August Home-Garden

Good Neighbor Gardener
By Columnist Louis Martin

Louis Martin Don't Let Plants Go To Pot

I know that everyone wants to be successful growing house plants. Volumes of how-to articles are written on this subject. There is no deep secret or magic to house plant culture. Just a few rules.

  • Plants are alive like your cat or dog.
  • Plants grow bodies, legs, and arms.
  • Plants have organs for reproduction.
  • Chemicals keep plants alive. In animals it's called food.

For chemicals to work properly, plants must have water, carbon, oxygen, and essential elements such as light and an agreeable air temperature.

Water cures no ills. It's a solvent. It simply goes in and out of the plant body supplying basic nutrients for health. A saturated soil (over watered) displaces air (oxygen) from the soil. The result is drowned roots and the soil nutrients cease to enter the plant.

Nothing gladdens the heart of the house plant more than WATERING. The lack of, or the overabundance of, water often explains the slow agonizing death of many plants. Is there help for this sinning? Yes.

Push a finger (two knuckles deep) into the soil. If it feels very wet, don't water for a few days. Test again soon. If the soil feels dry, water the plant, but be careful of the amount. Test the soil regularly.

A bit of soil rolled between the fingers should feel moist. If you are able to form a ball and it crumbles apart freely, it means the soil moisture is about right.

Here's a second suggestion to control over watering. House plants prefer an unglazed, clay pot. It should have holes in the bottom to allow excess water to drain away. The porous sides of the pot allow free exchange of gases between the soil and the outside ambient air.

Dr. Louis Martin, regional columnist
HouseNet, Inc.

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