Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

Hi all!

I'm a brown-thumb through and through. I'm starting to have a little more
success with my plants but have a couple of questions regarding appropriate
watering. I have some indoor and outdoor plants in planters. My main
question is how can I tell when it's time to water? Do soil moisture
indicators help? What about self-watering devices?

Hoping to keep them growing!

Cheers.

Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

Hi Ncgirl.
Question: do your planters have drainage or do they sit on a tray to catch
the water. General rule of thumb is if the planter has drainage (holes in
the bottom to let the excess water drain) then you fill up the planter twice
(once for the pot and once for the plant). In cool weather water once a
week, in hot weather two or three times a week should do it depending on the
size of the planters. If you can't feel any moisture an inch down into the
soil then it's time to water.
Helps?
--
Jayel
"ncgirl" wrote in message
.com...
Hi all!

I'm a brown-thumb through and through. I'm starting to have a little more
success with my plants but have a couple of questions regarding
appropriate
watering. I have some indoor and outdoor plants in planters. My main
question is how can I tell when it's time to water? Do soil moisture
indicators help? What about self-watering devices?

Hoping to keep them growing!

Cheers.

Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

Hi Jayel,

The planters all have drainage holes at the bottom but they do also sit on
trays to catch the water =) I think my problem is that when I go to test
the moisture I'm not sure how the soil should feel. e.g. should the soil be
noticeably wet? or crumbly but still dark?

Should I get rid of the trays? I can't help it inside but outside I could
remove the trays on the bottom.

What do you mean when you say "fill up the planter". Is that like as in
water until water drains through each time?

Thanks for your help!


"J. Lane" wrote in message
. ca...
Hi Ncgirl.
Question: do your planters have drainage or do they sit on a tray to catch
the water. General rule of thumb is if the planter has drainage (holes in
the bottom to let the excess water drain) then you fill up the planter
twice
(once for the pot and once for the plant). In cool weather water once a
week, in hot weather two or three times a week should do it depending on
the
size of the planters. If you can't feel any moisture an inch down into the
soil then it's time to water.
Helps?
--
Jayel
"ncgirl" wrote in message
.com...
Hi all!

I'm a brown-thumb through and through. I'm starting to have a little
more
success with my plants but have a couple of questions regarding
appropriate
watering. I have some indoor and outdoor plants in planters. My main
question is how can I tell when it's time to water? Do soil moisture
indicators help? What about self-watering devices?

Hoping to keep them growing!

Cheers.

Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

"J. Lane" wrote in message
. ca...
... If you can't feel any moisture an inch down into the
soil then it's time to water...


If the pots are small, the best indicator of water need is the weight of
the pot. Water it well, let it drain, then pick it up to see how heavy
it is. When it gets significantly lighter, water again. Different plants
have different water needs, particularly with varying weather, so a
watering schedule may not work as well. Another variable is the soil in
which the plant is growing: some soils drain faster than others.

When judging the weight of the pot, allow for growth of the plant and
recalibrate your fully watered weight occasionally.

Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

ncgirl wrote:

Hi Jayel,

The planters all have drainage holes at the bottom but they do also sit on
trays to catch the water =) I think my problem is that when I go to test
the moisture I'm not sure how the soil should feel. e.g. should the soil be
noticeably wet? or crumbly but still dark?

Should I get rid of the trays? I can't help it inside but outside I could
remove the trays on the bottom.

What do you mean when you say "fill up the planter". Is that like as in
water until water drains through each time?

Thanks for your help!


"J. Lane" wrote in message
. ca...

Hi Ncgirl.
Question: do your planters have drainage or do they sit on a tray to catch
the water. General rule of thumb is if the planter has drainage (holes in
the bottom to let the excess water drain) then you fill up the planter

twice

(once for the pot and once for the plant). In cool weather water once a
week, in hot weather two or three times a week should do it depending on

the

size of the planters. If you can't feel any moisture an inch down into the
soil then it's time to water.
Helps?
--
Jayel
"ncgirl" wrote in message
. rr.com...

Hi all!

I'm a brown-thumb through and through. I'm starting to have a little

more

success with my plants but have a couple of questions regarding

appropriate

watering. I have some indoor and outdoor plants in planters. My main
question is how can I tell when it's time to water? Do soil moisture
indicators help? What about self-watering devices?

Hoping to keep them growing!

Cheers.

If the plant is drooping or the soil looks really dry, water it.

Plants in sun need more water than plants in shade.

Yellow leaves usually mean you are watering too much.

The hotter the temp, the more often you should water.

Janine

Self-professed brown thumb needs some help!
 

When I worked in a local nursery this year, none of the pots had trays.
Basically we filled the pot to the brim, waited a few minutes for absobtion
of the water and then filled them again.
--
Jayel
"ncgirl" wrote in message
. com...
Hi Jayel,

The planters all have drainage holes at the bottom but they do also sit on
trays to catch the water =) I think my problem is that when I go to test
the moisture I'm not sure how the soil should feel. e.g. should the soil
be
noticeably wet? or crumbly but still dark?

Should I get rid of the trays? I can't help it inside but outside I could
remove the trays on the bottom.

What do you mean when you say "fill up the planter". Is that like as in
water until water drains through each time?

Thanks for your help!


"J. Lane" wrote in message
. ca...
Hi Ncgirl.
Question: do your planters have drainage or do they sit on a tray to
catch
the water. General rule of thumb is if the planter has drainage (holes
in
the bottom to let the excess water drain) then you fill up the planter
twice
(once for the pot and once for the plant). In cool weather water once a
week, in hot weather two or three times a week should do it depending on
the
size of the planters. If you can't feel any moisture an inch down into
the
soil then it's time to water.
Helps?
--
Jayel
"ncgirl" wrote in message
.com...
Hi all!

I'm a brown-thumb through and through. I'm starting to have a little
more
success with my plants but have a couple of questions regarding
appropriate
watering. I have some indoor and outdoor plants in planters. My main
question is how can I tell when it's time to water? Do soil moisture
indicators help? What about self-watering devices?

Hoping to keep them growing!

Cheers.