I’m back today with more houseplant fun. Today we had the windows open in our house and it was 60 degrees so it put me into full houseplant mom mode. I posted yesterday my tips to make your houseplants happy [HERE] & today on Instagram I asked you guys to ask me some houseplant questions so I could answer them. Here are some Houseplant FAQ’s you guys asked me yesterday. I hope these help you with your houseplants!
- Where I find Topiaries: I find mine at our shop, The Found Cottage. My friend Passiflora also carries them, along with many local greenhouses & other boutiques near me. I would suggest calling your local greenhouses & boutiques to see who carries them.
- Where I find houseplants: I find a lot of our houseplants at Home Depot, Lowes, local greenhouses, local boutiques, & you can also order houseplants from Sill [HERE]. I find they are super affordable at hardware stores so I would start there first!
- How often to fertilize: I go off the “less is more” rule & I fertilize maybe every 3 months. I do it to maintain health in my houseplants & not to save a dying plant.
- Fur babies & plants: I got a lot of questions about how to keep our fur babies away from our plants & I have o say I have never had to deal with our pets bothering the plants.. not even our cats. I would recommend that if your pets do bug your plants to purchase only pet-friendly plants for your home.
- Pet Friendly Plants: Birds nest fern, stag horn fern, haworthia zebra, peperomia, money tree, ferns, spider plants, & that’s just a start.
- User Friendly Houseplants: These plants are hearty & great for beginners or forgetful plant parents: Aloe Vera, snake plants, kangaroo plant, succulents, zz plant, peperomia, Philodendrons, Pothos, & again.. that’s just a start.
- Low light plants: These plants work well in places with no direct sunlight & work well in spaces like apartments, bathrooms, and low lit rooms: snake plant, pothos, zz plant, & succulents are a great start.
- Steps to bring plants back: If your plants are losing leaves, turning yellow or brown, or just not looking great it could be many things, but here are some common factors: over watering, under watering, too much fertilizer, too small of pot, your air is too dry in your home, not enough light… that’s just a start. Remember you don’t want to over water your plants so when you water do a sufficient amount without flooding the plant.
- Getting rid of gnats: These little guys can be one very annoying part of house plants. Sometimes plants will get little gnats in the soil of the plants & there are a few ways you can prevent/get rid of the gnats: One way to prevent the gnats is to not over-water the plants so there is no puddling. Also, be sure to clean the planter tray often. You can make a solution of 1tbs of dish soap in a spray bottle to spray the soil and leaves to get rid of the gnats. You should test the solution on a small area of the plants, but this works for me. You can also add a pebble layer to the top of the soil like these stones that prevent gnats and fungus [HERE] or put a sticky bug trap in the planter to catch them.
- My biggest plant tip: Don’t over water!! When I used to say that I didn’t have a green thumb this was my issue. I was drowning my plants thinking that “more was better” & with watering plants that just isn’t right. You don’t want any standing water or too wet of soil. Adding a little water at a time will help prevent accidentally drowning your plants.
- Where to find planters: I did a post a while back on my favorite planters you can find them [HERE]
- Types of topiaries I love: Lavender, rosemary, angel vines, Spanish lavender, boxwood, olive. These are just a few I love. I do find that my topiaries are way more high maintenance than all the houseplants I listed above so I would for sure ease into topiaries if you are not super confident in your green thumb.
- What fertilizer I use: I love these organic fertilizer spikes [HERE] off of amazon because they are so easy to use & they do all the work after you just stick a capsule into the soil.
- My favorite house plant: Pothos hands down! I love how hearty these plants are and how low maintenance they are here in our farmhouse. Minimal water, minimal light, & they vine which is fun. I love how unruly they can look as my favorite farmhouse plants are ones that look a little wild and natural.
- My watering schedule: I don’t have an exact schedule, but I like to do once a week at least. I suggest picking a day of the week depending how much you need to water… if you are doing minimal water at a time every three days is great as well.
- Have any more questions? Ask me on Instagram & I will be adding them to this post!
Thank you guys so much for stopping by the blog today & every single day to see what we are up to. & if you want more plant tips or what to chat more about houseplants be sure to follow me on Instagram [HERE]. xx
Liz,
Thank you so so much for answering my plant question. I am so excited to bring some green into our cozy home.
Lynsey
Thanks, Liz! Another very important fact, buy plants that are for your climate zone. Not all plants thrive well in every area. When the weather warms up, you usually have to water more often. Buy healthy plants to start with! I don’t mind paying a little more and going to a flower nursery. There are people who Know plant care and will ofter advice and answer questions. Then, check your area and see if your town has a Plant Swap. That is fun, and you get Free plants. Sometimes people don’t want to swap, they will just have extra starts of a plant that has come up in previous years and don’t want to throw them out.
Succulents are NOT a low light plant. There are a few types of succulents that can thrive in low light conditions, but most prefer a sunny window.
I’d love some advice on fiddle leaf fiddle trees. Mine lost like 5 leaves the first couple days of having it then like one a week. I was beginning to think it wasn’t going to have any leaves left. It seems happy now but how often do you water and fertilize it. Also how much sun to give it.
Hey Liz, I’ve been quietly reading your blog and instagram since the end of 2018 after stumbling upon you through pinterest! Never commented til now, but I love your work and style. As a fellow plant mama I had to share a tip I learned. In the past I think I loved my plants a little too much and overwatered them to death. Then when they would dry out and I watered it seemed as though the water went right through the pot and the plant wasnt getting its thirst quenched haha.. so… i started giving each plant a pile of ice cubes whenever its time to water. This works for me, Ive found that the slow melt of the ice lets the plant soak it up gradually. And by using a big cup of ice Im not actually giving them too much water overall in the end. Just the right amount. And so far my plants have responded well and look great! I have aloes, pothos, philos, and english ivy.
Have a great weekend! ?
Congrats on the baby! ?
Think about where your houseplants natural habitat is and try to emulate that. Ferns? Moist understories of trees. Succulents? Dry deserts. Plants with thick leaves hold their water longer. Clay pots need more water than ceramic. We all like a watering schedule, but each plant is unique . Topiaries can be difficult because our indoor evironments are much drier and lower light than those types of plants do best in.
Water til the water comes out of the bottom of the planter. This eliminates mineral deposits from water. Such a fun hobby! Thanks for allowing me to add to the discussion!
ps. We sweep dirt under the rug. We plant houseplants in soil
Thank you for such an amazing article, I do employ the use of plants in enhancing the interior outlook of the living rooms. Awaiting for further articles.