Water With Flat Club Soda + Other Tips for Keeping Healthier Plants

When I finally killed my low-light, hard-to-kill ZZ Plant, I knew plants just weren’t “my thing.” In a last-ditch effort to save the rest of my indoor garden, I’m turning to tips and tricks that, the experts say, can save sad-looking plants from certain death. Like watering them with bottled soda water instead of what comes out of the tap.

Real Simple suggests that filling your watering can with bottled club soda can give your plants a boost. Apparently unlike tap water, club soda is stocked with minerals that promote plant growth. You just have to make sure that you let the soda water go flat first; Real Simple warns the bubbly carbon dioxide will stunt a plant’s growth. → Watch the video: Real Simple

Need more than a soda swap to keep plants looking healthy? I think I do too (it’s the curse of a black thumb). Here are some of Apartment Therapy’s best tips for finding and keeping healthy-looking houseplants:

• The first step to keeping healthy plants is buying healthy plants. Emil Evans shared 5 tips for bringing home the best plant of the bunch.
• Clean your plants! Plants have pores (stomata) just like our skin, so it’s important to keep them clean from dust and debris. Here are some cleaning tips for plants.
• The best healthy-plant secret? Location, location, location. Landscape designer Bridget Skinner says choosing the right plant for the light exposure is the best “secret.” Read her other plant care tips here.