Plant Care

Congratulations on your recent plant purchase! You’re now the proud owner of a rare and exotic specimen from the farthest corner of the globe. So what now? Like you or I, every plant is just a little bit different in their preferences, so here are some general tips to keep your plants healthy and productive.

Planting

Remember, the green side goes up. Whether you’re planting in the landscape or in a container, there are a few important elements to consider including exposure, soil, and spacing. While there are entire books written on each of these topics, we’ll do our best to cover the highlights here.

Exposure

One of the most important factors to the health of your plant in the long run is the lighting conditions for the space you provide it. While it’s easy to move a potted plant around, you should consider the conditions in your landscape and the requirements of your plant before you even dig a hole in the garden. Here are a few easy tricks to make sense of the guidance you’ll see from us on terms like “full sun”, “part sun”, “part shade”, and “shade”.

Full sun = six or more hours of bright, unfiltered sunlight per day. This may mean an open exposure in the landscape, a southernly exposure, or a high planting on a hillside.

Part sun = between three and six hours of bright sunlight per day. This may include areas that have an eastern exposure that receive light in the mornings or western exposures that receive light in the afternoons.

Part shade = may be used interchangeably with “part sun”, although many plants labelled as “part shade” may prefer filtered light, such as under tall evergreen canopy cover, or may appreciate morning sun in areas that experience hot summers.

Shade = less than 3 hours of bright sunlight per day, or dappled or filtered light, such as under tall evergreen canopy cover. Most shade tolerant plants are adaptable to partial shade, but may require additional watering in warm regions.

These handy terms are not laws to live by, but general preferences for plants that may vary somewhat between cool, hot, dry, or humid conditions. Beyond the amount of light a position is exposed to, other factors like wind exposure should also be considered for tender plants.

Soil

Plants vary in the soil conditions they prefer, although most benefit from good drainage and amendment with organic matter. Some plants are particular in the soil acidity that they thrive in, but most are adaptable between acidic and neutral soils. Some plants may prefer alkaline soil, including plants native to arid climates. If you’re experiencing issues with growing your plant and you’ve ruled out watering or fertilizing problems, consider purchasing a soil test kit to determine if the acidity of your soil could be the problem. If you’re considering adjusting the acidity of your soil in a planting, remember that less is more and this should generally be saved as a last resort.

Spacing

When planting new plants in the garden, keep in mind the eventual size and shape of the variety you’ve selected. It’s all too tempting to try to achieve the look you want now, but whether you like it or not that plant will grow larger with time. While pruning can be a successful tool for many plants, foresight and good planning can save you a lot of time and effort in maintaining your landscape. Since we haven’t covered it elsewhere, we should also mention that when planting your new plant, take care not too plant it too deeply. Most plants are happiest when the natural soil line they had in the pot aligns with the soil level in their new planting. Most varieties don’t appreciate having their trunks covered with soil and this can lead to health problems down the line.

Watering

One of the most challenging talents to perfect in the garden is watering, but don’t let that get you down. Most plants have natural cues that they can give you to tell you if they are getting too little, just enough, or too much water. And from the voice of experience, if it’s brown and crunchy don’t rush to yank it out as many plants will shed leaves as a response to an unfavorable environment but may recover with a change in conditions. As a rule of thumb, most plants appreciate regular irrigation with good drainage. This means that if water naturally collects in a region in the garden, is near a source of runoff like a gutter on a home, or if you’re choosing to grow your plant in a pot, soil amendments like perlite or crushed angular rock may be needed. Here are just a few plant indicators that may help you figure out if you’re watering too much or too little.

Yellow leaves = with the exception of deciduous plants in the autumn or winter, yellowing leaves can serve as a visual cue for overwatering. Plants may drop older leaves from the lower or interior regions of the canopy naturally, but if much of the plant is yellowing try reducing your watering to just one or two waterings per week unless you know that the plant variety requires heavy irrigation.

Leaf drop = similar to yellowing leaves, heavy leaf drop may be a sign of overwatering. If your plant suddenly starts to drop a suspicious number of leaves (more than a few) and it’s not autumn, try reducing the frequency of your watering.

Withering or droopy leaves = drooping leaves can indicate either under or over watering. It’s a common assumption that withering leaves mean a plant is thirsty and this simply isn’t always the case. If your plant has suddenly drooping leaves, stick your finger at least a couple of inches into the soil to gauge whether or not it is dry or damp. If obviously damp, you most likely have been overwatering. Remember, most plants can recover from temporary drought stress more easily than they can from water-logged roots.

Crispy edges or burnt looking leaves = brown edges, or burnt looking leaves may be a sign of underwatering. Just like you or I, plants can get sunburn and this happens more easily if they are dehydrated.

In general, the frequency of watering has much more significance than the volume of water used. Water flows through the soil with gravity and overwatering can be easily fixed by reducing the frequency of watering. Remember, very few plants need to be watered daily and most are more drought tolerant than you’d expect.

Feeding

Fertilizing your plants is a great way to ensure that they have the nutrients they need to grow, blossom, and fruit. While most plants don’t require fertilization to survive, many benefit from regular feeding. Plants vary greatly in their nutritional needs and unfortunately there just isn’t a one-size-fits-all fertilizer out there. Here are a couple of tips to help you feed your plants to keep them looking their best.

In general, it’s easier to over-fertilize than to under-fertilize. If in doubt, use a little less or read the directions for the fertilizer you’ve chosen. Nitrogen specifically is the greatest culprit for causing ‘burn’.

Consider natural, ‘no-burn’, or ‘slow-release’ formulations. Slow release or no-burn fertilizers are formulated to be less aggressive fertilizers and may reduce the risk of ‘fertilizer burn’.

Only fertilize during the growing season. In general, most plants only benefit from fertilizer if they are actively pushing new growth. We recommend fertilizing in the spring and summer for most regions.

As always, if you have any specific plant care questions, don’t hesitate to shoot us an email at info@wanderlustnursery.com and we’d be happy to help!