The summer months, especially July and August, are the hottest months of the year with the lowest humidity. But these months are also the most favorite months for many, because during this period the largest number of vacations falls. And if you are packing your suitcase and looking forward to your upcoming vacation, then your houseplants preparing for the drought test. The first thing that might come to mind is help with care and watering from relatives, neighbors or friends who can periodically look into the house and water flower pots in your absence.
But what to do if your relatives have also moved across the seas, and you don’t trust your neighbors too much? What to do with plants during the summer holidays How to provide them with watering and care? Before leaving, try to make sure that they survive the separation painlessly and meet you green and blooming.
10 preparatory steps
1. Remove flowers from the windowsill or draw the curtains tighter. The less light, the slower the life processes in plants, which means they will need less moisture.
2. Water the soil well until it is saturated with water. The pot can be wrapped in damp newspaper and cellophane on top. This will reduce moisture loss.
3. Small plants should be covered with plastic or glass caps or bottles, but so that they allow air to pass through from below. Evaporating water will condense on the walls and flow back into the ground.
4. 5-7 days before departure, carefully check whether the plants are affected by pests and diseases. Remove from the plant all dried and disease-damaged shoots and leaves, as well as large buds and flowers. Treat diseased plants with appropriate medications.
5. It is better to cut off overly large leaves.
6. Plants should be placed in a lighted place, but not in the sun.
7. Close both doors and windows so that there are no drafts in the room where the plants will remain.
8. 2-3 weeks before departure, stop all types of feeding.
9. If leaving plants in a tray of water, place the flower pots on a raised rock or wooden stand to keep the roots from freezing.
10. Flowers in ceramic pots tolerate separation better than those in plastic containers.
6 ways to remotely water
Method No. 1: for plants in clay pots (7-10 days). If you keep indoor plants in clay pots, then each pot can be wrapped in moss - both the moss and the plant will be moisturized abundantly. If there is no moss nearby, place the clay pot in a large plastic pot and place soaked expanded clay in the space between the sides of the pots. This method is effective if the plants are left for 7-10 days.
Method No. 2: for plants in plastic pots. In plastic pots, the top of the soil is covered with damp moss or expanded clay. Watered plants can be placed on trays, deep trays or in wide basins of water so that the bottom of the pot is in the water. This method is effective for moisture-loving plants.
Method No. 3: watering through a “wick”. A wick is twisted from a thick woolen thread, bandage or strip of fabric. One end of the wick is placed on the surface of the earth in a pot, and the other is lowered into a container of water, while the container with water should be located above the flower pot. This way the wick will get wet on one side and the moisture will transfer to the end of the wick that is in the pot. Care should be taken to ensure the correct number of wicks for a given pot size. So for a pot with a diameter of 10 cm, one wick is enough, and for a pot with a diameter of 25-30 cm you need 3-4 wicks for an adequate supply of water. By the way, special synthetic wicks are also sold in flower shops.
Method number 4: moisturizing through fabric. Lay a film on the kitchen table (you can also place the pots in the bathroom if the plants are not sensitive to light), lay a cloth soaked in water (cloth, felt, an old baby blanket, folded in several layers of batting) on the oilcloth. Place pots with already watered plants on the fabric; the end of the fabric should be dipped in a container of water. Moisture will travel through the fabric to the pots. Pots must have drainage holes; saucers are not needed. Wet plants will release water and the plants will absorb water through the drainage holes. This method is suitable for a period of 10-20 days.
Method No. 5: watering through the “wick” at the bottom of the pot. All you need is your flower pot and another container to place under the pot. Make holes in the pot and thread the string as shown in the picture. Place the pot on top of the water so that the end of the rope falls into the water. The water will rise up the rope and moisten the ground.
Method No. 6: automatic watering systems. Remember that all these methods are designed for a maximum of three to four weeks of your absence. If you have to leave for a longer period of time, you won’t be able to do without complex store-bought automatic watering systems. Now they are sold in any flower shop in the city and consist of a container with water, a set of thin tubes and a control system that ensures that the water supply is turned on at certain intervals, for example, 2 times a day.
Do you know?
...that tradescantia, begonia, dracaena easily tolerate temporary lack of moisture (up to 7 days)
...that aloe, agave, and euphorbia tolerate temporary “droughts” well and love sunlight, so it is better to leave them in the room on the windowsill, after watering them well.
... that it is better to bring palm trees and ficuses that live on the balcony into the room during the holidays. They are also unpretentious to moisture, but during three weeks of your absence they can get sick.
Regular replenishment of moisture is one of the key conditions for successfully growing plants for the home. How to water indoor flowers correctly - knowledge necessary for every lover of greenery in the house. Indoor plants, like open-ground crops, need regular watering, and it should be specific for each species.
From this article you will learn how to water indoor flowers correctly and what characteristics of crops should be taken into account. We will also provide recommendations for arranging automatic watering and consider methods of watering flowers with peroxide, potassium permanganate or tea.
How to properly water indoor plants
Improper watering is considered one of the most common mistakes made by indoor plant lovers. It is the violation of the watering schedule that causes disease and death of crops.
If you lead a busy lifestyle and are often away from home, you will have to opt for unpretentious varieties that do not require regular watering or install an automatic watering system while you are away.
If you are planning to leave, the automatic watering system will provide sufficient moisture to your pets during your absence. Any gardener knows that abundant watering will provide the flower with enough moisture for two weeks.
Here's some expert advice on how to properly water indoor plants:(picture 1):
- You can use woolen thread or braid: it will act as wicks through which water will flow into the pot. One end of the thread is stuck into the pot, and the other is lowered into a vessel with water standing above the level of the pot.
- Mini greenhouse-cap made of transparent film over the pot. Stones are poured into a large transparent bag and a container with a flower is placed on them. The soil is watered abundantly and a film is tied on top.
- Using a plastic container with wet wipes or newspapers pre-placed at the bottom. Pots are placed on top. Wet wipes are also placed between the pots. Instead of napkins, you can simply pour water, but this method is not suitable for all types.
- You can use a plastic bottle with pre-drilled holes in the bottom and cap. The bottle is filled with water and dropped a few centimeters with the neck down. The optimal diameter of the holes is determined experimentally. The size of the bottle depends on the lump of earth in the pot.
Such methods will help provide crops with water for several weeks. However, it should be borne in mind that periodically the flowers still need to be watered in the traditional way.
The video shows how you can set up automatic watering of plants at home.
Peculiarities
For automatic watering to be successful, you need to take into account some of its features. Firstly, in the warm season it is better to water flowers in the evening, and in winter - in the morning. Secondly, the pot must have drainage made of stones, broken bricks or expanded clay so that moisture does not linger at the roots. In addition, rain or settled water should be used for irrigation, since tap water contains a lot of lime.
Other features of watering indoor plants are:
- Watering is required only when the soil has dried well, so you must constantly check the condition of the soil before adding moisture.
- Varieties such as gloxinia, cyclamen, and saintpaulia do not like water, so they are watered in a tray.
- If the flowers tolerate water well, then do not forget to spray them. This action will additionally humidify the air and help keep them clean.
- To prevent burns from appearing on the leaves, it is not recommended to spray it if it is standing in direct sunlight, since the drops serve as a kind of magnifying glass.
- If, when watering, water is not absorbed into the soil, but pours out of the pot, this indicates that the soil has dried out. In such cases, it is recommended to immerse the pot up to the soil level in a container of water.
- An increase in temperature and light intensity increase the crop's need for watering.
Figure 1. Methods for automatically watering indoor flowers In addition, it should be borne in mind that plants in ceramic pots are watered more often than flowers grown in plastic containers.
Secrets
The appearance of the plant reflects the lack or excess of water when watering. By carefully examining the flower, you can determine whether it has enough moisture.
For example, with a lack of water, the edges of the lower leaves become brown, dry or drooping, and the flowers quickly wither and fall off. With excess moisture, the lower leaves turn yellow, signs of rot appear on them, and not on the flowers - mold, and the roots become limp.
Kinds
There are several types of irrigation, each of which is suitable for a specific type of crop.
There are certain characteristics for each type of irrigation(Figure 2):
- Overwatering: The soil contains a lot of moisture. This type of watering is suitable for calamus, azalea and cyperus.
- Abundant watering: The soil is kept constantly moist but so that the water does not stagnate in it. The flower is watered carefully as the soil dries. This type of watering is loved by: begonia, alocasia, calathea, lemon, ivy and oleander.
- Moderate watering: Before watering, the soil in the pot is allowed to dry out a couple of centimeters in the top layer of soil. This type of watering is preferable for representatives of the decorative group.
Figure 2. Basic methods of watering flowers in the house Rare watering belongs to a separate species. In this case, the crop is kept in dry soil or watered only during active growth. The soil is allowed to dry completely before the next watering. They like this type of watering: gloxinia, caladium, crinum, philodendron, epiphyllum.
Automatic watering system for indoor plants
It is not difficult to make an automatic watering system for indoor plants at home (Figure 3). To do this, just take a large piece of dense natural fabric, moisten it generously with water and place pots of flowers on top (without pallets).
The second part of the fabric is lowered into a basin or other container with water. This way the fabric will remain constantly moist, and the crops will receive the necessary moisture through the drainage holes in the pots. However, this method should only be used if you will be away for no more than two weeks.
How to water indoor flowers to make them bloom
The gardener's reward is the lush flowering of his plant. For this, time and effort are spent, a number of rules of care and maintenance are observed, and conditions are created.
Note: There are some species that rarely bloom. They release buds only when mature. These species include cactus and bamboo. Some cacti produce flowers in 10-15 years of life, bamboo once every 80 or 100 years.
In order for a plant to bloom, it is necessary to awaken the “survival instinct” in it. To do this, uncomfortable conditions are created for them, since under the watchful attention of the grower they are often in comfortable conditions and do not want to reproduce.
To form buds, a difference between day and night temperatures is artificially created. In normal times, a temperature of 18-20 degrees is considered comfortable, but in such conditions the plant will only throw out its leaves. To increase the chance of a bud appearing, the night temperature is reduced by 15 degrees.
Many varieties require vegetative dormancy. During this period, watering them is much less frequent and much less. The ambient temperature is 10 degrees less. Such conditions are created only in a cold greenhouse or on the veranda; this provokes the flowering of some species.
Figure 3. Methods for making an automatic watering system with your own hands There is a direct relationship between flowering and lighting. The formation of buds depends on the amount of light and its intensity. The length of daylight hours depends on the period in which the plant blooms in its natural habitat. One may require short daylight hours, while another may require long ones. For example, chrysanthemums, nerines, kalanchoes, cyclamens, poinsettias require short daylight hours, while pelargoniums, senopolias and glokisinia require long daylight hours to flower.
Is it possible to water indoor flowers with hydrogen peroxide?
In agricultural practice, soaking seeds in a solution of hydrochloric acid is used, since it is known that seeds contain inhibitors that prevent germination. In the natural environment, inhibitors are destroyed due to natural oxidation.
Note: Hydrogen peroxide is used to destroy inhibitors. The sown seeds are sprayed, moistened with a 1% peroxide solution from a spray bottle. But even a slight excess of the concentration of the solution will not cause harm. This method is suitable for sowing seeds in jars.
You can also simply water the plants once every 3-4 days with water and a three percent peroxide solution (Figure 4). With this type of watering, the crop is disinfected, since the concentration of the solution is chosen specifically for the purpose of disinfection.
Is it possible to water indoor flowers with potassium permanganate?
The main beneficial elements of potassium permanganate are potassium and manganese. Under the influence of manganese, microorganisms living in the soil increase their activity. However, watering should be moderate, since an excess of this element can cause harm, as can its excess.
Figure 4. Watering indoor plants with hydrogen peroxide Potassium permanganate acidifies the soil, so watering using this solution is most suitable for species that prefer acidic soils. Crops that prefer acidic soil came to us from the tropics: begonia, hydrangea, ferns, tradescantia, cyperus, etc. But watering with potassium permanganate will also have a beneficial effect on violets and primroses, which are familiar to many gardeners.
Is it possible to water indoor flowers with tea?
This question is often asked by beginning gardeners. It is important to know what type of tea should be used and whether it should contain sugar (Figure 5).
This watering option is well suited for organic supporters, since tea can be considered a good natural fertilizer. Any tea can be used for irrigation, the main thing is that it does not contain flavorings or additives of synthetic origin.
In order for watering with tea to be successful, you need to make sure that acidified soil is suitable for your flowers. Flowers are watered with tea several times a month.
Note: Do not use tea with sugar, moldy or sour for watering. Use a fresh tea solution that is not strong or sweet; it should be at room temperature.
In addition to watering with tea itself, tea leaves are also used as a top dressing. Its dosage is strictly controlled, and when applied it must be mixed with the top layer of soil. This fertilizing will help retain moisture in the soil and reduce the amount of watering.
Is it possible to water indoor flowers with yeast?
House flowers need more intensive fertilization than open ground plants. Yeast is especially useful for such crops, since indoor flowers grow in pots with a limited amount of nutrients.
Yeast has a good effect on plant growth and development. They become more resistant to pests and diseases, and also more resilient under conditions of insufficient humidity and insufficient light. Their root system develops better, and cuttings take root faster. After such feeding, the previously sluggish stem becomes more massive, the leaves fill with juice faster, and the buds develop faster and bloom longer.
Figure 5. Using tea to water plants The secret of feeding with yeast is that it contains a special fungus that changes the composition of the soil. Microorganisms contained in the soil begin to actively produce in the body, releasing a lot of potassium and nitrogen, which are necessary for flowers. In addition, this is a simple and affordable remedy, since both dry and raw yeast diluted with water (at a concentration of 10 grams of yeast per 10 liters of water) are suitable for feeding.
Note: To enhance the effect of the fertilizer, plant additives are added to its composition: hops or potato tops.
If you don’t have yeast on hand, you can use food waste: bread, crackers and other products containing the necessary substances.
The author of the video will tell you which fertilizers are best to use for indoor flowers.
The frequency of watering is determined by the physiological state of the plant and external conditions: air temperature, soil and air humidity, light intensity, moisture capacity and looseness of the substrate, size of pots, etc. It is desirable that watering be uniform - without sudden transitions from severe drying (lack of moisture) to waterlogging.
Also, the need of plants for water is determined by the specific characteristics of species and families: the structure of above-ground organs, the power of the root system, etc. For example, plants with succulent, fleshy leaves (such as agave, aloe) need less water than plants with large leaves (hibiscus), which sometimes need to be watered more often (every day or twice a day in the summer). Excess moisture is harmful for bulbous plants. It is best to water them by directing the stream of water not at the bulb, but closer to the walls of the pot, or water from a tray, so as to wet the roots, but not wet the bulb itself.
Different literature provides different methods for determining the water needs of a plant. This is the tapping of the pot (a booming sound - dry), a difference in weight (wet soil is heavier), etc. But using such methods it is easy to make mistakes. You can more accurately determine the condition of the ground by plunging your finger into the ground. In general, over time, at fairly constant temperatures, watering is established in a certain regime, for example, every other day in the spring, every other day in the summer, every two to three days in the fall, once every two weeks in the winter.
When watering with cold water or watering at cool temperatures, depressed spots of irregular shape appear on the leaves of orchids.
Colorless, irregularly shaped spots also appear on the leaves of violets when watered with cold water, as well as when sprayed with cool water (or when sprayed in cool weather).
There are plants that are very sensitive to lack of moisture, such as azaleas and adiantum. When the soil dries out completely, the azaleas die. There are also plants (there are quite a few of them among indoor flowers) that do not tolerate either drying out or waterlogging. This is an araucaria: when its branches begin to droop from drying out, then no amount of watering helps. But overflow also leads to inevitable death. The same goes for gardenia - very beloved by gardeners.
In winter, during the dormant period, plant growth slows down or stops; at this time, plants need less water and are watered much less frequently, sometimes up to 1-3 times a month. In spring and summer, when the plant is in a period of growth and flowering, on the contrary, watering is needed more often, sometimes up to 2-4 times a week. Autumn, especially rainy and cloudy ones, is a transitional period for plants. Plant growth slows down, but does not stop, it is already cool in the apartment and on the balcony, the ground dries out much longer than on warm days in summer and the likelihood of overflow increases.
Factors affecting the amount or frequency of watering
| Which plants should I water more? | Which plants should you water less? |
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It cannot be said that the cases presented in the comparative table are an unconditional rule. In fact, you need to consider a number of factors to determine whether you should water more or less. Violation of the irrigation regime, water quality, and its temperature will inevitably affect the plant. The more often this happens, the more seriously the plant will suffer. For example, a particularly sensitive plant may immediately die from watering with cold water.
Irrigation violations
| Signs of lack of water | Signs of excess water |
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There is a golden rule for watering plants - it is better to water less, but more often, than less often and a lot.
Due to lack of moisture, plants often drop their leaves. But the leaves also droop due to waterlogging. The difference is that an overdried plant immediately after watering (immersing the cutting in water) restores the elasticity of the leaves.
The lack of air humidity cannot be compensated for by increasing watering. To increase humidity, you need to place the plant in a pan of water, but isolate the pot and roots from contact with water.
There is such a thing as plant turgor. Turgor is the fullness of plant cells with water. If the plant does not have enough water, the leaves and branches droop and become lethargic, then they speak of a loss of turgor. If the plant has not been dehydrated for a long time, then it is enough to thoroughly saturate the soil with water so that the turgor is restored.
It should be noted that leaf wilting is not always associated with a lack of water. This can happen under the influence of sunlight, on the first clear day after long cloudy weather. Therefore, before sinning by improper watering, you should eliminate other errors that give a similar reaction to the plant.
Abundant watering
Plants are watered immediately after the earthen ball in the upper third of the pot has dried out (determined by touch by plunging a finger into the ground). This type of watering is required by most tropical plants with thin, delicate leaves (allocasia, begonia, fittonia, heliotrope), as well as some plants with leathery leaves (lemon, ficus, oleander, ivy), but only in the warm season, during the period of active growth.
Moderate watering
Plants are not watered immediately after the earthen ball dries out, but after two or three days, when the soil dries out in the top layer of the earth. This applies to plants with fleshy or heavily pubescent stems and leaves (peperomia, columnea), with thick roots and rhizomes (palms, dracaenas, aspidistra, aroids), as well as with water-bearing tubers on the roots (asparagus, chlorophytum, arrowroot) and bulbous ones. For some plants, light drying is a prerequisite during the dormant period, as it stimulates the formation and maturation of flower buds (zygocactus, clivia).
Rare watering
Plants are left dry for several days, weeks, months. This applies to cacti and succulents, as well as deciduous tuberous and bulbous plants that have a dormant period (crinum, gloxinia, hippeastrum, caladium). In this case, the soil dries out completely in the pot. The water-storing organs of plants allow them to survive drought. Rare watering is carried out during the dormant period of plants, when all life processes are inhibited. For most plants, this period falls in the winter months and is accompanied by a decrease in temperature, sometimes very significant (up to +2-3 degrees, but on average up to +8-12 degrees). At low temperatures, plants are especially sensitive to excess moisture. But if for some reason the dormant period did not take place, the temperature dropped slightly in winter, the plant cannot be switched to infrequent watering. The frequency of watering will depend entirely on the temperature and speed of drying of the soil.
There are no general strict rules for watering; each type of plant needs its own watering regime, read about this in the Encyclopedia section.
What water to water
It is best to water plants with soft rainwater. Hard water (including well water) containing various salts should be avoided. Aroids, azaleas, orchids, ferns, and camellias are especially poorly tolerant of hard water. Those plants that grow on calcareous soils tolerate watering well with hard water. Collecting rainwater is difficult; it can be replaced with filtered or boiled water. Settled water is devoid of chlorine (it evaporates within a day or two), but not salts, so it can be used if it is soft enough.
How to soften water for watering flowers
To soften hard water, add wood ash to it at the rate of 3 g of ash per 1 liter of water.
You can also add fresh peat to the water at the rate of 100 g per 10 liters of water.
If funds allow, we can advise filtering water for irrigation through household filters.
You can use special chemicals containing, for example, oxalic acid to soften water. However, to do this you need to know exactly the degree of hardness of your water in order to accurately calculate the dose.
The water temperature should be at least not lower than room temperature. This rule is especially important when watering tropical plants. It is recommended to water cacti with warmer water. Watering plants with cold water can cause root rot, bud drop, and even plant death. On the contrary, watering plants in a cold room with warm water is also undesirable, because... this will cause the plant to grow prematurely. Watering with hot water, which is also practiced, stimulates plant growth. By hot we mean a temperature no higher than 45-50 degrees (the hand is hot).
Sometimes the question arises whether it is possible to use tap water with hot water, diluting it with cold water. In fact, the chemical composition of water from a hot and cold pipe is almost the same, so if the water is soft enough, then you can use that water.
If there is a lot of soil in the pot, or the leaves block access to the soil, it is very convenient to make a special device: drill a hole in the bottle cap for a tube from a ballpoint pen. It is especially convenient to water cacti and seedlings this way.
The attachment for the bottle can be made from any available materials (tip from an inhaler, a juice tube). After abundant watering, it is advisable to loosen the soil in the pots with a thin wooden stick.
Of course, the most common method of watering is from a watering can; this is probably the simplest and most affordable method. Some plants that require very moist soil (for example, cyperus) can be watered by immersion: place in a tray of water, so that the water reaches ground level, for about 5-15 minutes. Then drain the water.
It is very convenient to water plants from plastic bottles. If you pour water into bottles and place them without lids, after a day the chlorine will disappear and the water will warm up to room temperature. Sometimes it is convenient to place bottles near the radiator, then the water will be a little warmer.
It is convenient to water crops, newly emerged seedlings, small plants, transplanted children or plants that require drip irrigation through a sprayer, adjusting the pressure of the dusty spray until a thin stream is formed.
If the soil in the pot is dry:
It is best to water dry plants using the immersion method to moisten the soil more evenly. You need to lower the pot completely for some time (5-10 minutes) in warm water (25-30°C), poured into a large container, for example, a basin.
If the plant is very dry, keep the pot in water until air bubbles stop appearing. Then remove the pot, let the water drain into the tray and drain it.
