember to rotate it from time to time so that it grows straight
• Bottom-watering. To ensure that the roots are being fed, set the potted plant in a container of water. The plant will slowly soak up the water

                                                

The best thing about this workshop was that we were got to take home a beautiful plant along with a few plant clippings. I chose another Pothos plant and clippings from a Ficus. Both are on the low-maintenance squad.  Thank goodness!

What are some of your plant maintenance challenges?

Watch my video here  and see more highlights of the plant workshop. Drop me a line if this was helpful.

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