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15 HousePlant Tips for Plant Parents

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We all struggle with houseplants. Some are easy to grow and some can be so difficult. You think you do everything right and it still dies. Here are 15 houseplant tips to help you on your houseplant journey.

houseplant tips

Tip #1:

Research, Research, Research! I cannot stress this enough. If you are having trouble with a plant I bet you that someone else has had the same problem and has solved the issue. There are thousands of resources online along with books and social media that can help answer any questions you have.

Tip #2:

You don’t always have to repot a root bound plant right away. Some plants actually prefer to be root bound for a while.

Tip #3

Low light doesn’t mean no light. If your plant label says it’s a low light plant please do not put this plant in a room without natural light or a grow light.

Tip #4

If you have a root bound plant that you want to keep in the same pot, you can prune the roots by 1/3 and repot the plant back into its pot.

Tip #5

A yellow leaf could be literally anything. Go back through your care routine to figure out if there’s anything you may have done or not done that could have caused a yellow leaf.

Tip #6

Older leaves turn yellow and die. It’s ok they aren’t meant to live forever.

Tip #7

Don’t buy plants you know won’t survive in your home. Save yourself the heartbreak.

Tip #8

Keep plants that are poisonous to your pets out of reach.

For tips on creating a Biophilic home read this post!

Tip #9

Make your own soil mix specific to your plants needs. The right soil goes a long way in growing healthy plants.

Tip #10

Watering is relative to light. If you plant gets high light then you will need to water more. If your plant is in low light you will water less.

Tip #11

Propagate, Propagate, Propagate! If you want more plants save money and propagate the plants you love.

Tip #12

Experiment with your plants. If they aren’t happy move them to different spots or try a different watering routine, maybe a different fertilizer until they are happy.

Tip #13

Fertilize your plants. Plants need food to grow healthy and strong. Get on a routine based on the specific plant and always follow the directions on the container.

Tip #14

Don’t chase trends. Buying and growing plants can be a costly hobby in itself and chasing trendy plants and make a HUGE dent in the bank account. If you can wait the trendy plants always drop in price.

Tip #15

Learn to let go of the plants that no longer make you happy. Letting go opens up space for new plants and new plants bring more joy into your life.

I hope you enjoy these houseplant tips! Are there anymore you would add to this list?

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

5 Things gardeners should do in winter

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The winter blues happens to us all. The big excitement and stress of the holidays topped with cooler weather and less options to garden outside or even just get outside leaves us with this weird sort of post-holiday hangover. This hangover can be very hard to get over if you’re not proactive about your needs and self- care. Let’s run through some ideas to help kick winter in the snowballs.

selective focus photography of person holding the adventure begins mug
Photo by S Migaj on Pexels.com

This blog post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my plant habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me in the garden. It’s a win for everyone, really.

One: Get Outside

This is probably the most important one. Despite the temps outside you should make a point to get out for at least 10 mins a day. Winters in Ohio can be quite cold so getting outside when I don’t need anything is tough. I usually just take a stroll around the perimeter of the house just to make sure everything is in order then take a quick look at the compost bin and a quick peep into the garage. Now if you’re someone who works outside of the home, you can skip this step. However, I would like to encourage you to stop for a second while you’re outside and take a few deep breaths to ground yourself before entering your work building.

Two: Visit a Conservatory

Check out your local Conservatories. They are warm, beautiful and full of amazing plants. We have two large ones in Ohio that are pretty great. You can get some great ideas for your home and garden here.

Three: Visit a Greenhouse

Greenhouses are even more special in the winter time. Like conservatories, they offer a little escape from life. When you walk in, it’s warm, cozy, and full of visual interest. Spend time looking around, learning about plants. Chat with the employees about any plants you have questions on, and if your interested bring a few new plant babies home with you.

Four: Start Seeds

There’s nothing more busying than starting seeds. Keeping up with needy seedlings will help uplift that winter fog. Start some herbs for the kitchen and a few seeds for outside.

Five: Read and Plan

Planning for the garden season ahead is a great way to get out of the winter blues. Looking through your seed collection, drawing up plans for spring, summer and fall. Ordering new plants and planning their placement. It’s all so much fun.

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

11 Tips to Winterize your Home and GARDEN

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Hey friends!

Its that time of year where you need to winterize your home and garden for the long winter months. Warm weather can’t last forever so winterizing your home and garden is so important. Here in Ohio we can dip into the negatives for days on end and It’s best to be prepared than to scramble around trying to get things done when its zero degrees out.

snow covered house and trees
Photo by Jill Wellington on Pexels.com

1. Cut back your perennials after your first frost. Now before you head out with the machete not every perennial need to be cut back. Hostas are the main plants that I’m taking down after the freeze. I’m leaving all of my shrubs in tact until spring. Do your research to figure out which plants require cut backs and which you can leave for winter interest in the garden.

Photo by Maria Kraynova on Pexels.com

2. Mulch your garden beds. Mulching is Heavy duty work but to help insulate the plants leave a good 2-3 inches of mulch in your garden beds. Doing this will help them carry on through the winter months.

Fall foliage

I have been making and using leaf mulch each year and it works just as well. You can mow your fallen leaves with a lawnmower then spread it out in your garden beds. You can even add it to your raised garden vegetable beds.

Leaf mulch breaks down over time and makes great compost for your garden beds.

Photo by Kadri Vosumae on Pexels.com

3. Drain your hoses and irrigation systems. You don’t want water to freeze in them over winter. Also be sure to put all of your hoses away in a garage or shed for storage.

If you have fountains or water features its a good time to dry those out give them a good clean and cover for winter. This is one of the most important home and garden winterizing tasks to get completed. Nobody needs a pipe bursting over winter.

Photo by Greta Hoffman on Pexels.com

4. Clean your tools! It’s very important to clean and care for your tools throughout the season but if your like me and forget at least give them a good cleaning before you put them away for the winter.

It doesn’t hurt to clean the lawn mower too!

Garden Tools

5. Clean your pots, seed starting trays and put them away.

This will give you a jump on the spring season.

Terra Cotta Pots

6. Change out the filter for your heating system and clean your vents. If needed schedule a checkup for your system.

Nothing worse than your heating unit breaking down in the middle of winter.

Cozy Home

7. Get your fireplaces inspected and cleaned before lighting. No need for any home fires.

Cozy fireplace

8. Stock up on firewood. Weather you buy firewood or chop it yourself you will need a stockpile before temps drop low.

Firewood

9. Cover or put away your garden furniture. Tables, chairs, benches and cushions should be put away. The winter can be hard on certain materials and you don’t want to risk damaging that new patio set.

rectangular brown wooden table
Photo by Blank Space on Pexels.com

10. Protect your house plants from cold drafty windows and dry heating. If you have chilly windows in the winter pull your plants back or cover your windows with plastic to keep out the cold and hold in the warmth. Make sure to add in extra humidity using pebble trays, misters or humidifiers.

potted green indoor plants
Photo by Huy Phan on Pexels.com

11. Clean Your Gutters and downspouts. Last but not least clear out any debris from the gutters and make sure the downspouts are clean and clear of clutter.

wood light art water
Photo by Eva Elijas on Pexels.com

I hope this list helps you get started preparing for winter!

Happy Gardening!

Ciearra

No Dig Flowerbed in 6 Steps

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Create a no dig flowerbed the slow and easy way! It’s not super easy but it is when you need to create a huge bed and don’t want the labor of removing large amounts of grass. Check out my steps to creating a no dig flowerbed!

1. Outline the space where you want your new bed. You can use spray paint to mark the space or you can use stone, cardboard or any other item to mark off the space.

2. Gather cardboard or used lawn bags to be your composting layer.

Cardboard and lawn bags make excellent compost

3. Lay your cardboard within the bed parameters you created. Make sure that you remove all tape from the cardboard before using. The tape will not compost and you’ll be picking tape out of your new bed the following year

Lawn bags

4. As you are laying out your cardboard or lawn bags wet them down with the hose. This starts the composting cycle and keeps your cardboard from blowing away as your working. Speaking from experience.

No dig flower bed in process!

5. Now this step is optional but I choose to do it because I had compost on hand and this area has lots of tree roots at the surface. I put down a layer of compost on top of the lawn bags and cardboard.

Large tree roots at ground level
Black gold compost from my compost pile

6. After spreading your compost layer if you choose to do that you will now spread your choice of mulch on top. Hose it all down and your done!

The no dig bed is coming along beautifully

Now if you’ve followed along you’ve got your cardboard layer then your compost layer and lastly your mulch layer. That’s one perfect lasagna bed! Leave that bed to compost down for 3-6 months before use and you’ll have your self a wonderful new garden bed with no digging involved!

Happy Gardening!

Ciearra

5 Plants perfect for your college dorm room

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Hey Gardeners!

Are you heading off to college this fall and want to add life to your dorm room? What better way to do this than adding plants. I know a few great plants that are easy to take care of between busy college life. These all have the same basic care which is why I choose them. Water when the soil is dry and provide bright indirect light. Easy right?

Photo by Daria Shevtsova on Pexels.com

1. Snake Plants

Snake plants and / or Sansevieria have recently been reclassified as Dracaena but that’s nothing to be concerned about lol. I water mine when they are fully dry and provide them with bright indirect light. They can however handle low light if needed but flourish under brighter conditions.

2. Pothos

This is such an easy to grow and quick rewarding plant. I’ve had them growing under some pretty harsh conditions and they survive. I would water this plant whenever the first inch of soil is dry and place it in bright indirect light. It can also handle lower light and less water but again It will flourish if you take proper care of it.

Photo by Faraz Ahmad on Pexels.com

3. Zz Plant

This is such an easy going plant. I forget to water mine all the time and they don’t care. Get yourself a few of these and place them all around your room. I typically water mine once a month and provide it with lower light. I can handle low up to direct sun and still look amazing.

Photo by Ksenia Chernaya on Pexels.com

4. Cactus

I know a lot of people think Cactus’ are difficult but I think that’s because they water them too much. Watering too often is the killer of Cactus’. Don’t even consider watering your Cactus if the soil is still wet from the last watering. Each Cactus type is different but my rule is to not water unless its been longer than a month.

Photo by Scott Webb on Pexels.com

5. Hoya

Many experienced plant moms might say that this is a bad choice but I don’t agree. Hoya are so easy to care for in my opinion. I water mine when they are dry and I provide them with bright light. That’s it. Not much else to their care unless you want to dip into fertilizing but this is not that kind of post.

If you give your plants basic care they will survive and even thrive. When you are first starting out with plants I suggest starting small. You will kill a lot of plant before you get the hang of it and that’s ok. Have an awesome school year!

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

How to Successfully Grow Elephant Ear Plants

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Elephant Ear plants are pretty easy to grow from bulb. It’s medium maintenance plant when in a pot and low maintenance when in ground outdoors. The bulbs are often referred to as Taro and are sold in many exotic grocery stores as an edible root.

(If you plan to eat this plant please do your research first. I have never consumed this plant and am not suggesting that you do)

Last years Elephant Ears

How to Grow Elephant Ear Plants

Is there anything prettier than seeing those big heart shaped leaves in the garden? When there’s a slight breeze they move back n forth as if shaking their heads.

I’ve been growing Elephant Ear Plants for over 5 years and I think everyone should add them to their gardens

The new Magnum sized bulbs I purchased February

I purchased new bigger bulbs this year and saved my bulbs from last year. I used regular potting soil to start them in pots indoors. I typically start my bulbs in february so that I can get a jump on the garden season.

If you live in a cold garden zone then the earlier you start your bulbs the bigger your plants will be when you can put them in the garden.

To learn how to grow Elephant Ear Plants as Houseplants read this post!

After they are potted I give them a full watering where the water comes out of the bottom of the pot. Then I water them when the soil is half dry.

I water this way to make sure my bulbs do not rot. Keeping wet soil around your bulbs can quickly rot and kill them so be careful with your watering frequency

Elephant Ear Plants
Elephant Ears planted in ground
Elephant Ear plant
Tips

Once it is past my frost free date I move my plants to a shaded part of the garden until they acclimate to the outdoor conditions. Usually a week in the shade is enough time. Once my plants are acclimated It’s time to start planting. I plant a lot of elephant ear plants in ground and some get planted in my outdoor planters.

Elephant Ear Plants
Magnum Elephant Ear Plant with Begonias

Planted in ground or in a pot I make sure I keep the soil moist but not soggy. So for my plants in pots I water every other day and in ground I water every 2-3 days unless there’s rain.

Elephant Ear Plants

I don’t fertilize the Elephant Ear plants in ground except at planting but I do however fertilize my potted Elephant Ears weekly with fish emulsion.

Elephant Ear Plant foliage

Got Elephant Ear questions? Let me know!

Happy Gardening!

Ciearra

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