Houseplants are an absolute must in your home as far as I am concerned. They are beautiful, they bring a bit of nature into your home, they help clean the air and a home without a bit of greenery is not a home I want to live in. There is, however, one thing that you will eventually have to do when a houseplant outgrows the pot they're in: you're going to have to repot it.
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Don't be scared, you can totally do it on your own, no need to call in a plant specialist or doctor. In fact you can repot your houseplant is six easy steps. I'll show you how.
Here's what you will need:
- The plant you will be repotting. Obviously.
- A new pot. Your new pot should only be about 2 inches bigger than the pot your plant is in now.
- Something to cover the drainage hole in the new pot. This can be a broken piece of another pot or even a coffee filter. You don't want to completely block the drainage hole, this is just so your soil doesn't come out.
- Potting soil. If you choose a soil that already has fertilizer in it, then you are good to go.
Here's what you will do:
1. Remove the plant from the old pot.
2. If the plant has outgrown its current pot, chances are it is rootbound, you will need to loosen up the roots. You can so do by gently loosening and shaking the roots with your hands.
3. Cover the drainage hole in your new pot.
4. Put enough potting soil in the bottom of your plant so that the area where your plant stem meets the soil line is about an inch below the lip of the pot. That way when you water the plant, your water won't come spilling out.
5. Add more soil and pack it in tightly around the plant.
6. The last step is to water your plant well and let it drain.
Just in case you are more of a visual person, here's a video that shows you just how easy it is to repot your houseplants:
Embedded content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBEqb9QHDT4
Image via Corbis