| 1. If possible
lift the plant. If the plant is heavy, it doesn’t
need water.
2. Look at the soil; as it dries out it will
turn from a dark brown to a lighter pale brown.
3. Get your fingers dirty. Stick your finger
into the soil; for a 6” pot at least the
top 1” of the soil should be dry, for
an 8” or 10” pot the top 2”
should be dry. I personally, do not trust moisture
meters. They are easily influenced by the salt
content of the soil. Fertilizers contain soluble
salts. So a well-fertilized plant may register
as wet even though it is dry. I use a water
meter, especially for large plants that I can’t
lift, like I use a toothpick when baking a cake.
I stick it into the soil several inches, if
it comes up with moist soil clinging to the
tip; I know the plant doesn’t need water.
4. Over watering: Take a minute to look at the
plant. In many cases the plant will tell you
what the problem is. If the leaves are wilted
and the soil feels wet, you have over watered
the plant. The roots are dead or dying from
lack of oxygen, and water & fertilizer are
not being absorbed. Cut off the dead growth.
Try taking the plant out of its container. Sometimes
if the soil is exposed directly to the air,
it will dry out enough & the plant can be
saved. Other signs of over watering include:
flower buds fall off without opening, new leaves
are small, turn black & fall off (ficus),
green leaves fall off (schefflerra), all of
the old leaves fall off (croton), fungus (toadstools)
grow in the soil. The worst is when there is
this awful methane sulfur smell, something like
rotten eggs. Here are a few signs of over watering
that are often mistaken for under watering.
Ferns & wandering jews get brown & crispy
in the middle. Grape & oak leaf ivies get
brown crunchy leaves. The tips of the leaves
on dracaenas & palms turn brown. Remember,
when in doubt, don’t water. It’s
easier to save an under watered plant than an
over watered plant.
5. Under watering: Under watering will not
kill a plant as quickly as over watering; but
after a period of time, the results are the
same. If a plant is consistently under watered
the roots become damaged in two ways: dehydration
and being burned by the salts in fertilizers.
Remember, you must look at the plant and test
the soil for moisture because, in some cases,
problems that indicate under watering mimic
those that indicate over watering. In under
watering, leaves wilt, becoming soft & droopy,
when the soil is dry. An entire branch may petrify
and turn brown (Norfolk Island Star Pine). Fronds
turn a yellow or even orange color (palms).
Some plants turn very pale, losing their vibrant
green color (ferns, spider, China Doll). In
severe cases of under watering, the soil will
pull away from the sides of the pot. When this
happens, water simply runs through without hydrating
the soil. There are a couple of solutions for
this problem. If the pot is small enough, submerge
it in a bucket of water (up to the pot brim);
you will see bubbles floating up. This is the
oxygen escaping as water is taking its place
in the soil. When this problem happens with
large pots, add a couple of drops of liquid
dish detergent (I use Ivory) to a few gallons
of water; then water the plant slowly until
the water comes out the bottom drip holes. A
few other indications of under watering include:
the tips or margins of the leaves turn brown;
leaves and flower buds drop off or just don’t
develop.
6. Always water a dry plant with plain water
before using water with fertilizer in it. This
will prevent the salts in the fertilizer from
burning the roots of the plant.
7. When you water, water thoroughly, until
you see the water come out of the drip holes
at the bottom of the pot. This leaches out any
salts and chlorides that have been building
up in the soil from the use of fertilizers.
The plant should be sitting in a drip saucer,
which will catch this excess water. You should
go back and empty the water out of the drip
saucers; if you don’t the plant merely
reabsorbs the salty water you have just rinsed
out.
8. Water treated by a water softening system
should never be used with plants. This puts
too much salt into the soil and damages the
roots.
9. The ideal temperature of the water you use
should be between 62 and 72 degrees. If the
water is too cold the roots can’t absorb
it. It’s best to water your plants early
in the day so that the leaves and soil dry out
a little before the nighttime chill.
10. Changes can affect your watering schedule.
Be careful not to over water when:
the air conditioning starts in the summer
there are several days of dark cloudy weather
the plant is resting after a burst of new growth
or flowers
11. Mulch, grave, and moss help the soil retain
moisture
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