Master These 6 Tips for Growing Potted Plants at Home
About the topic of mastering these 6 tips for growing potted plants at home, the editor will introduce to netizens next.
When it comes to growing flowers at home, there are no difficult species for experienced gardeners, and no techniques worth夸耀ing. But for our新手 gardeners, it's challenging. They always feel that it's hard to grow any kind of flower, and even the so-called "undying" cacti can be killed.
Why is there such a big gap? In fact, it's mainly because some basic cultivation methods are not mastered. Often, our新手 friends learn some strange and fancy gardening methods, such as sprinkling rice or burying soybeans in the flower pot. Let's not evaluate how effective these methods are, but these unconventional methods are definitely not suitable for beginners.
Because many unconventional methods often require mastering certain detailed skills, otherwise it's easy to encounter problems. For example, sprinkling rice and burying soybeans can easily lead to pest problems. How to solve the pest problem? Isn't it asking for trouble?
So, I suggest that our新手 gardeners just need to master the basic cultivation methods, which is enough to grow the plants well. As for the rest, we can try them slowly later on.
Basic Techniques for Growing Potted Plants
So, what are the basic techniques for growing potted plants? Simply put, you can start from the following 6 aspects.
1. Potting Soil
When growing flowers in pots, it's different from growing them in the ground. We can't just dig some soil from the ground and plant it like we do in the ground.
Because potted plants need to be watered frequently, and the water flow can easily cause the potting soil to compact, affecting the growth of the roots, and eventually leading to problems or even withering of the plant due to soil compaction.
So, what kind of soil should you use? Many friends will buy the general nutrient soil that costs a few yuan per bag. I suggest you better not use this kind of soil, as most plants grown in this soil will eventually wither.
I suggest you buy peat soil, perlite, and decomposed leaf soil and mix them evenly in a 1:1:1 ratio for planting. It will be much better than the general nutrient soil you buy.
This soil mixing plan has good breathability, which is relatively tolerant for friends who like to water plants. If you want to retain more water and extend the watering interval, you can also configure it according to the ratio of clay soil: decomposed leaf soil: perlite = 2:2:1.
If you don't want to buy soil, the simplest method is to dig garden soil and add 1/3 river sand or coal slag, mix well and plant. This is the most budget-friendly soil mixing plan.
2. Watering
Too much watering is a fatal weakness for many beginners. They always feel that the plant will be dried out and always want to water, resulting in the potting soil being wet all the time.
Think about it, don't we often see reports that people die from water intoxication after drinking too much water at once?
Plants are the same. Although water is necessary, it doesn't mean they should always be in a damp environment. The roots of the plant also need a dry-wet cycle.
So, don't water randomly and don't listen to others who tell you to water once a day or twice a day, morning and evening.
Others may use peat soil, while you use garden soil. They may place the plants outdoors in the sunlight with a gentle breeze, while you are in a poorly ventilated balcony. Can it be the same? So, consider the plant's feelings before watering and only water when the top 2cm of the potting soil is dry.
3. Fertilizing
Many people don't know how to fertilize their plants. The plants are always thin and weak, and they always want the plants to bloom, which is the idea of working hard without eating. How to fertilize? What kind of fertilizer to use?
For beginners, when you can't tell which fertilizer can be used and which cannot, I'll teach you the simplest trick: buy fermented chicken manure or sheep manure, and just use this.
As an experienced gardener, you may object and say that only organic fertilizer can't provide enough nutrients, and the flowers won't bloom well!
So what? For beginners, there are so many different fertilizers. How can they tell which one is good? Since they can't figure it out in a short time, it's better not to use them at all. Just use fermented organic fertilizer, such as fermented chicken manure or sheep manure, which is comprehensive in nutrition and less likely to burn the seedlings, making it the best choice for beginners.
4. Light
Lighting seems simple, but it's necessary to mention that lighting often directly affects the life and death of the plant.
Some indoor shade-tolerant plants cannot tolerate direct sunlight, while some sun-loving plants will become weak if they don't get enough sunlight for a long time. So, adjust the lighting according to the plant's sensitivity to light, which you can search for based on the plant species.
5. Ventilation
Many people understand ventilation as environmental ventilation, which is very important. But internal ventilation of the plant itself is also important.
Whether it's poor environmental ventilation or poor internal ventilation of the plant, it's easy to cause diseases and pests. So, when growing potted plants, be sure to pay attention to ventilation. Open the windows often for ventilation when growing on a balcony, and don't place the plants too densely outdoors. Trim dense branches to maintain good ventilation.
6. Disease and Pest Control
Disease and pest control is also very important for the maintenance of potted plants. Disease and pest control should focus on prevention, not on treatment after they occur. Any disease or pest infestation is irreversible for the plant.
For potted plants grown outdoors, it's necessary to apply pesticides regularly according to the occurrence of diseases and pests. For home balcony gardening, to minimize the use of pesticides, you can spray the potted plants with alcohol or vinegar diluted to 500 times regularly, which can sterilize and prevent diseases.
In seasons with high pest activity, you can dilute eucalyptus oil to 200 times and spray it on the plants, which can repel and kill pests.
For beginners, if they can master the above 6 points, it's basically no problem to keep the plants alive and thriving. If you want the plants to grow better and bloom more, you need to delve deeper into and try the above 6 basic techniques.
The above sharing of mastering these 6 tips for growing potted plants at home is for your reference.