It's only February in New England and I am having Spring fever. I want to be outside digging in the dirt and planting things. Since I can't do that, I have decided to pay special attention to my houseplants. For this "How To" I show you how to easily re-pot your plants which you should do every year or two to keep them vibrant and growing.
What You Need
Materials: Fresh potting soil; a bigger, clean planter; scissors (to cut plastic planter if needed); spray bottle filled with room temperature water and a few drops of plant food; waste basket.
Equipment: I prefer re-potting plants in my kitchen sink. Be very careful not to allow a lot of potting soil to go down your drain. Potting soil is easily cleaned up when dry but not as easily when wet.
Instructions
1. In this example the roots have grown out past the pot and the plant is "pot-bound." The first step is to carefully cut off the old plastic pot without damaging the roots. Cutting down the side of the plastic planter works well. If the pot is not plastic, turn the plant upside down and very carefully and slowly jiggle the roots out.
2. Once the plastic side is off, tackle the bottom. Use scissors to snip through the plastic in many places until you can easily remove it.
3. Make sure the new, larger pot is clean by using a touch of bleach in water so you do not transfer any plant diseases. Rinse very well. Also, it is important that the new pot not be too much bigger. A planter that is too big can hold too much water causing root rot or can inhibit the top of the plant to grow until the roots have filled the pot. Always choose a pot with drainage holes.
4. With your new clean pot, place new potting soil in the bottom. For this particular plant I am using a couple of handfuls.
5. Moisten the soil with the water and plant food solution.
6. Insert the plant holding it straight up. It is best to have just a bit of space around the sides and several inches at the top.
7. Loosely pack in the new soil around the plant making sure that the plant is standing upright. If you put the soil in when the plant is leaning to one side or another, it will stay that way. Be sure to keep adding small amounts and tucking it down with your fingers.
8. Top off the plant with new soil being careful not to overflow the pot. You do not want to add water and have the soil dripping down the sides.
9. Add the water/ plant food solution so that the plant is moist and voila! Your plant will be much happier.
Additional Notes: It is best to re-pot your plants it the Spring just before their growing season. Once re-potted, your plant will need time to adjust. To make the transition easier, keep all of the other factors the same, ie location, temperature, amount of sunlight.
Images: Tanya Lacourse
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thank you for this post much needed.
Yes thank you. Despite my little patio garden [which I have faithfully and carefully brought in on freezing nights and put out in the mornings for every inch of sunlight], I really don't have any plant knowledge. I trust my instincts but I know they are not that good... hah! So any small potted plant knowledge you throw me, I will eat up!
I'll be doing this soon.
Oh, maybe this is relevant... Ikea has an adorable assortment of pretty planting pots [and they're cheap!]. However, they do not all come with holes in the bottom. My husband and I thought: simple... buy a ceramic drill bit and we'll drill some 1/4" holes. Not so simple... we think the ceramic is on a metal substrate. We haven't finished the project yet, but I am thinking he's going to have to switch to a metal drill bit now that the ceramic drill bit will not penetrate the bottom of the pot. It will still be worth it, as long as he gets around to it soon!!
I re-potted 3 houseplants this weekend and it brought a little spring to my chilly Northern California home!
With the renewed interest in succulents, this is a very important tip:
use only sand/true dirt soil for potting succulents. The many potting soils that can be found everywhere almost entirely made of peat moss and will poison your plant!
Get some dirt out of the back yard, buy 'pure topsoil' or buy bonsai soil--just make sure it is sandy and grainy. Even better, go to a local specialty shop, and ask them for peat-free potting soil. It will make a huge difference!
Great post.
And thank you, magdelane, for the info on replanting succulents.
jenny carres-- i used to have one of those when i was little and was fascinated by it! my mom called it a "sensitive plant." ;)
ARGH! Never re-pot plants over the sink. It clogs the drain with soil.
I like to drop a few rocks in the bottom. It helps with drainage - after the first few weeks, when you over water, all the soil won't come out the bottom - and it gives the roots something to grow around before it gets rootbound. Also don't have to use as much potting soil.
Yikes
Use succulent/citrus specific soil when repotting succulents.
No need to use plant food when repotting with MiracleGro potting mix, or rich potting mixes like that. Read the bag, that kind of soil usually says no liquid fertilizer needed for months!
Fertilizers can be be a tad shocking for plants in new pots, with potentially damaged roods: Give the chemicals a rest.
Do it on newspaper, or we will need a "clogged sink hack" post.
I heard that when repotting rootbound plants, rather than treating the roots with kid gloves, you're supposed to take a pair of scissors and sort of snip at them a bit, otherwise they will "think" they are still in the same pot and continue to grow in the rootbound shape. Any thoughts on this, anyone?