Guides to watering indoor plants correctly
Quick Answer Overwatered plants have soft, yellow, mushy leaves and wet, soggy soil that may smell sour. Underwatered plants have dry, crispy leaves with brown edges and bone-dry soil that pulls away from the pot sides. Learn how to fix root rot from this guide. Overwatering isn’t the only thing that can make your plant look weak; low light can also cause stretched-out,…
Water plants deeply and less often, not lightly and on a fixed schedule. Soak the soil until it’s damp several inches down, let it dry out partway before the next watering, and always check the soil before you reach for the watering can. That single habit change fixes more plant problems than any fertilizer or…
If you’re wondering how to adjust your indoor watering routine for potted plants during a heat wave, the answer starts with checking the soil before you water rather than assuming it’s dry. Water deeply and early in the morning using room-temperature water, let the pot drain fully, and move plants away from hot windows. During a…
Most houseplants need roughly half as much water in winter as they do in summer, generally once every 10 to 21 days depending on the plant. Growth slows down as light levels drop, so roots pull up moisture more slowly and soil stays wet longer between waterings. The exact number still depends on the plant…
Soak the entire pot in room-temperature water for 15 to 30 minutes until the bubbling stops, then let it drain completely and rest in shaded light for a few days. Skip fertilizer, trim off fully crisp leaves, and hold off on a normal watering schedule until the soil starts drying out again on its own….
Stop watering right away, pull the plant out of its pot, cut off any brown or mushy roots, and repot it into dry, fast-draining soil. Then wait several days before watering again. Most overwatered plants recover within two to four weeks if you catch the problem early enough. Learn plant is overwatered or has cold…
The correct way to how to water houseplants is simple but rarely followed: soak the entire root ball until water runs freely from the drainage holes, empty the saucer after 15–20 minutes, and only water again when the top 1–2 inches of soil feel dry. Shallow, frequent splashes create dry pockets, weak roots, and root…
