green thumb
Remember: Plants want to grow. Don’t Overthink It.
I’ve killed many plants. Now, I can save a lot of plants by sharing what I learned with you.
LIGHTING
Assess the natural light in your home. Is it bright light? Indirect light? The direction your windows face will heavily determine what kind of lighting you have.
Southern and western windows provide the strongest, most direct light. Eastern light is bright and northern windows provide indirect light throughout the day.
CHOOSING A PLANT
Now that you know what kind of lighting you are dealing with, you are ready to pick out a plant.
Most houseplants thrive in bright, indirect light and will do well near a sunny window. For spaces with lower light, I highly recommend getting a dracaena and/or a money tree. Any ivy-like plant is a great place to start. They are very satisfying to watch grow and wrap around things. With enough of them, your home will start to look like a jungle.
I like to go to local plant stores where the shop owners are happy to help find a plant that works best with my lighting. For larger plants, I often go to Home Depot because they have a large selection and the prices are good. I also obtain a lot of plant cuttings from friends and Facebook Marketplace (see propagation instructions below).
POTTING THE PLANT
If your plant comes in a plastic pot, you do not have to move it to a new pot. I simply place the plastic pot inside a slightly larger ceramic pot. If your plant is not growing: move it to a slightly larger pot. I increase the pot size by 2-4 inches each time. Try not to get a pot that is too big for the plant or it will have a harder time growing. Use your judgement here, if the pot looks too big then it probably is.
Make sure your pot has drainage. Plants can live without this but watering it will be much more tedious.
If your plant is in a smaller pot, I recommend getting this plant stand. It helps smaller plants add a shocking amount of dimension to a room.
Buy more soil than you think you will need, it does not hurt to have some leftover. Really any kind of soil will do. If you are unsure, get one that says “potting mix.” It is all dirt, they just use fun colors and fancy words to charge you more.
Potting Instructions:
Place a layer of soil in the new pot.
Dig the plant out of the pot it is in, I keep a small shovel around for this.
Place the plant on the layer of soil in your new pot.
Pour dirt around your plant to fill the new pot. Pack it down enough that the plant is stable but it can still breathe.
Water your plant.
WATERING THE PLANT
The key to properly watering a plant is to pay attention to soil dryness. If the soil is dry, water it. Some plants will need to be watered more frequently than others, the soil will tell you the answer. I check mine every week or so, except for my money tree. It needs to be watered every few days. Tropical plants do not need to be watered very frequently but I give them a lot of water when I water them.
PROPAGATING A CUTTING
Cut the plant below a node using a sharp, clean knife or shears/scissors. The node is a bump on the stem where roots can grow. If you are not sure where a node is (this happens to me when I propagate plants in the wild), just cut the stem a few inches (3-6 inches below a leaf).
Place the cutting in a jar of water, near sunlight. Replace the water every week until the roots grow at least 1 inch long.
When the roots are long enough, you can pot the plant (see section above).
KEEPING YOUR PLANT ALIVE
The secret to keeping plants alive is to put them in the right lighting and water them the right amount.
Pay attention to how happy your plants are by assessing the health of the leaves. If the leaves are browning or wilting, adjust how much water you give them or move them to a different type of lighting. Don’t worry, your plant will likely bounce back.
Good luck!
w/ Love,
Anni
