My green thumb...NOT!
By ctryhnny
@ctryhnny (3460)
United States
December 3, 2012 7:37am CST
I have always loved houseplants but they aways die on me. Right now I have 3 plants and I've had them for over a year which is amazing to me! Sometimes I look over at them and will see a couple of dead leaves so I pinch them off and water them. I know they don't take a lot of watering so I try not to do it too often. How do you know the right time to water plants? How many house plants do you have?
2 people like this
3 responses
@Kashmeresmycat (6369)
• United States
3 Dec 12
Right now I have 15 houseplants and 1 live Christmas tree, lol! Out of the houseplants, I have 2 Basil and 1 Rosemary herb plants, which I use in my cooking. I am also rooting some ivy in glass jars.
Some of the plants need more water than the others and I check all about every 2/3 days to see how they are doing. Bigger potted plants will take more water but are easily over-watered. Smaller potted plants normally dry out quicker. And it also depends on the house temperature in the winter and summer.
In the winter if your heat is around 70 then treat them like it's summertime, and check them frequently. If it's cooler inside, the water will not evaporate as quickly and this is how they get over-watered which will kill them.
One way to tell is to pick up the pot. If it feels very light, it probably needs water. If it feels sort of heavy, more than likely there is water still around the roots.
They do sell water gages which are very inexpensive, maybe a couple of bucks. You just stick it in the pot to the bottom and it will tell you if it's wet or not. I bought my daughter one and she swears by it because she has big-potted plants and sometimes it's hard to tell if they need to be watered or not.
I hope this helps a little. 
@Kashmeresmycat (6369)
• United States
3 Dec 12
Hi Deaz,
I've had about 11 for over 1 year already, and most at least 4-5 years, so to answer your question, yes, I smoked when I had them in the apartment. I only quit last May. My largest plant, an Aralia, I've had about 5 years now at least and when I bought it, it was only about 10" high in a tiny pot, and right now it's about 4 1/2' tall in a much larger container.
Winter time is the hardest on indoor houseplants as the sun is not around, the heat is on, and the windows are closed. You have to work around this or the plants will not thrive well.
@mariaperalta (19073)
• Mexico
3 Dec 12
I am the same way.. I kill so many house plants. I can grow garden veggies, but not house plants.
@vidhyaprakash_2 (7116)
• India
4 Dec 12
Hi friend, good to know that you are interested in house plants, i too have 3 house plants in my house and always enjoy while watering them. I water the plants in the morning time and they are in good condition with my care. Too much of watering will spoil the plants, so avoid watering frequently and water the plants once or twice in a day
