And remember, as I’m pretty sure Kaylee has said in a video before. These are plants y’all; they live out in the Wild in brutal conditions. Don’t stress if you can’t keep a plant in 90%+ humidity and super tropical temperatures!
Great video, Kaylee. The best advice I can give is don't buy so many plants that taking care of them becomes a second job for you. Taking care of plants should be enjoyable, although some days it can feel like more of a chore, it should be something that makes you relaxed and takes your mind off things.
This is why ive always loved Kaylee she brings up mental health being an issue with plant care ❤️❤️❤️ she really speaks the truth like she's more relatable than a lot of other youtubers.
I remember back when I first started mixing my own substrate mixes I was watching your aroid mix video and you said something along the lines of “if you’re an overwaterer like me add some extra perlite”. That was an eye-opener for me to really think about the stuff I was mixing and their purpose. Most international plantcare videos are useless to me, seeing as I’m in the Netherlands and our weather is as shit as the UK. The realisation of changing stuff to match me was a plant saviour! I never struggled with alocasia’s or other tropicals but I managed to almost murder my ZZ raven and many succulents because i listened to “the rules” that the internet told me. Some of these succulents now live in pon eith continuous wet feet and have been thriving since 😂. No more serial-succulent murder here 🥳
@@lavvy2585 perlite deffinitely is not my first choice either. But i still have a bag that im trying to finish from when i first started, haha. Works very well for alocasia corms! Nowadays i usually just chuck some pon/seramis (lavarock i think?) or leca in my mixes. Whichever is closest to me 😂. If i pull a plant out of pon etc i will boil that and set it aside to chuck in mixes aswell 😊.
@@enyacorn I purchased a few bags for Amazon and could not get them canceled. Please be careful when ordering anything from Miracle Gro, they do not play the cancelation game. If my daughter in law wants them I will give them to her.
This was a plant care video I needed when I started collecting plants. The key point is that everyone's environment is different. Way back 2020 there were no videos about plant care from people in Asia. So I followed the tips from people in the US or UK. I killed plants left and right from making the substrate dry out then watering. Anyway, where I live, we have rainy seasons. My plants are outdoors and get rained on daily, sometimes the whole day for weeks. They don't get root rot. Maybe the plants have just adapted to survive. But in my case, it debunks the plant care rule of letting the substrate dry in between waterings.
I find that any of the “traditional” plant care advice given on plant labels or overly simplified care sheets is far too vague. Letting plants dry all the way out and then watering has always caused rot for me and so I learned a long time ago that self-watering pots w/ wicks keep my plants consistently moist and healthy. I moved to the other side of my country recently and am getting ready to switch all my plants into a much chunkier, more airy blend in preparation for winter here.
This was the big mindset change for me moving from keeping a garden outdoors to looking after housplants. Outdoor plants generally have higher airflow, higher light, and other factors that cause faster transpiration and reduce the risk of root rot. On a hot, bright summer day in the uk you can water heavily on the daily and it still not be enough. If you water your houseplant daily its a completely different story!
Living in an old house with either very thin brick or very thick sandstone walls and a tower. most of my bed room walls are thin outside walls of the house. they get very cool in winter and very warm in summer. Pro: sunlight from morning to evening due to the round nature of the room. con: very big changes in temperature during summer and winter and during night and day time. in winter it gets very cold. Heating against it with old radiators is a losing battle. Heating an old house doesn't work the same way as a modern house with controlled central heating. You can minimise temperature loss with curtains and window shutters, but then there's no light. even with heat, plants have to live with the temperature changes. which means choosing plants that can do that. The humidity changes from room to room a lot due to the different walls. My P. Verrucosum was always sad in my room and in the garden but in the unheated basement directly at a norther widows it's happy. I just stuck it there because I was suspecting it to have some form of pest. but the basement not only has naturally high humidity due to the sandstone but also a lot more even temperatures...they're roughly around 12-18°C in summer and winter. she loves it... plus there are so much spiders that she didn't get any pests since I placed her on that particular window sill. I feel like anything that might want to munch on that plant get just eaten by the spiders. XD my tip would be to look at your home not a one solid area where the conditions are all the same. it changes from room to room and a plant can thrive or die depending where you place it. It not only depends on the light level and how much you heat the rooms in winter, but also how dry or wet your walls/floors are depending on their material. Sure you can influence stuff like humidity and temperature, but you can make it easier and harder for you depending where to place your pots. Another tip: know yourself. If there's areas in the house that you frequent a lot, like right at the kitchen sink for example: place the needy plants there so you can check on them more often. In contrary, plants that really thrive on neglect in your conditions might be happy to be sitting somewhere on the attic in the sun and being checked on once a week. Of course it's not good to religiously water plants on a schedule once a week without care for the conditions, but having a plant check date once a week can help with consistency and recognising problems like pests earlier. especially if you're like me and get easily overwhelmed. I usually check my plants every Saturday and see if they need watering or other tlc.
Yeah, good contextual info. I will say, 5 years ago there was nearly no specialized care information about most of the “rare plants” we have available now. People put a lot of the rare plants in a category of “can’t grow in a home”, and blogs and “influencers” gave growers confidence-that’s how I started with aroids, because of you, Kayley (prior, I was growing exclusively orchids). So, this build and layering of knowledge is in part, about the maturity/growth of a collaborative community (which is fantastic!!!). For everyone saying “weekly watering isn’t a good approach”, I really don’t agree. It’s that “you factor”; as a guy with ADHD, I’m super forgetful, I’m good with a schedule, but bad with randomly checking each pot across hundreds of plants. I killed many plants trying to avoid overwatering by watering “when a plant needs it”. Instead, by customizing the potting media to the plant (to regulate the dryout rate), I’m able to water every plant once a week, even though my humidity averages 35%. This includes cacti, orchids, aroids, and nepenthes. Watering on a schedule (for some people) is about maintaining consistency of care-it’s a strategy-and plants in nature don’t get watered based on their needs, they live where conditions are consistent. But yes, watering hundreds of plants takes time-for me it is the cost of having…hundreds of plants. Anyways, blah blah blah to me. Good video-the more info we all have as a lens to pass our perspectives through, the better.
I know I'm late but that was a great comment. I also have a schedule but I always check the soil first before I water. So I basically check on schedule rather than water on schedule (if that makes sense).
40% or less humidity and underwaterer with occasional depression here (I can abandon plants for up to a month) - coir based custom mix was a life savior. Worm casting for some feed, and vermiculite based cat litter box filling as something to make things more airy. Maybe some bark and cole when I'm feeling fancy.
If you use terracotta because you like how it looks but are an underwaterer you can get a pottery sealant! I glaze the inside of my terracotta pots and saucers myself and they can go much longer without watering. I don’t think it matters for this tip but do have 60% ambient humidity. No matter your humidity, if you do this it will increase the times between watering
Omg, my life is finally complete! I found an actually good care tip video!!!! I have a huge one way beef with plant influencers because of the generic care bs they spread all over social media. So much missinformation and so many things that will help one plant owner, but will kill another ones plant in no time. This is the one and only video I will ever share in houseplant forums 😂
This is so true! I love that term. The 11th factor. I realized all this videos wanted me to have a well draining mix with no peat not knowing that I live in arid and dry Alaska! All my plants were drying and I was watering like crazy. I started using less draining materials and a bit more soil, peat or moss and I see a big difference for MY environment. This is just so so true.
Kaylee... I have watched many of your videos, but never to the end, and have not joined your channel. This video is the best one so far, and spoke volumes. Thank you for this one. Liked and now subscribed.
This is pretty interesting. Where I live ambient humidity in the home is roughly 20%. With 2 humidifiers running I can bump it to 50 max. This new plant craze is all about high humidity loving plants like philodendrons which up until the last few years were not available here. Go figure. Now, if you have a cabinet you can accommodate a few, but this is not in everybody’s wheelhouse. Running these external humidifiers is also something not everyone is willing or able to do. Maybe we need a humidity zone map for houseplants, so people aren’t laying out crazy amounts of money on beautiful, rare plants which will fail to thrive. Just a thought. Not saying people shouldn’t give it a try if they want to, but maybe it would be kinder to temper peoples expectations. I’ve been doing plants for 40 plus years, and over time you figure things out and are left with those plants that can handle your environment. Loving how all this info is now available on UA-cam. Thanks for this common sense video.
Thank you so much for covering the aspect of individuality, especially for covering the topic of mental health deteriorating and downsizing. I had a huge 100+ plant collection that I built through covid. But once covid eased I was no longer able or willing to spend hours and hours every weekend checking them over for pests, cleaning them, watering them, repotting them, etc. Slowly they all died including some of my absolute favourites, if someone had told me at the time it was absolutely fine to downsize and sell or give some away I would’ve been able to keep some of my favourites. However, instead I felt like a failure and practically gave up on houseplants all together. Taken me a few years with some Hoyas that just would not let me kill them to realise I can take on some of my favourite philodendrons again.
Amen on watering. I used to follow the "water x type of plant once a week" rule to a T and then get super confused and sad when my plants died in the winter. I thought it was a light issue, so I got some grow lights. Still had the issue. Only to find out watering varies depending on the time of year. Now I water most plants near daily in the summer and maybe twice through the entire winter. They have stopped dying off on me, lol!
Thanks for the video. I completely agree with what you said! I love looking at my plants for hours! It’s like my meditation. I stick my finger into every pot (I have about 20 pots) EVERY DAY! The way I helicopter my plants, you would think that I have extra chunky substrate in small terra cotta pot for all of my plants. However, I have started to convert all my plants to self-watering pot with PON. I’m doing this for two reasons: 1. I am starting to have serious fungus gnat problem. It is driving me crazy. They are everywhere all the time. Switching to inorganic substrate like PON should take care of this. 2. Now that COVID close-down is over, I am going to start traveling again. I got a trip coming up next month for 2.5 weeks, and then another in January 2023 for a month. I don’t want to burden my friends to watch over my plants like I do. Switching to self-watering pots will make it much easier for my friends to help taking care of my plants when I’m away, and I can have a true vacation without wondering which plants are going to be dead when I get home. But in all honesty, I used to be so scared of my plants not happy. Now, I’m just like… “If you’re not happy with the way I’m taking care of you, then maybe you’re not the right plants for me.”
I think that the most helpful thing is to think "why my plants died last time" was it because of your holiday trips (the plants dried out), was it because you didn't have enough light in your house, was it because you just felt like the plants took too much time to take care of? You don't need to by the trendiest plants. Choose what fits your lifestyle, choose what you want. Because if you choose a plant you don't like, it makes taking care of it more harder. For example, I have just bought certain plants again and again even they always die. I thought that I just don't know how to take care of it. Well the truth was that, that that plant wasn't just the right for me. Don't try to change your lifestyle for plants. You should try to get plants that support your lifestyle and fit in it.
As a proud plantowner since about 7 days 🙋🏻♀️ thank you so much. I have to be honest: I still feel overwhelmed by alot of the info, but. I'm just going to try and figure it out, and your tips are so helpful. Though it not gives the exact answers, it definitely maps out the questions I can ask to understand the situation. And, if I do have questions about my plants, I'll definitely have a photoshoot with the starring plant in question, and make sure I fully understand the situation (location, airflow, humidity etc etc) before I go out and ask for help 😬
The overwhelm can be so real! There’s so much to learn and it feels like you have to know it all right away. But plant parenting is a constant and never ending learning process, and the best thing is usually to jump in and get your hands in some soil and just try some things! Some of most valuable plant knowledge I have has come from trial/error and experimentation (and yes, dead plants 😂). With a little practice you’ll start to be able to work out what to do on your own in most situations 😊 I hope this hobby brings you joy! 🌿💚
@@HippieHC thank you! It's weird maybe, but I'm currently in a bad state (I have a chronic condition combined with a burn out, so yay) and have been at a loss with myself. So about 10 days ago I randomly decided to take care of a plant, to keep me connected to my surroundings. Cheers to trail and error in life haha🤞🌱
@@ffs1936 not weird at all, it’s a wonderful idea! The Bloom and Grow Radio podcast has some great episodes on plants and mental health, maybe worth checking out :)
I love all of this advice. I used to live in 3 bedroom home, moved locations and downsized my home environment. Some plants died because of changes. I have a lot of pothos because they are easy. I live in Pacific Northwest, so my care varies from someone in Florida or Georgia. So knowing your space, knowing where a plant you tuber lives does give some changes for me in my home. Thank you Kaylee Ellen, you’ve helped me in more ways than I can ever thank you for.
I agree with absolutely everything in this video. The general lack of comprehension regarding plants care shows how much it's needed to rethink in depth the way we present plants to people. That's a difficult task to summerize what to take in consideration for a plant to be happy, and I think you did it great ! To me it is a VERY helpful plant care video, that can benefit the largest number
Thank you Kaylee for giving me the explanation why my Syngoniums survived my vacation being totally underwatered. The thickness of the roots seriously never came into my considerations. My syngoniums are almost impossible to kill for that reason. This is an amazing video and will be my recommendation for plant newbies.
This was absolutely the best plant care video ever made. It clears up so much, honestly. Thank you so much for all of the info you share and for just being you. Love all of it!
Environmental factors play a huge aspect in your plant care and each individual plant can be different 👍 Also don’t be scared to try out different types of pots or different types of substrates Different types of pots and substrates also do play a factor as well After my discovery with clear pots spaghnum moss perlite mix All of my plants have been thriving as I can see if there are any problems or if it needs water so they have been a game changer for me
Thank you for taking time to talk about plant care when your mental health isn’t the best. It’s really kind of you to give people tools to keep their plants healthy while they work on their mental health. This was a very meaningful video!
I agree. I downsized my collection to a minimum and I can maintain health of my plants better with ease now. When I had a larger collection, I had a hard time managing all of them and checking for pests for each and every one of my plant babies.
I live in Florida and have a “Florida Room”. Think “greenhouse attached to house”. Humidity can be 95%+ without airflow…which promotes mold/mildew in no time. I put a big orange industrial fan out there and have it pointed toward the ceiling so that it doesn’t blow specifically on any plants. I have multiple Calathea that were dying inside (too cold, too much water due to poor evaporation). Now they sit out there in high humidity with high air flow so the soil dries faster and all my plants are happier. I just set up my Milsbo & Rudsta cabinets and will be transitioning my more sensitive plants to them for the winter. I figured out that my personal air-conditioning needs (I prefer 18-19 C 😬) were not in line with what most of my plants were happy with despite a pretty humid indoor environment (55-70%…because Florida).
Such a good point about the grower themselves. I'm rebuilding my plant collection from high school (15 years ago, yikes) but I'm not collecting carnivorous plants anymore. My humidity goes from 20-40% which means succulents are generally a breeze. I like fast draining soils bc I fear root rot more than anything and it allows you to water more frequently while letting the roots breath
In the past I have been a notorious plant killer and I think it all came down to following the watering guides. We live in a rather humid climate and I have found that when I check my plants based on when the guides say they should be watered that the soil is often still moist. Back in march I bought my first plant (a fiddle leaf) that I have been able to keep alive for more than a couple of months. Learning how to check the soil moisture has been the biggest game changer for me. I only have one plant that really gives me grief, and that is a tiny little maidenhair fern that my 3 year old insisted that we buy. It is the biggest drama queen and goes crispy dry over night.
I 100% agree with your 11th factor and think it's possibly THE most important thing someone can learn in their plant care journey. I started off with a wishlist a mile long of high humidity loving house plants which everyone showcased in their "greenhouse cabernet", but I now don't have any intention to buy a single one of those plants. My collection is now largely made up of epipremnum, jungle cacti, Hoya and the easier philodendron, because I've learned what doesn't work for me and ive adapted to the plants that work for me and my underwatering, somewhat neglectful tendencies 😅 aswell as that; any plant that can't survive room humidity is shown the door cause I have no time for princess plants. 🤣 Since figuring out what works for me, plant care is less stressful and more enjoyable than ever! 💚🌿
Fantastic video! Working in the houseplant section of a greenhouse/nursery we are constantly being asked for specific care tips and this gives me a lot of good insight on how to field these questions in a way that should make the plant buyer more successful. The You factor is essential. Thanks again.
I loved this actually, I knew there were so many factors but this one you gave insight into -how- they change things. I would have thought I needed to water plants more after repotting! It's really lining up with the gradual, begrudgingly acquired observations I've been making of my plants, finally experimenting. I would love a video like this covering something like how different ratios of potting mix affect the way water drains out of it, or more general, holistic observation tips (like, telling the difference between bleaching and yellowing and if there's a way to tell the difference between sun burns and chemical burns like how tap water was killing all my poor damn ferns! It drove me crazy! I overwatered and underwatered and perfect watered and they were just miserable until I noticed that they had none of those issues in the rain and I started leaving my watering can out overnight to off gas and they're all still alive, it's unreal)
I really really loved this video and I wish I had seen something like this when I first started with plants because NONE of the info out there was useful at all for a beginner and it took me a few years (and several plants 😢😂) to realize the “me” factor in all this😂 Once again great content 💚💚 and this fits perfectly for the beginning fall season and because it perfectly summarizes all the main info needed for plant care and is pretty basic and universal info package!
I so agree with everything you said Kaylee! It took me a while to get comfortable understanding all those dependencies but once I did everything was so much easier. My "me" moment was when I realised I'm likely to go for a 2-3 week long holiday every year in the summer and I was worried to leave all my plants in hot weather without watering for 2 weeks. Stumbled across self-watering pots (thanks to one of your videos!) and the rest is history. Never regretted the switch! 💚
thank god i don’t need a heater because it’s just a little chilly in brazil in the winter. to compensate though, in the summer i can’t have plants in my room because the ac makes it really dry. whenever summer comes round (it’s winter here rn), i’ll probably buy a humidifier (not only for the plants, but for my poor nose being fucked by the ac).
I relate to this. Listening to people from Scandinavia or Canada discuss their low humidity in winter, in my Mediterranean climate, I always think about air conditioning in summer instead. Winters are easy. Also, the sun isn't the same. Direct sunlight down here is not the same as direct sunlight in the far north.
And really, how are plants not a form of self-care? Also, I think that’s a great point you made: if it stresses you out or isn’t working, change something! I tell my 4 year old son that all the time when he’s trying to do something and it isn’t working. “If it isn’t working, change what you’re doing.” He eventually figures out a solution. Thanks for the videos, Kaylee! We appreciate you!
This has been my downfall and something I’ve been trying to figure out myself. So, thank you! I’ve been adjust ingredients and watching my plants reactions to what substrate, my humidity, and how much I’m watering. When I get a new plant, I ask what medium they’re using. I finally got it. It really depends on you. So this is confirmation 🎉
I started downsizing my collection because I feel like I don't have time for them and some of them don't thrive in my home environment. Now I feel more encouraged to do so because of this video. Plants are cool but they are there to make us feel good. If you don't feel like some plants is suitable for your life style, get rid of it, give it to someone else that wants it, sell it for cheaper price!
The pot thing is so true! Along with the substrate and humidity! I had a beautiful Adensonii that grew and grew and grew but kept yellowing its bottom leaves at an alarming rate. All I knew about them was that they liked water… so I watered it. And watered it. Not realizing it was living in a basic soil mix… in a plastic pot… with shaded light… and high humidity… Poor thing just couldn’t dry out! Lol I had a high death count last year, but since I’ve switched to terra cotta and discovered the joys of orchid bark (and the ability to tell when something is thirsty) i have murdered zero plants this year! Plus I moved most of my plants outside this summer where there’s better light so everything is thriving. There’s still things i need to learn, like nutrient deficiency and how to properly stake a plant, but I am so much better than I was last year! It’s definitely been a journey. I think it helps that I’ve come to terms with the plants I can’t take care of (cactus, succulents, peperomia, bamboo, trees) and become more appreciative of the ones I can (philodendrons, pothos, monstera, sansevieria, Hoya). We’re all much better for it!
Omg this was genius 🤯 I'm so happy you did this video and hope the whole world watches it because like YOU said everything about caring for any plant starts with YOU. Once again blind blowing.. THANK YOU 😊
I got a humidity meter based on one of your early videos and I haven't looked back. I don't understand how someone with plants can live without one - watering is just guesswork at that point IMHO. I've also learned to adapt the plants I get and I stick to tropicals with big leaves - living in a north facing flat in Scotland I just know that anything that needs lots of sunlight like succulents will just die a slow but inevitable death. Thinking about switching to more self-catering pots and/or leca/Pon atm.
Perfect info! I’m a new collector of special varieties, although I’ve had a few plants in my lifetime, I have absolutely learned this to be true! Target is ME and my details. It’s always interesting to see how everyone works it out but YES! Great Job!! And you are BEAUTIFUL!
Any support you can provide is greatly appreciated! I love your Philodendron care video and I love your tips. I apply them the way that best suits me and you teach me often. So thank you!!
Love this video. I lost about 60 plants mostly smaller ones due to the air conditioner being on and my lack of physical and mental illnesses. I'm hoping that the Fall will be much better. I really needed to hear this video today it's helped me so much.
The best plant care video I've seen in a long time! Great content! Like you mentioned in the beginning of the video, I feel like all new plant parents should either watch this first and try to figure out their own conditions.
Ohhhh my god ..... the advise, if it don't work change it ... and enjoy! Really good video ... But your tip about the "hydrometer" is the best tip ;-) As a over-waterer... The cheer luck I feel checking the humidity level of my soil.. instead of giving it water saves my plants 👏
Totally agree 100%. Especially the heat- no one considers this and it is #1 need of tropicals. Anyone else also think about dirty air? I’ve noticed that people that buy them to be “air purifiers” also have machines running and the plants decline.
The BEST video about plant care I have ever seen, I have been taking care of plants and orchids for a long time now and when I look for specific plants on UA-cam I am looking for the growing conditions of that specific plant or orchid. Their natural habitat gives you the best clue about the conditions you need to recreate in your environment. I get so sick and tired of people posting this generic advice about plants that tells you absolutely nothing. I have been keeping orchids in bark mixes and plants in soil mixes for years, because every book on the subject told me to. Leaving many of my orchids to wither and die because I could not keep up with watering these pure bark substrates. And because these stressed plants were more vulnerable to pest infestations I continually struggled with spider mites. My Calatheas were always the first to catch these infestations. I haven’t kept one for years for absolute fear of spider mites. Until I got fed up with it and decided to do whatever suited me. I started keeping my orchids in Seramis, which eradicated my spider mite issues and underwatering issues. I now keep everything, except my Hoyas in Seramis (for now atleast) When you know the conditions a plant thrives in, you can choose plants according to your home environment and tailor the rest to their needs. Keeping plants should never have to be stressful 😄
i loved this video! i learned this lesson the hard way, i was taking generic advice and not taking my own habits into account, and most of my plants died!! but now i know myself as a plant parent better, and don't feel bad about growing my collection as long as it's a plant i know i can handle. thanks so much for this vid!
Yeah, this is the best General care Video I've seen so far hahaha I would like to also add the type of roots a plant may have (maybe too specific for a casual plant parent, but it's something I found really helpful): I'm also a major overwaterer and so 2 things I did, besides only using semihydro, was to 1, put all my plants in clear glass containers, so I can visually tell if I need to water or not... and 2nd I basically always reroot any new plants in semihydro so their roots are more accustomed to more water, bc no one wants to deal with a 6 foot large bird of paradise that got root rot hahaha As always, thank you for the amazingly insightful Video! Tons of love from Germany :)
100% agree on the transparant containers/nursery pots! :) I use them for all my most precious plants and will usually also poke a few holes in their sides for some extra oxygen to the roots ☺️. It makes checking roots/soil so much easier!
@@Theater00jock how do you keep the dirt from falling out if the holes? Cover pots? I replanted a lot of plants in clear orchid pots - all small enough to carry to the sink...and I was dirt falling all over the floor. Just need a cheaper way to find cache pots-even plastic is expensive! Tips? Any?
I have low humidity, good airflow and I don't water often. I'm in zone 3 as well so it gets very cold n dark in the winter. I use a base potting soil mixed with pumice, lava rock, coco coir chunks (I buy it as turtle bedding at the pet store for cheap), and biochar chunks. This is a bit of a new mix to me but my plants immediately started growing fast after switching. I also add kelp meal, insect frass, azomite dust, and beneficial nematodes for good pest resilience!
Thank you so much for sharing this info! It explains why I’ve personally disagreed with half of the content in many plant care videos: almost all of my variables are different from what I see in those videos. 😮
Awesome video -- this solidified a lot of my own thinking on houseplant care, and everything you said makes total sense. I hope many people find this video early in their journey before dealing with the frustration of seeing all the super generic and contradictory "care tips" out there. Love your work!
My plant care tip: buy a hygrometer BEFORE you buy a humidifier. You might just find (like I did) that your house is basically always above 60% and an expensive humidifier is really only necessary for about 10 days per year.
Chronic overwaterer here. Learning to make a chunky aeroid mix definitely helped because the store bought stuff is a nightmare for overwaterers. But. Getting a moisture probe I can stick in my pots to check their moisture levels before watering has stopped me murdering plants. So many times I thought a plant needed water and when I check the meter says WET.
As an aside what is the go with the postage from the rare plant shop to Australia. It says 1,000 pounds but FAQ says international Post is flat rate. I'm seriously confused.
I used to use your aroid mix which worked well for a long while, and then I got busier and it was really hot in the summer and I realised I need to change the ratio as the substrate was drying out waaaay too quickly. That's when I learnt that I need to change the substrate as I change ( I got more plants and got busier in life) and the environment changes as well. 100% agree that soil mixes recipes are guidelines but you change it according to your own situation. Your video was definitely was a very very useful starting point though!
I absolutely LOVE your videos. Thank you so much for ALL your amazing advice especially the biggest tip to care for ourselves first. I'm studying vet nursing, working & in a unstable relationship & just couldn't keep up with all my plants, so I recently sold a bunch of the ones I no longer really loved & it has really helped me give better care to the ones I still have 😊
The general internet seems to hate calathea, but I get along with them really well. I’m kind of a helicopter plant parent so I appreciate them needing me a bit more.
I’m a new nurse! I have lots of trainings at work right now so I’m fucking busy. I used to have more time and now I don’t. I also used to have a better plant area where I had a larger space, multiple humidifiers, and like I said, more time. I love the look of cover pots, plus I don’t have time (and don’t feel like it) to make sure I don’t spill all over with pots that drain. All of cover pots have no drainage, and this is how I deal with it: Nursery pots/plastic pots, whatever you want to call them. Put a layer of LECA down at the bottom of them (1-1.5in depending on the size) then a layer of soil, then the plant. This way any leftover water is at the bottom in the LECA and it can wick up to the roots as needed and my plants don’t drown. Obviously this is just what works for me but highly recommend for those that don’t have time to care for their plants the way they used to!!
The answer is: it depends. It depends on the species of plant, the substrate you’re using, light level, relative humidity, average ambient temp., health of the plant, growth rate, etc.
Great advice. I have some orchids and succulents in glass pots. No drainage holes but I can see the roots all the time so I don't overwater and they do great. General advise is never to do that. And most make areal roots (and a really chunky mix). Works a lot better for me than other options. Other plants I put in other pots and mixtures. I keep an eye on them and adapt when they don't thrive. And if you like the look of terracotta but need more moisture retention put the plant with its plastic nursery pot still on inside the terracotta pot One extra thing, throughout the year on my latitude the sun will shine deeper in the house in winter and less in summer. So I need to check how that effects my plants. Close to the equator you wont have that problem. So that also depends on your place and also your house
My poor nephew (not a plant guy) was gifted an aloe vera in a pot with no drainage and told "water it once a week, a little more if it's looking "sad"" The poor thing was drowning because of course it was looking sad! It's recovering slowly but steadily in my care and he's relieved to not be actively killing a plant he really hadn't actually wanted in the first place.
New plant parent: will you give me advice on my new plants? Me: sure... proceed to give detailed care tips for location and watering based on their situation... New plant parent: but the shopkeeper said: bright indirect light and water once a week... All of us: groan...
I have a lot of success with “diy self watering pots/semi-hydro” 😂 basically a taller clear plastic “pot” with no holes, cup/glass/jar/container, and then leca in the bottom at least 1/3-1/2 the container then whatever substrate I find appropriate for the plant, even regular aroid mix, and then I can leave a reservoir of water in the bottom about 1/3-1/2 the leca.
All fantastic points , I learned most of this early on years ago , nobodys enviroment is the same and one persons advice almost never works 100% for someone else , I have centerl heating/AC so to combat the humidty I bought a humidifer that can cover the whole house and keep it constant , I have a lot of windows and a lot of plants live in them , I have grow lights for darker areas and grow tents in the basement so I can control EVERYTHING if problems should arrive , and I mix my own substrate to meet my plant and enviroment .
Yes yes yes, oh yes!!! This is by far the best plant care video I've ever watched. Thank you 🙏 The "How often should I water this plant?" question is one of the most common ones in plant care groups. But the most frustrating thing are all the "I water mine once a week" replies... I keep telling people that how often they should water a certain plant depends of many different factors like light, substrate and so on. But many people do expect simpler answers. So, once again, thank you so much for this video 🙏☺
Living in Australia our weather can be very all over the place, especially in Melbourne and I learnt that using native plant mix instead of making up my own aroid mix worked far better as the mix dries out evenly, doesn't clump and has enough bark and natural fibers in it to make the mix airy. All my plants love it from my pothos to my new Darklord and I found it great for rehab plants which I get alot of (either unwanted plants from family or I get them on the VERY cheap - best way I've been able to aquire a few wishlist plants are ones people are clearing out or simply no longer want anymore) buying 5 different potting mixes for plants is super expensive here and just not viable for many people so experimenting is a must. So few people do care videos for plants here too so we're guessing alot and occasionally UK care vids do help (again Melbourne has similar conditions in places so can be bit helpful) I appreciate any video on care to be honest🤣 though best tip I heard for beginners was to use clear pots if you can! This is great if your learning as you can see any problems with the plants roots and weather it needs watering or not straight away and omg it was a HUGE game changer. Why barely anyone suggests this for beginners is strange to me as it was best way for me to learn how my environment affected my plants.
I get it. A lot of plant UA-camrs I’ve noticed have also just had to change their content from plant care to other stuff because really how many different care tips videos can you make? I like how you do it it’s more casual like hey this is my philodendron whatever and it’s a fast grower and usually likes to dry out more than most philodendron
I totally agree with you! I love this, it was helpful getting advice based on the type of plant carer you might be, gave me some things to think about… I’ve been realizing a lot of plant I love don’t fit into my life, but not feeling like I’m a failure because I can’t keep them alive… thanks for the tips! It was really helpful!! in a different chapter of my life I can reassess what plants to have in my collection
Omg. This is soo true. I totally agree. When friends and new plant parents ask me about plant care ... Most times they are overwhelmed when i list out or explain 😂. And they go like "oh, the shopkeeper said water once a week and keep in bright indirect light".. I always ask what is their lifestyle like.. there's absolutely no one size fits all kinda deal with plant care.. very informative video.❤️
I can’t thank you enough for this video. I hate how people talk about what works for them and other people depend on it when it is not that easy. THANKS Thanks Thanks
I move to a new apartment that gets a TON of light. My plant space has both south and southwest facing windows since my apartment building is angled. I noticed after moving my plants would dry out SO FAST. I am also a chronic under-waterer (only the fittest survive in this house) so I had to adapt my care. I sometimes during the summer water twice a week because the sun is so intense and my soil dries up. This video was so helpful, I honestly was like OMG I feel like I am going to kill these plants by how much have to water. Now I understand its more about adapting to the new conditions of your home. Luckily I work from home so for now its manageable. I might have to relocate these babies though when that changes.
I’m a chronic underwaterer, too, and I just repotted a bunch of plants with potting mixes that retain more moisture. It’s making my life so much easier!
Looking forward to the growlights video, but on the subject of light, the most helpful advice I've gotten was someone said to me "direct light" is direct sunshine and "indirect light" is the shade right next to the sunshine.
You are so right about change too. I moved from a house that only had east facing windows to a house that has south facing windows. I have more weather temperatures and different sun conditions. I lost a couple and learned.
Low humidity in the winter has nothing to do with heating. It's simply that cold air basically cannot hold any humidity, and if your house is poorly insulated, that dry air comes inside. I live in Canada, and I have the opposite problem since my house is well insulated. I have to get the air out with an air exchanger. But still, because I have a shitload of plants, it stay at 55-60% in the winter even at -20C outside and with constant heating inside.
This is so true, finally someone said it. I find all advice fails when it comes to individual conditions - the plant, carer, environment and everything. We have only big northern windows, naturally lower temperatures and higher humidity (without a humidifier, it doesn´t go below 50 %, recently we had 75 % over a week due to numerous storms) and I´m more of an overwaterer - it´s just so individual, that I consider these articles waste of time. My boyfriend has here some very old healthy succulents that do bloom in these conditions and they are in kind of an aroid mix and plastic pots because else they would die due to his serious underwatering. It´s just so much depends on everything combined together. So I think you gave the best advice you possibly could :-)
Even if all the rare plants collector i know says they use humidifiers, I WILL NOT USE ONE. I have one but only needed it for acclimating imported plants and I DO NOT WANT TO MAKE THAT A REGULAR part of my plant care so now that im not importing for the mean time, that smoke jug is kept away. I refuse to be a slave to the humidifier too 🤣 cheers KE
Self watering pots are my god send. My other half asked what I wanted for Xmas and I just send him a link to lechuza ones I already have for a few plants that I need to move into them. Wasn't too fussed before I changed to a full time job but now I work 5 days a week I cba half the time to even check soil moisture. Also thanks to my Fire most of my pla ts have a crazy growth spurt during winter too 😩
My alocasia dragon scale just melted in the bottom, guess it was over watered, put the top in leca and will see if I can save it. Alocasia black velvet is doing well, even though the pot is just as moist, it actually seems to be shooting out babies and having a good time.
I really hoped you'd say "get moisture meter and you'll know when to water your plants" :) Also I have to mention, that this saying "water less in winter" is not always right. I have to water my plants a lot when the heating season starts and cut it when it's off. Especially if it's not really hot summer, because humidity stays quite high up and plants which are not close to windows don't dry so often.
To start I’m an underwaterer and live in colorado so typically dry air. I live in a pretty dark space so it’s the worst combination for plants. So I built a 7ftx6ftx4ft paladerium with very strong grow lights for most of my expenses plants, have grow lights around my place where I have other plants and run a large humidifier, as well as using my own substrate mix or being lazy and using sphagnum moss. I also have grow bins that I mainly use sphagnum in. Definitely able to have any kind of plant in any environment you just need to be willing to change your environment and put in some effort or not and stick to certain types of plants. I love tropical aroids especially the more unique expensive ones (wallet hurts) so I changed my environment. A normal house here has normally 10-20% humidity but mine has 50-60% humidity and my paladerium has 80-95% and is at a constant 75°-65°F dew to my water heater in the tank portion and the large strong grow lights.
The best-working thing for me has always been using numbers and technical approach while growing plants. How much light EXACTLY does your plant get? How much fertilizer is in the pot? To me that's crucial. I'm a huge fan of artificial lighting because I like things to be in control. I always MEASURE how much light my plants get with a LUX-meter. It is DIRTY cheap, even cheaper than some plants themselves, but it can really up your game. You can google how much light each species needs in Foot Candles and then just experiment a bit (some data on the web might be complete BS so often times you have to figure out by yourself). Another thing is TDS-meter. It only works with hydroponic fertilizer, but it helps me to know when to fertilize and how much feeding is still in the pot. Just measure the PPM of the water that comes in the pot with the water that comes out. This allows to prevent a build-up of nutrients in the pot. You can experiment with different feeding protocols and figure out what is the appetite of your green tropical monsters. Also, I wonder why there is so little information on how to grow tropical plants in a controlled environment? I mean, for example, if you're looking how to grow weed, your Google search results are inundated with different numbers like PPFD values, PPM for each STAGE of growing, while in houseplant community it seems that nobody knows what to do. You get these "direct", "full sun", "indirect light" and "don't forget to water your plants" BS . People are not trying to figure out how much μmol/s/m2 Spathiphyllum or Anthurium needs or anything related to science. There is no progress going on in community and it frustrates me. Thank you for the video, I always like the effort you put into production and also the way you speak. I always use your videos to learn English :D
This is why it's so individual to what people want from their plants. Your approach sounds like an absolute nightmare to me. I want my plants to be a pretty part of my home environment. They don't each need to be perfect and the last thing I would want to do is to be tailoring the care in such a rigid fashion. But obviously it works terrifically for you, and you enjoy doing it!
Fellow control freak here. I adore my light meter 🤗🤗 it’s truly a worthwhile investment for plant placement. And you’re right about finding specific info for most houseplants in controlled environments. I’ve always had houseplants as an adult, but I learned most of my higher level technical skill from my former life as a pot farmer 😂 There’s most definitely crossover knowledge that’s helpful for plants in general, but cannabis is most comparable to growing tomatoes (heavy feeders, easy to grow, quick crop turnaround) and rare tropical plants tend to be much more temperamental with a wider range of acceptable conditions based on the specific plant. I’ve noticed it’s becoming harder and harder to find very specific information online, especially when it comes to more technical questions and I hate it. I’m also a former academic and the narrowing state of accessible knowledge strikes fear and sadness into my soul. May your plants be well and your degree of control remain high 🙌🙌
Loved this! All my plants (32?) are in ceramic planters. I do use your aroid mix, only adding bonsai mix at the very bottom of my ceramic planters, all has been very successful.
Kaylee: "Why I DON'T Make Plant Care Videos"
also Kaylee: proceeds to make the best and most detailed houseplant care video out there
And remember, as I’m pretty sure Kaylee has said in a video before. These are plants y’all; they live out in the Wild in brutal conditions. Don’t stress if you can’t keep a plant in 90%+ humidity and super tropical temperatures!
Great video, Kaylee.
The best advice I can give is don't buy so many plants that taking care of them becomes a second job for you. Taking care of plants should be enjoyable, although some days it can feel like more of a chore, it should be something that makes you relaxed and takes your mind off things.
This is why ive always loved Kaylee she brings up mental health being an issue with plant care ❤️❤️❤️ she really speaks the truth like she's more relatable than a lot of other youtubers.
She is great isn’t she. I find my plants help keep the shadow of depression at bay. ❤ to you.
I remember back when I first started mixing my own substrate mixes I was watching your aroid mix video and you said something along the lines of “if you’re an overwaterer like me add some extra perlite”. That was an eye-opener for me to really think about the stuff I was mixing and their purpose.
Most international plantcare videos are useless to me, seeing as I’m in the Netherlands and our weather is as shit as the UK. The realisation of changing stuff to match me was a plant saviour! I never struggled with alocasia’s or other tropicals but I managed to almost murder my ZZ raven and many succulents because i listened to “the rules” that the internet told me. Some of these succulents now live in pon eith continuous wet feet and have been thriving since 😂. No more serial-succulent murder here 🥳
But like her, I don't like perlite at all. She said to use it if you have no choice. I prefer pumice.
@@lavvy2585 perlite deffinitely is not my first choice either. But i still have a bag that im trying to finish from when i first started, haha. Works very well for alocasia corms!
Nowadays i usually just chuck some pon/seramis (lavarock i think?) or leca in my mixes. Whichever is closest to me 😂. If i pull a plant out of pon etc i will boil that and set it aside to chuck in mixes aswell 😊.
@@enyacorn I purchased a few bags for Amazon and could not get them canceled. Please be careful when ordering anything from Miracle Gro, they do not play the cancelation game. If my daughter in law wants them I will give them to her.
This was a plant care video I needed when I started collecting plants. The key point is that everyone's environment is different. Way back 2020 there were no videos about plant care from people in Asia. So I followed the tips from people in the US or UK. I killed plants left and right from making the substrate dry out then watering. Anyway, where I live, we have rainy seasons. My plants are outdoors and get rained on daily, sometimes the whole day for weeks. They don't get root rot. Maybe the plants have just adapted to survive. But in my case, it debunks the plant care rule of letting the substrate dry in between waterings.
I find that any of the “traditional” plant care advice given on plant labels or overly simplified care sheets is far too vague. Letting plants dry all the way out and then watering has always caused rot for me and so I learned a long time ago that self-watering pots w/ wicks keep my plants consistently moist and healthy. I moved to the other side of my country recently and am getting ready to switch all my plants into a much chunkier, more airy blend in preparation for winter here.
This was the big mindset change for me moving from keeping a garden outdoors to looking after housplants. Outdoor plants generally have higher airflow, higher light, and other factors that cause faster transpiration and reduce the risk of root rot. On a hot, bright summer day in the uk you can water heavily on the daily and it still not be enough. If you water your houseplant daily its a completely different story!
@@charlottecobain6986 i learned it this winter the hard way and killed one of my favorite plants because of dry out- too much water.
Living in an old house with either very thin brick or very thick sandstone walls and a tower. most of my bed room walls are thin outside walls of the house. they get very cool in winter and very warm in summer. Pro: sunlight from morning to evening due to the round nature of the room. con: very big changes in temperature during summer and winter and during night and day time. in winter it gets very cold. Heating against it with old radiators is a losing battle. Heating an old house doesn't work the same way as a modern house with controlled central heating.
You can minimise temperature loss with curtains and window shutters, but then there's no light. even with heat, plants have to live with the temperature changes. which means choosing plants that can do that.
The humidity changes from room to room a lot due to the different walls. My P. Verrucosum was always sad in my room and in the garden but in the unheated basement directly at a norther widows it's happy. I just stuck it there because I was suspecting it to have some form of pest. but the basement not only has naturally high humidity due to the sandstone but also a lot more even temperatures...they're roughly around 12-18°C in summer and winter. she loves it... plus there are so much spiders that she didn't get any pests since I placed her on that particular window sill. I feel like anything that might want to munch on that plant get just eaten by the spiders. XD
my tip would be to look at your home not a one solid area where the conditions are all the same. it changes from room to room and a plant can thrive or die depending where you place it. It not only depends on the light level and how much you heat the rooms in winter, but also how dry or wet your walls/floors are depending on their material.
Sure you can influence stuff like humidity and temperature, but you can make it easier and harder for you depending where to place your pots.
Another tip: know yourself. If there's areas in the house that you frequent a lot, like right at the kitchen sink for example: place the needy plants there so you can check on them more often. In contrary, plants that really thrive on neglect in your conditions might be happy to be sitting somewhere on the attic in the sun and being checked on once a week.
Of course it's not good to religiously water plants on a schedule once a week without care for the conditions, but having a plant check date once a week can help with consistency and recognising problems like pests earlier. especially if you're like me and get easily overwhelmed.
I usually check my plants every Saturday and see if they need watering or other tlc.
Yeah, good contextual info. I will say, 5 years ago there was nearly no specialized care information about most of the “rare plants” we have available now. People put a lot of the rare plants in a category of “can’t grow in a home”, and blogs and “influencers” gave growers confidence-that’s how I started with aroids, because of you, Kayley (prior, I was growing exclusively orchids). So, this build and layering of knowledge is in part, about the maturity/growth of a collaborative community (which is fantastic!!!).
For everyone saying “weekly watering isn’t a good approach”, I really don’t agree. It’s that “you factor”; as a guy with ADHD, I’m super forgetful, I’m good with a schedule, but bad with randomly checking each pot across hundreds of plants. I killed many plants trying to avoid overwatering by watering “when a plant needs it”. Instead, by customizing the potting media to the plant (to regulate the dryout rate), I’m able to water every plant once a week, even though my humidity averages 35%. This includes cacti, orchids, aroids, and nepenthes. Watering on a schedule (for some people) is about maintaining consistency of care-it’s a strategy-and plants in nature don’t get watered based on their needs, they live where conditions are consistent. But yes, watering hundreds of plants takes time-for me it is the cost of having…hundreds of plants.
Anyways, blah blah blah to me. Good video-the more info we all have as a lens to pass our perspectives through, the better.
I know I'm late but that was a great comment. I also have a schedule but I always check the soil first before I water. So I basically check on schedule rather than water on schedule (if that makes sense).
40% or less humidity and underwaterer with occasional depression here (I can abandon plants for up to a month) - coir based custom mix was a life savior. Worm casting for some feed, and vermiculite based cat litter box filling as something to make things more airy. Maybe some bark and cole when I'm feeling fancy.
I've found my people.
If you use terracotta because you like how it looks but are an underwaterer you can get a pottery sealant! I glaze the inside of my terracotta pots and saucers myself and they can go much longer without watering.
I don’t think it matters for this tip but do have 60% ambient humidity. No matter your humidity, if you do this it will increase the times between watering
Omg, my life is finally complete! I found an actually good care tip video!!!! I have a huge one way beef with plant influencers because of the generic care bs they spread all over social media. So much missinformation and so many things that will help one plant owner, but will kill another ones plant in no time. This is the one and only video I will ever share in houseplant forums 😂
Finally! this is by far THE BEST plant video i have ever seen. It is theoretical, well thought out content. Kudos Kaylee!
This is so true! I love that term. The 11th factor. I realized all this videos wanted me to have a well draining mix with no peat not knowing that I live in arid and dry Alaska! All my plants were drying and I was watering like crazy. I started using less draining materials and a bit more soil, peat or moss and I see a big difference for MY environment. This is just so so true.
Kaylee... I have watched many of your videos, but never to the end, and have not joined your channel. This video is the best one so far, and spoke volumes. Thank you for this one. Liked and now subscribed.
This is pretty interesting. Where I live ambient humidity in the home is roughly 20%. With 2 humidifiers running I can bump it to 50 max. This new plant craze is all about high humidity loving plants like philodendrons which up until the last few years were not available here. Go figure. Now, if you have a cabinet you can accommodate a few, but this is not in everybody’s wheelhouse. Running these external humidifiers is also something not everyone is willing or able to do. Maybe we need a humidity zone map for houseplants, so people aren’t laying out crazy amounts of money on beautiful, rare plants which will fail to thrive. Just a thought. Not saying people shouldn’t give it a try if they want to, but maybe it would be kinder to temper peoples expectations. I’ve been doing plants for 40 plus years, and over time you figure things out and are left with those plants that can handle your environment. Loving how all this info is now available on UA-cam. Thanks for this common sense video.
You are the most BEAUTIFUL woman I know in side and out! THANK YOU!! This was more self help for me🌿.
Thank you so much for covering the aspect of individuality, especially for covering the topic of mental health deteriorating and downsizing.
I had a huge 100+ plant collection that I built through covid. But once covid eased I was no longer able or willing to spend hours and hours every weekend checking them over for pests, cleaning them, watering them, repotting them, etc.
Slowly they all died including some of my absolute favourites, if someone had told me at the time it was absolutely fine to downsize and sell or give some away I would’ve been able to keep some of my favourites. However, instead I felt like a failure and practically gave up on houseplants all together.
Taken me a few years with some Hoyas that just would not let me kill them to realise I can take on some of my favourite philodendrons again.
Amen on watering. I used to follow the "water x type of plant once a week" rule to a T and then get super confused and sad when my plants died in the winter. I thought it was a light issue, so I got some grow lights. Still had the issue. Only to find out watering varies depending on the time of year. Now I water most plants near daily in the summer and maybe twice through the entire winter. They have stopped dying off on me, lol!
Thanks for the video. I completely agree with what you said! I love looking at my plants for hours! It’s like my meditation. I stick my finger into every pot (I have about 20 pots) EVERY DAY! The way I helicopter my plants, you would think that I have extra chunky substrate in small terra cotta pot for all of my plants. However, I have started to convert all my plants to self-watering pot with PON. I’m doing this for two reasons: 1. I am starting to have serious fungus gnat problem. It is driving me crazy. They are everywhere all the time. Switching to inorganic substrate like PON should take care of this. 2. Now that COVID close-down is over, I am going to start traveling again. I got a trip coming up next month for 2.5 weeks, and then another in January 2023 for a month. I don’t want to burden my friends to watch over my plants like I do. Switching to self-watering pots will make it much easier for my friends to help taking care of my plants when I’m away, and I can have a true vacation without wondering which plants are going to be dead when I get home. But in all honesty, I used to be so scared of my plants not happy. Now, I’m just like… “If you’re not happy with the way I’m taking care of you, then maybe you’re not the right plants for me.”
I think that the most helpful thing is to think "why my plants died last time" was it because of your holiday trips (the plants dried out), was it because you didn't have enough light in your house, was it because you just felt like the plants took too much time to take care of?
You don't need to by the trendiest plants. Choose what fits your lifestyle, choose what you want. Because if you choose a plant you don't like, it makes taking care of it more harder.
For example, I have just bought certain plants again and again even they always die. I thought that I just don't know how to take care of it. Well the truth was that, that that plant wasn't just the right for me.
Don't try to change your lifestyle for plants. You should try to get plants that support your lifestyle and fit in it.
As a proud plantowner since about 7 days 🙋🏻♀️ thank you so much.
I have to be honest: I still feel overwhelmed by alot of the info, but. I'm just going to try and figure it out, and your tips are so helpful. Though it not gives the exact answers, it definitely maps out the questions I can ask to understand the situation. And, if I do have questions about my plants, I'll definitely have a photoshoot with the starring plant in question, and make sure I fully understand the situation (location, airflow, humidity etc etc) before I go out and ask for help 😬
The overwhelm can be so real! There’s so much to learn and it feels like you have to know it all right away. But plant parenting is a constant and never ending learning process, and the best thing is usually to jump in and get your hands in some soil and just try some things! Some of most valuable plant knowledge I have has come from trial/error and experimentation (and yes, dead plants 😂). With a little practice you’ll start to be able to work out what to do on your own in most situations 😊 I hope this hobby brings you joy! 🌿💚
Congrats and welcome!
@@HippieHC thank you! It's weird maybe, but I'm currently in a bad state (I have a chronic condition combined with a burn out, so yay) and have been at a loss with myself. So about 10 days ago I randomly decided to take care of a plant, to keep me connected to my surroundings.
Cheers to trail and error in life haha🤞🌱
@@ffs1936 not weird at all, it’s a wonderful idea! The Bloom and Grow Radio podcast has some great episodes on plants and mental health, maybe worth checking out :)
Tailor your plant care to your changing situations is SUCH important advice!
I love all of this advice. I used to live in 3 bedroom home, moved locations and downsized my home environment. Some plants died because of changes. I have a lot of pothos because they are easy. I live in Pacific Northwest, so my care varies from someone in Florida or Georgia. So knowing your space, knowing where a plant you tuber lives does give some changes for me in my home. Thank you Kaylee Ellen, you’ve helped me in more ways than I can ever thank you for.
Absolutely loved this video!! Yes no one ever takes into consideration the “you” factor in plant care tips.
Thank you 😊
I agree with absolutely everything in this video. The general lack of comprehension regarding plants care shows how much it's needed to rethink in depth the way we present plants to people. That's a difficult task to summerize what to take in consideration for a plant to be happy, and I think you did it great ! To me it is a VERY helpful plant care video, that can benefit the largest number
Thank you Kaylee for giving me the explanation why my Syngoniums survived my vacation being totally underwatered. The thickness of the roots seriously never came into my considerations. My syngoniums are almost impossible to kill for that reason. This is an amazing video and will be my recommendation for plant newbies.
This was absolutely the best plant care video ever made. It clears up so much, honestly. Thank you so much for all of the info you share and for just being you. Love all of it!
Environmental factors play a huge aspect in your plant care and each individual plant can be different 👍
Also don’t be scared to try out different types of pots or different types of substrates
Different types of pots and substrates also do play a factor as well
After my discovery with clear pots spaghnum moss perlite mix
All of my plants have been thriving as I can see if there are any problems
or if it needs water so they have been a game changer for me
Thank you for taking time to talk about plant care when your mental health isn’t the best. It’s really kind of you to give people tools to keep their plants healthy while they work on their mental health. This was a very meaningful video!
I agree. I downsized my collection to a minimum and I can maintain health of my plants better with ease now.
When I had a larger collection, I had a hard time managing all of them and checking for pests for each and every one of my plant babies.
I live in Florida and have a “Florida Room”. Think “greenhouse attached to house”. Humidity can be 95%+ without airflow…which promotes mold/mildew in no time. I put a big orange industrial fan out there and have it pointed toward the ceiling so that it doesn’t blow specifically on any plants. I have multiple Calathea that were dying inside (too cold, too much water due to poor evaporation). Now they sit out there in high humidity with high air flow so the soil dries faster and all my plants are happier. I just set up my Milsbo & Rudsta cabinets and will be transitioning my more sensitive plants to them for the winter. I figured out that my personal air-conditioning needs (I prefer 18-19 C 😬) were not in line with what most of my plants were happy with despite a pretty humid indoor environment (55-70%…because Florida).
Such a good point about the grower themselves. I'm rebuilding my plant collection from high school (15 years ago, yikes) but I'm not collecting carnivorous plants anymore. My humidity goes from 20-40% which means succulents are generally a breeze. I like fast draining soils bc I fear root rot more than anything and it allows you to water more frequently while letting the roots breath
In the past I have been a notorious plant killer and I think it all came down to following the watering guides. We live in a rather humid climate and I have found that when I check my plants based on when the guides say they should be watered that the soil is often still moist. Back in march I bought my first plant (a fiddle leaf) that I have been able to keep alive for more than a couple of months. Learning how to check the soil moisture has been the biggest game changer for me. I only have one plant that really gives me grief, and that is a tiny little maidenhair fern that my 3 year old insisted that we buy. It is the biggest drama queen and goes crispy dry over night.
I 100% agree with your 11th factor and think it's possibly THE most important thing someone can learn in their plant care journey. I started off with a wishlist a mile long of high humidity loving house plants which everyone showcased in their "greenhouse cabernet", but I now don't have any intention to buy a single one of those plants. My collection is now largely made up of epipremnum, jungle cacti, Hoya and the easier philodendron, because I've learned what doesn't work for me and ive adapted to the plants that work for me and my underwatering, somewhat neglectful tendencies 😅 aswell as that; any plant that can't survive room humidity is shown the door cause I have no time for princess plants. 🤣 Since figuring out what works for me, plant care is less stressful and more enjoyable than ever! 💚🌿
Fantastic video! Working in the houseplant section of a greenhouse/nursery we are constantly being asked for specific care tips and this gives me a lot of good insight on how to field these questions in a way that should make the plant buyer more successful. The You factor is essential. Thanks again.
I loved this actually, I knew there were so many factors but this one you gave insight into -how- they change things. I would have thought I needed to water plants more after repotting! It's really lining up with the gradual, begrudgingly acquired observations I've been making of my plants, finally experimenting. I would love a video like this covering something like how different ratios of potting mix affect the way water drains out of it, or more general, holistic observation tips (like, telling the difference between bleaching and yellowing and if there's a way to tell the difference between sun burns and chemical burns like how tap water was killing all my poor damn ferns! It drove me crazy! I overwatered and underwatered and perfect watered and they were just miserable until I noticed that they had none of those issues in the rain and I started leaving my watering can out overnight to off gas and they're all still alive, it's unreal)
I really really loved this video and I wish I had seen something like this when I first started with plants because NONE of the info out there was useful at all for a beginner and it took me a few years (and several plants 😢😂) to realize the “me” factor in all this😂 Once again great content 💚💚 and this fits perfectly for the beginning fall season and because it perfectly summarizes all the main info needed for plant care and is pretty basic and universal info package!
I so agree with everything you said Kaylee! It took me a while to get comfortable understanding all those dependencies but once I did everything was so much easier. My "me" moment was when I realised I'm likely to go for a 2-3 week long holiday every year in the summer and I was worried to leave all my plants in hot weather without watering for 2 weeks. Stumbled across self-watering pots (thanks to one of your videos!) and the rest is history. Never regretted the switch! 💚
thank god i don’t need a heater because it’s just a little chilly in brazil in the winter. to compensate though, in the summer i can’t have plants in my room because the ac makes it really dry. whenever summer comes round (it’s winter here rn), i’ll probably buy a humidifier (not only for the plants, but for my poor nose being fucked by the ac).
in brazil specifically where i live (actually the state that spiritus sancti is native)
I relate to this. Listening to people from Scandinavia or Canada discuss their low humidity in winter, in my Mediterranean climate, I always think about air conditioning in summer instead. Winters are easy.
Also, the sun isn't the same. Direct sunlight down here is not the same as direct sunlight in the far north.
I use pon in a net pot, wick, and outer pot I’m an underwater and self watering wicks have been a life saver. Would love a video on pon
And really, how are plants not a form of self-care? Also, I think that’s a great point you made: if it stresses you out or isn’t working, change something! I tell my 4 year old son that all the time when he’s trying to do something and it isn’t working. “If it isn’t working, change what you’re doing.” He eventually figures out a solution.
Thanks for the videos, Kaylee! We appreciate you!
This has been my downfall and something I’ve been trying to figure out myself. So, thank you! I’ve been adjust ingredients and watching my plants reactions to what substrate, my humidity, and how much I’m watering. When I get a new plant, I ask what medium they’re using. I finally got it. It really depends on you. So this is confirmation 🎉
I started downsizing my collection because I feel like I don't have time for them and some of them don't thrive in my home environment. Now I feel more encouraged to do so because of this video. Plants are cool but they are there to make us feel good. If you don't feel like some plants is suitable for your life style, get rid of it, give it to someone else that wants it, sell it for cheaper price!
The pot thing is so true! Along with the substrate and humidity! I had a beautiful Adensonii that grew and grew and grew but kept yellowing its bottom leaves at an alarming rate. All I knew about them was that they liked water… so I watered it. And watered it. Not realizing it was living in a basic soil mix… in a plastic pot… with shaded light… and high humidity… Poor thing just couldn’t dry out! Lol
I had a high death count last year, but since I’ve switched to terra cotta and discovered the joys of orchid bark (and the ability to tell when something is thirsty) i have murdered zero plants this year! Plus I moved most of my plants outside this summer where there’s better light so everything is thriving.
There’s still things i need to learn, like nutrient deficiency and how to properly stake a plant, but I am so much better than I was last year! It’s definitely been a journey. I think it helps that I’ve come to terms with the plants I can’t take care of (cactus, succulents, peperomia, bamboo, trees) and become more appreciative of the ones I can (philodendrons, pothos, monstera, sansevieria, Hoya). We’re all much better for it!
Omg this was genius 🤯 I'm so happy you did this video and hope the whole world watches it because like YOU said everything about caring for any plant starts with YOU. Once again blind blowing.. THANK YOU 😊
I got a humidity meter based on one of your early videos and I haven't looked back. I don't understand how someone with plants can live without one - watering is just guesswork at that point IMHO. I've also learned to adapt the plants I get and I stick to tropicals with big leaves - living in a north facing flat in Scotland I just know that anything that needs lots of sunlight like succulents will just die a slow but inevitable death. Thinking about switching to more self-catering pots and/or leca/Pon atm.
Perfect info! I’m a new collector of special varieties, although I’ve had a few plants in my lifetime, I have absolutely learned this to be true! Target is ME and my details. It’s always interesting to see how everyone works it out but YES! Great Job!! And you are BEAUTIFUL!
Any support you can provide is greatly appreciated! I love your Philodendron care video and I love your tips. I apply them the way that best suits me and you teach me often. So thank you!!
Love this video. I lost about 60 plants mostly smaller ones due to the air conditioner being on and my lack of physical and mental illnesses. I'm hoping that the Fall will be much better. I really needed to hear this video today it's helped me so much.
The best plant care video I've seen in a long time! Great content! Like you mentioned in the beginning of the video, I feel like all new plant parents should either watch this first and try to figure out their own conditions.
Ohhhh my god ..... the advise, if it don't work change it ... and enjoy! Really good video ... But your tip about the "hydrometer" is the best tip ;-) As a over-waterer... The cheer luck I feel checking the humidity level of my soil.. instead of giving it water saves my plants 👏
Totally agree 100%. Especially the heat- no one considers this and it is #1 need of tropicals. Anyone else also think about dirty air? I’ve noticed that people that buy them to be “air purifiers” also have machines running and the plants decline.
The BEST video about plant care I have ever seen, I have been taking care of plants and orchids for a long time now and when I look for specific plants on UA-cam I am looking for the growing conditions of that specific plant or orchid. Their natural habitat gives you the best clue about the conditions you need to recreate in your environment. I get so sick and tired of people posting this generic advice about plants that tells you absolutely nothing. I have been keeping orchids in bark mixes and plants in soil mixes for years, because every book on the subject told me to. Leaving many of my orchids to wither and die because I could not keep up with watering these pure bark substrates. And because these stressed plants were more vulnerable to pest infestations I continually struggled with spider mites. My Calatheas were always the first to catch these infestations. I haven’t kept one for years for absolute fear of spider mites. Until I got fed up with it and decided to do whatever suited me. I started keeping my orchids in Seramis, which eradicated my spider mite issues and underwatering issues. I now keep everything, except my Hoyas in Seramis (for now atleast) When you know the conditions a plant thrives in, you can choose plants according to your home environment and tailor the rest to their needs. Keeping plants should never have to be stressful 😄
i loved this video! i learned this lesson the hard way, i was taking generic advice and not taking my own habits into account, and most of my plants died!! but now i know myself as a plant parent better, and don't feel bad about growing my collection as long as it's a plant i know i can handle. thanks so much for this vid!
Major rule: "What works for me might not work for you." 😊
Yeah, this is the best General care Video I've seen so far hahaha
I would like to also add the type of roots a plant may have (maybe too specific for a casual plant parent, but it's something I found really helpful): I'm also a major overwaterer and so 2 things I did, besides only using semihydro, was to 1, put all my plants in clear glass containers, so I can visually tell if I need to water or not... and 2nd I basically always reroot any new plants in semihydro so their roots are more accustomed to more water, bc no one wants to deal with a 6 foot large bird of paradise that got root rot hahaha
As always, thank you for the amazingly insightful Video! Tons of love from Germany :)
Orchid pots are also good for this! Plus they add aeration to the roots. That was something that really helped when I had a big collection of Hoya.
100% agree on the transparant containers/nursery pots! :) I use them for all my most precious plants and will usually also poke a few holes in their sides for some extra oxygen to the roots ☺️. It makes checking roots/soil so much easier!
@@Theater00jock how do you keep the dirt from falling out if the holes? Cover pots? I replanted a lot of plants in clear orchid pots - all small enough to carry to the sink...and I was dirt falling all over the floor. Just need a cheaper way to find cache pots-even plastic is expensive! Tips? Any?
I have low humidity, good airflow and I don't water often. I'm in zone 3 as well so it gets very cold n dark in the winter. I use a base potting soil mixed with pumice, lava rock, coco coir chunks (I buy it as turtle bedding at the pet store for cheap), and biochar chunks. This is a bit of a new mix to me but my plants immediately started growing fast after switching. I also add kelp meal, insect frass, azomite dust, and beneficial nematodes for good pest resilience!
Thank you so much for sharing this info! It explains why I’ve personally disagreed with half of the content in many plant care videos: almost all of my variables are different from what I see in those videos. 😮
if this was Reddit I would give this video the Wholesome award 🤌
Awesome video -- this solidified a lot of my own thinking on houseplant care, and everything you said makes total sense. I hope many people find this video early in their journey before dealing with the frustration of seeing all the super generic and contradictory "care tips" out there. Love your work!
My plant care tip: buy a hygrometer BEFORE you buy a humidifier. You might just find (like I did) that your house is basically always above 60% and an expensive humidifier is really only necessary for about 10 days per year.
Chronic overwaterer here. Learning to make a chunky aeroid mix definitely helped because the store bought stuff is a nightmare for overwaterers. But. Getting a moisture probe I can stick in my pots to check their moisture levels before watering has stopped me murdering plants. So many times I thought a plant needed water and when I check the meter says WET.
As an aside what is the go with the postage from the rare plant shop to Australia. It says 1,000 pounds but FAQ says international Post is flat rate. I'm seriously confused.
I used to use your aroid mix which worked well for a long while, and then I got busier and it was really hot in the summer and I realised I need to change the ratio as the substrate was drying out waaaay too quickly. That's when I learnt that I need to change the substrate as I change ( I got more plants and got busier in life) and the environment changes as well. 100% agree that soil mixes recipes are guidelines but you change it according to your own situation. Your video was definitely was a very very useful starting point though!
I absolutely LOVE your videos. Thank you so much for ALL your amazing advice especially the biggest tip to care for ourselves first.
I'm studying vet nursing, working & in a unstable relationship & just couldn't keep up with all my plants, so I recently sold a bunch of the ones I no longer really loved & it has really helped me give better care to the ones I still have 😊
Loved this video. I personally love your honesty and your outlook on plants. Thank you for your content
The general internet seems to hate calathea, but I get along with them really well. I’m kind of a helicopter plant parent so I appreciate them needing me a bit more.
I’m a new nurse! I have lots of trainings at work right now so I’m fucking busy. I used to have more time and now I don’t. I also used to have a better plant area where I had a larger space, multiple humidifiers, and like I said, more time.
I love the look of cover pots, plus I don’t have time (and don’t feel like it) to make sure I don’t spill all over with pots that drain. All of cover pots have no drainage, and this is how I deal with it:
Nursery pots/plastic pots, whatever you want to call them. Put a layer of LECA down at the bottom of them (1-1.5in depending on the size) then a layer of soil, then the plant. This way any leftover water is at the bottom in the LECA and it can wick up to the roots as needed and my plants don’t drown.
Obviously this is just what works for me but highly recommend for those that don’t have time to care for their plants the way they used to!!
The answer is: it depends. It depends on the species of plant, the substrate you’re using, light level, relative humidity, average ambient temp., health of the plant, growth rate, etc.
Great advice. I have some orchids and succulents in glass pots. No drainage holes but I can see the roots all the time so I don't overwater and they do great. General advise is never to do that. And most make areal roots (and a really chunky mix). Works a lot better for me than other options. Other plants I put in other pots and mixtures. I keep an eye on them and adapt when they don't thrive. And if you like the look of terracotta but need more moisture retention put the plant with its plastic nursery pot still on inside the terracotta pot
One extra thing, throughout the year on my latitude the sun will shine deeper in the house in winter and less in summer. So I need to check how that effects my plants. Close to the equator you wont have that problem. So that also depends on your place and also your house
My poor nephew (not a plant guy) was gifted an aloe vera in a pot with no drainage and told "water it once a week, a little more if it's looking "sad"" The poor thing was drowning because of course it was looking sad! It's recovering slowly but steadily in my care and he's relieved to not be actively killing a plant he really hadn't actually wanted in the first place.
New plant parent: will you give me advice on my new plants?
Me: sure... proceed to give detailed care tips for location and watering based on their situation...
New plant parent: but the shopkeeper said: bright indirect light and water once a week...
All of us: groan...
Love the B roll in this one! And the “care advice”. We are all unique, not one-plant-tag-fits-all.
I'm also glad I could make it. Always a treat coming by just for that.
I’m in zone 3 and I can grow All tropical plants indoors.
Ugh YESSS Kaylee STILL keeping it REAL AF! another great video 😍🥰
I have a lot of success with “diy self watering pots/semi-hydro” 😂
basically a taller clear plastic “pot” with no holes, cup/glass/jar/container, and then leca in the bottom at least 1/3-1/2 the container then whatever substrate I find appropriate for the plant, even regular aroid mix, and then I can leave a reservoir of water in the bottom about 1/3-1/2 the leca.
All fantastic points , I learned most of this early on years ago , nobodys enviroment is the same and one persons advice almost never works 100% for someone else , I have centerl heating/AC so to combat the humidty I bought a humidifer that can cover the whole house and keep it constant , I have a lot of windows and a lot of plants live in them , I have grow lights for darker areas and grow tents in the basement so I can control EVERYTHING if problems should arrive , and I mix my own substrate to meet my plant and enviroment .
Yes yes yes, oh yes!!! This is by far the best plant care video I've ever watched. Thank you 🙏
The "How often should I water this plant?" question is one of the most common ones in plant care groups. But the most frustrating thing are all the "I water mine once a week" replies... I keep telling people that how often they should water a certain plant depends of many different factors like light, substrate and so on. But many people do expect simpler answers. So, once again, thank you so much for this video 🙏☺
Living in Australia our weather can be very all over the place, especially in Melbourne and I learnt that using native plant mix instead of making up my own aroid mix worked far better as the mix dries out evenly, doesn't clump and has enough bark and natural fibers in it to make the mix airy. All my plants love it from my pothos to my new Darklord and I found it great for rehab plants which I get alot of (either unwanted plants from family or I get them on the VERY cheap - best way I've been able to aquire a few wishlist plants are ones people are clearing out or simply no longer want anymore) buying 5 different potting mixes for plants is super expensive here and just not viable for many people so experimenting is a must. So few people do care videos for plants here too so we're guessing alot and occasionally UK care vids do help (again Melbourne has similar conditions in places so can be bit helpful)
I appreciate any video on care to be honest🤣 though best tip I heard for beginners was to use clear pots if you can! This is great if your learning as you can see any problems with the plants roots and weather it needs watering or not straight away and omg it was a HUGE game changer. Why barely anyone suggests this for beginners is strange to me as it was best way for me to learn how my environment affected my plants.
This is what am thankful for when it comes to aroids - my place is so conducive growing them. But, yes the keeper really matters in planting hobby
I get it. A lot of plant UA-camrs I’ve noticed have also just had to change their content from plant care to other stuff because really how many different care tips videos can you make? I like how you do it it’s more casual like hey this is my philodendron whatever and it’s a fast grower and usually likes to dry out more than most philodendron
I totally agree with you! I love this, it was helpful getting advice based on the type of plant carer you might be, gave me some things to think about… I’ve been realizing a lot of plant I love don’t fit into my life, but not feeling like I’m a failure because I can’t keep them alive… thanks for the tips! It was really helpful!! in a different chapter of my life I can reassess what plants to have in my collection
Omg. This is soo true. I totally agree. When friends and new plant parents ask me about plant care ... Most times they are overwhelmed when i list out or explain 😂. And they go like "oh, the shopkeeper said water once a week and keep in bright indirect light".. I always ask what is their lifestyle like.. there's absolutely no one size fits all kinda deal with plant care.. very informative video.❤️
I can’t thank you enough for this video. I hate how people talk about what works for them and other people depend on it when it is not that easy. THANKS Thanks Thanks
I move to a new apartment that gets a TON of light. My plant space has both south and southwest facing windows since my apartment building is angled. I noticed after moving my plants would dry out SO FAST. I am also a chronic under-waterer (only the fittest survive in this house) so I had to adapt my care. I sometimes during the summer water twice a week because the sun is so intense and my soil dries up. This video was so helpful, I honestly was like OMG I feel like I am going to kill these plants by how much have to water. Now I understand its more about adapting to the new conditions of your home. Luckily I work from home so for now its manageable. I might have to relocate these babies though when that changes.
I’m a chronic underwaterer, too, and I just repotted a bunch of plants with potting mixes that retain more moisture. It’s making my life so much easier!
Looking forward to the growlights video, but on the subject of light, the most helpful advice I've gotten was someone said to me "direct light" is direct sunshine and "indirect light" is the shade right next to the sunshine.
You are so right about change too. I moved from a house that only had east facing windows to a house that has south facing windows. I have more weather temperatures and different sun conditions. I lost a couple and learned.
Low humidity in the winter has nothing to do with heating. It's simply that cold air basically cannot hold any humidity, and if your house is poorly insulated, that dry air comes inside. I live in Canada, and I have the opposite problem since my house is well insulated. I have to get the air out with an air exchanger. But still, because I have a shitload of plants, it stay at 55-60% in the winter even at -20C outside and with constant heating inside.
This is so true, finally someone said it. I find all advice fails when it comes to individual conditions - the plant, carer, environment and everything.
We have only big northern windows, naturally lower temperatures and higher humidity (without a humidifier, it doesn´t go below 50 %, recently we had 75 % over a week due to numerous storms) and I´m more of an overwaterer - it´s just so individual, that I consider these articles waste of time. My boyfriend has here some very old healthy succulents that do bloom in these conditions and they are in kind of an aroid mix and plastic pots because else they would die due to his serious underwatering. It´s just so much depends on everything combined together.
So I think you gave the best advice you possibly could :-)
Even if all the rare plants collector i know says they use humidifiers, I WILL NOT USE ONE. I have one but only needed it for acclimating imported plants and I DO NOT WANT TO MAKE THAT A REGULAR part of my plant care so now that im not importing for the mean time, that smoke jug is kept away. I refuse to be a slave to the humidifier too 🤣 cheers KE
Self watering pots are my god send. My other half asked what I wanted for Xmas and I just send him a link to lechuza ones I already have for a few plants that I need to move into them. Wasn't too fussed before I changed to a full time job but now I work 5 days a week I cba half the time to even check soil moisture. Also thanks to my Fire most of my pla ts have a crazy growth spurt during winter too 😩
My alocasia dragon scale just melted in the bottom, guess it was over watered, put the top in leca and will see if I can save it. Alocasia black velvet is doing well, even though the pot is just as moist, it actually seems to be shooting out babies and having a good time.
New plant parent here : VERY informative!!! Thank you so much
The most intelligent care guide on UA-cam. Finally. Thank you 🙏🏼
I really hoped you'd say "get moisture meter and you'll know when to water your plants" :) Also I have to mention, that this saying "water less in winter" is not always right. I have to water my plants a lot when the heating season starts and cut it when it's off. Especially if it's not really hot summer, because humidity stays quite high up and plants which are not close to windows don't dry so often.
To start I’m an underwaterer and live in colorado so typically dry air. I live in a pretty dark space so it’s the worst combination for plants. So I built a 7ftx6ftx4ft paladerium with very strong grow lights for most of my expenses plants, have grow lights around my place where I have other plants and run a large humidifier, as well as using my own substrate mix or being lazy and using sphagnum moss. I also have grow bins that I mainly use sphagnum in. Definitely able to have any kind of plant in any environment you just need to be willing to change your environment and put in some effort or not and stick to certain types of plants. I love tropical aroids especially the more unique expensive ones (wallet hurts) so I changed my environment. A normal house here has normally 10-20% humidity but mine has 50-60% humidity and my paladerium has 80-95% and is at a constant 75°-65°F dew to my water heater in the tank portion and the large strong grow lights.
The best-working thing for me has always been using numbers and technical approach while growing plants. How much light EXACTLY does your plant get? How much fertilizer is in the pot? To me that's crucial.
I'm a huge fan of artificial lighting because I like things to be in control. I always MEASURE how much light my plants get with a LUX-meter. It is DIRTY cheap, even cheaper than some plants themselves, but it can really up your game. You can google how much light each species needs in Foot Candles and then just experiment a bit (some data on the web might be complete BS so often times you have to figure out by yourself).
Another thing is TDS-meter. It only works with hydroponic fertilizer, but it helps me to know when to fertilize and how much feeding is still in the pot. Just measure the PPM of the water that comes in the pot with the water that comes out. This allows to prevent a build-up of nutrients in the pot. You can experiment with different feeding protocols and figure out what is the appetite of your green tropical monsters.
Also, I wonder why there is so little information on how to grow tropical plants in a controlled environment? I mean, for example, if you're looking how to grow weed, your Google search results are inundated with different numbers like PPFD values, PPM for each STAGE of growing, while in houseplant community it seems that nobody knows what to do. You get these "direct", "full sun", "indirect light" and "don't forget to water your plants" BS . People are not trying to figure out how much μmol/s/m2 Spathiphyllum or Anthurium needs or anything related to science. There is no progress going on in community and it frustrates me.
Thank you for the video, I always like the effort you put into production and also the way you speak. I always use your videos to learn English :D
This is why it's so individual to what people want from their plants. Your approach sounds like an absolute nightmare to me. I want my plants to be a pretty part of my home environment. They don't each need to be perfect and the last thing I would want to do is to be tailoring the care in such a rigid fashion. But obviously it works terrifically for you, and you enjoy doing it!
Fellow control freak here. I adore my light meter 🤗🤗 it’s truly a worthwhile investment for plant placement. And you’re right about finding specific info for most houseplants in controlled environments. I’ve always had houseplants as an adult, but I learned most of my higher level technical skill from my former life as a pot farmer 😂 There’s most definitely crossover knowledge that’s helpful for plants in general, but cannabis is most comparable to growing tomatoes (heavy feeders, easy to grow, quick crop turnaround) and rare tropical plants tend to be much more temperamental with a wider range of acceptable conditions based on the specific plant. I’ve noticed it’s becoming harder and harder to find very specific information online, especially when it comes to more technical questions and I hate it. I’m also a former academic and the narrowing state of accessible knowledge strikes fear and sadness into my soul. May your plants be well and your degree of control remain high 🙌🙌
This is amazing advice!! This should be titled PLANT CARE 101
Thank you so much!!!! The way you put this makes so much more sense than some of the others!!
Loved this! All my plants (32?) are in ceramic planters. I do use your aroid mix, only adding bonsai mix at the very bottom of my ceramic planters, all has been very successful.