Houseplant care
Neglected houseplants may not die, but sooner or later they can look very sad, become untidy and covered in dust or pests. Regular attention to training, cleaning and trimming will pay handsome dividends.
Regular grooming should include the removal of leaves that show signs of disease or have turned yellow. With flowering plants, removing faded blooms will encourage new flower buds to open.
Keep plants clean
Plant leaves which are kept clean and free of dust will absorb all the available light. Dust the leaves of smooth-leaved plants with a soft, damp cloth. Support the leaf with your hand and gently clean. A hand shower fitted to bath taps is a useful tool for washing down large plants or plants with many small leaves. Cacti, succulents and hairy-leaved plants should not be sprayed or washed. Instead use a soft, dry brush to remove the dust.
Add an extra shine
For an extra glossy finish you can find leaf shining products which add a sparkle to your display. Don’t shine hairy leaved plants, only those with thick leathery leaves. Only shine mature leaves, not the new ones. For a ready-for-use product try Leaf Shine. It delivers a healthy gloss which will add a beautiful finish to rubber plant (thick-leaved Ficus), croton and Swiss cheeseplant. The finish is long-lasting and dust-resistant.
Room to root
As plants grow, the root system will gradually fill the pot and the plant will need very frequent watering as there is little free compost available. If you want the plant to get bigger it’s time for a larger pot and repotting. Flowering houseplants usually flower much better if they are kept slightly potbound.
Repotting
- Water the plant thoroughly before you start.
- Select a pot just one or two sizes bigger than the existing one and put a layer of Potting Mix into the new pot.
- Knock out the root ball and place into the new pot.
- Fill the space around the root ball with Potting Mix.
- Water thoroughly, and then place in the shade for a few days.
If you don’t want the plant to get bigger, trim off some of the outer roots at stage 3 and remove some of the compost. Repot with fresh Potting Mix into the original pot.
Potting Mix is specially designed for houseplant care. With added vermiculite and perlite it easily absorbs and retains water but allows free drainage and air retention. This growing medium is enriched with all the essential nutrients and trace elements to sustain strong, healthy growth for 4-8 weeks, depending on the vigour of the plant. After this period supplementary feeding with a good houseplant fertiliser is important.
Top dressing
Top dressing is ideal for plants that are too big for you to move or which you would rather not disturb. All you do is carefully remove the top inch or two of old compost and replace with fresh Potting Mix. Water well.
Solving pest problems
Scale insects and Mealybug can often attack long-lived houseplants, so too can Whitefly and Thrips. Control is quick and easy – just push a couple of solid spikes of BugClear Ultra for Pots into the compost and your plant will be fed and protected for up to 3 months.
