What are some common wrong mistakes when babying a plant?
Watering it a little bit every day. Giving it a drink when you come home from work, when you have dinner, when you get up in the morning. Correction: The soil needs to dry out somewhat between waterings - the amount depends on the plant species.
Repotting it as soon as you get it, in the mistaken notion that the store has “bad” soil. Mistake #1 - the store didn’t grow the plant, they bought it from a wholesale greenhouse grower; Mistake #2 - the grower’s soil is cheap or bad; the grower uses a very specific growing mix to promote the best and fastest growth - how can they make a living if the plant doesn’t grow? Leave the plant in its original pot for at least 6 months. Mistake #3 - you can buy “good” soil full of moisture managing ingredients “to protect against watering mistakes,” and fertilizer “to keep your plant beautiful”. These things are marketing hype; moisture managing stuff doesn’t do anything but hold moisture in the soil, when potted plants need to have soil that drains easily and well; too much fertilizer in worse for plants than no fertilizer at all.
Feeding your plant every couple of weeks, or every month, in the mistaken belief that people and other animals need regular food to be healthy, so plants must need food too. Correction: Plants make their own food from air, water, and light. Fertilizer isn’t food - it’s more like vitamins. And too much fertilizer is probably worse than no fertilizer at all.
Not enough light. Correction: know what kind of plant you have, and what its light requirement is. Then, know how to estimate light level, and provide that for your plant. Either that, or get plants that are suited to the light you have.
Repotting it as soon as you get it, in the mistaken notion that the store has “bad” soil. Mistake #1 - the store didn’t grow the plant, they bought it from a wholesale greenhouse grower; Mistake #2 - the grower’s soil is cheap or bad; the grower uses a very specific growing mix to promote the best and fastest growth - how can they make a living if the plant doesn’t grow? Leave the plant in its original pot for at least 6 months. Mistake #3 - you can buy “good” soil full of moisture managing ingredients “to protect against watering mistakes,” and fertilizer “to keep your plant beautiful”. These things are marketing hype; moisture managing stuff doesn’t do anything but hold moisture in the soil, when potted plants need to have soil that drains easily and well; too much fertilizer in worse for plants than no fertilizer at all.
Not enough light. Correction: know what kind of plant you have, and what its light requirement is. Then, know how to estimate light level, and provide that for your plant. Either that, or get plants that are suited to the light you have.
- Tags: #Pump Sprayer #seedling
- baohaojing
