Being a successful parent to indoor plants is not an easy task. Unlike a child, a ficus cannot tell you what it needs. Is it thirsty? Is it cold? Does it crave a little sunlight? Even if you are skilled in caring for houseplants, the answers to these questions are not always obvious. However, if you’ve killed most of the plants you’ve ever owned, we don’t blame you for sticking to low-maintenance home decor.
Caring for indoor plants doesn’t have to be complicated, and it can definitely be worthwhile. In addition to making your space more attractive by adding greenery, bringing a small piece of nature into your home can reduce stress and generally uplift your mood. Whether your home resembles a greenhouse or you’ve already tried your hand at plant parenting but can’t figure out all the secrets to their successful care, regardless of your level of horticultural knowledge, these tips can help you keep your indoor plants alive and thriving.
Find natural light sources in your home
Ensuring adequate light is the most crucial factor in maintaining the health of indoor plants. If you recall the material from elementary school, this thesis makes sense because sunlight fuels photosynthesis, the process through which plants create food for themselves. Without enough light, plants will wither or begin to lose their leaves.
To determine how much natural light you have in your home, it’s important to know the orientation of your windows and be able to distinguish between direct and indirect light. Imagine that your plant has eyes. Direct sunlight is when the plant can “see” the sun, when it is directly facing it. In the northern hemisphere, the sun mostly rises through the eastern window and moves towards the south in the afternoon, setting in the west. If your plant is not in direct sunlight but there is still light coming through a nearby window, it is considered indirect light.
Your windows face north
Dim to moderate indirect light is excellent for plants that thrive in low light conditions, such as snake plants, ZZ plants, and pothos. If your windows face north, it is challenging to find direct sunlight. If you have plants that require direct light but only have north-facing windows in your home, grow lights are the next best option. You can purchase them online as well as in garden centers and plant stores.
Your windows face south
You have indirect light that transitions into direct sunlight in the afternoon. Spaces with southern exposure are most suitable for sun-loving plants like succulents, cacti, and some ficus varieties.
Your windows face east
You have moderate to bright indirect light with direct sunlight in the morning, which is not intense enough to scorch the leaves. Eastern windows are ideal for plants that tolerate a wide range of light, from low to moderate, such as certain types of ZZ plants and some palm and orchid species that require slightly stronger (but still mainly indirect) light.
Your windows face west
You have moderate to bright indirect sunlight, similar to east-facing windows. The difference is that with west-facing windows, you have some direct sunlight in the late afternoon. Western exposure is ideal for most indoor plants, including philodendrons, calatheas, or money trees.
Learn to recognize signs of a thirsty plant
Water is also crucial for the growth and functioning of a plant as it helps maintain structural support, prevents overheating, and aids in the distribution of minerals to all parts of the plant. Just as different plants require different levels of light, they also require different amounts of water. To get an idea of how often you should water your indoor plants, it’s helpful to consider their natural environment. Is it hot and dry or rainy and tropical?
If you’re growing plants native to desert regions like succulents or cacti, or those that are drought-tolerant and similar to succulents, such as snake plants, ZZ plants, and hoyas, you can safely wait until their soil is completely dry before thoroughly watering them, typically every few weeks. However, tropical plants like Monstera deliciosa or ferns are accustomed to regular rainfall in their natural environment, so you’ll need to water them more frequently, approximately once a week or every 10 days.
If you’ve purchased your houseplants from a plant store or garden center, you can consult with them about watering methods and frequency. Additionally, a golden pothos placed in direct sunlight on an east-facing window and receiving plenty of light will require more water than the same pothos placed farther from the window and in lower light. Therefore, you should adjust the watering schedule of each indoor plant based on its type and the conditions in which it is growing.
Assess if your indoor plant needs water
Check the soil moisture and watch out for signs of dehydration, which include drooping stems, curled, wrinkled, or wilted leaves, and a pale or yellowish color. Due to the sensitivity of houseplants, these issues can also indicate overwatering. To ensure you’re not overwatering, insert a finger or a stick at least a few centimeters into the soil and measure the moisture level. If your finger or stick comes out clean, the soil is dry and it’s time to water. If they come out dirty and moist, you should wait a little longer.
Attempt to provide a stable environment for your plants
Since most indoor plants originate from tropical and subtropical regions, they typically prefer warmth and humidity. Ideally, you want to keep indoor plants in a space where the temperature ranges between 65 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature drops below 60 degrees Fahrenheit, you risk causing damage and growth stagnation. In an environment colder than 56 degrees Fahrenheit, the plant may wilt due to the cold.
The optimal humidity level depends on the plant species. Ideal humidity levels for humans, ranging from about 30% to 50% relative humidity, are generally good for most indoor plants. However, plants that thrive in high humidity, such as ferns, prefer around 40% or higher relative humidity to stay healthy. If you don’t have a thermostat or air humidifier indicating the humidity level in your home, it’s not a bad idea to place a hygrometer in the room where your plants are located.
If monitoring temperature and humidity seems too complicated to maintain, at the very least, avoid exposing your indoor plants to direct drafts from air conditioners, heaters, and even open windows or doors during colder months. In other words, try not to shock their system – they dislike it as much as we do.
