Do you have an interest in gardening? Growing plants in flowerpots is an interesting activity that can be a good way to pass the time in addition to growing a hobby. The hobby will take you much closer to nature, and you will be able to get life going inside little containers.
Taking tender care of your plants is important, but first, you have to learn how to get the plan growing inside the flower pot. With a bit of practice, you will be able to get it right, but you must always give yourself room for error since man is to err.
As a gardener, you will be in charge of the entire life cycle of your plant from the moment it is a tiny seedling to when it is fully grown. You will be able to monitor various activities and statistics about the plant, which means that you will always be in charge of its growth.
You will also need to tend to your plant to prevent it from getting infected by horrible infections and other plant diseases and water the plant regularly to keep it growing and thriving. Following are some things that you need to keep in mind for your plant to keep growing.
Containers or Flowerpots
The containers that you will be using to grow your plant will be required to be filled with drainage holes. The circulation of water in the soil and the free flow of air within the soil is important, and you should keep this in mind when shopping for growing containers.
Please choose a convenient size for you, and remember that the container tends to be heavy once you have filled it with soil and started to water your plant. The plants also need enough water and air, but they should not be growing in water-logged soil. Too much water and your plants will be drowning in the flower pots.
Potting Mix
It would help if you had a potting mix for your specialized gardening. The potting mix is a special type of growing substrate that is lightweight and rich in nutrients. Most of the potting mix that you will find at the gardening store will typically have fertilizers integrated into the mix.
This is important, especially when you are planting for the first time. As a beginner, you might not have enough information about the kind of nutrients that will be required for your plants.
Additionally, formulating your potting mix from scratch tends to be quite involving, and you might not get it right the first time. For this reason, it is important to get a ready potting mix for your plants. Soil from your yard is also not a good choice since it tends to be very heavy, and as such, you will have a difficult time getting your plants growing the way they should.
A Coffee Filter
If you have a flowerpot with large drainage holes, you will need a means of keeping your soil from washing out. A piece of screen or a coffee filter will work perfectly and ensure that even when the water is getting drained out of the flowerpot, you still get to retain your soil.
Your plant will also grow better when you have the right water balance inside the potting mix that you are using. The filter will preserve the nutrients in your flowerpot and prevent them from getting drained out with the water.
The Plant
This is the most important part of the entire exercise since our goal is to grow a plant in a flowerpot. The choice of plant is entirely up to you, and you can choose any favorite plant that you would like to give a try.
The plant should be a healthy one and one that you are comfortable cultivating. You will need to give your plant specialized care and keen attention for the entire length of the gardening, and as such, a favorite plant will make your time more enjoyable and productive. You can even opt to plant some flowers, especially in the summer, since they tend to be beautiful and transform your outdoors’ overall look and feel.
Either way, having the plant or flower ready will be important to plant it and watch it grow while you tend to it and give it the care and attention it deserves. You can choose to plant one plant or have several of them inside your container. If you have a large container, you can space them out evenly to ensure that each plant has enough space to grow and thrive.
The Planting
This is the exciting phase of our entire exercise and the fun part. Start by covering the drainage holes and putting some potting mix into the container. The coffee filter we mentioned previously should be at the bottom and the potting mixture following it.
The container should be about two-thirds full with the potting mix. Follow this with the plant that you intend to plant. If there are several of them, decide on the arrangement and spacing you will use and nestle them carefully into the soil.
You can also add some of the potting mix but remember to leave some space at the top of the container so that the potting mix does not overflow from the container. By default, the soil surface should be about 2 inches from the rim of the pot.
This ensures that the water soaks into the soil instead of spilling out when you are planting and taking care of your plant. After planting, transfer your container from the working space to the chosen spot. Water your plant until you see water starting to flow from the bottom of the container.
Well, that is as far as planting goes. You have undertaken the most difficult stages of the process, but there is still a lot of excitement ahead. You will need to monitor your plant’s growth to ensure that it is growing as you would like. Give it water regularly and ensure that it does not dry out.
When you do this, you will be able to keep the plant healthy, and it will grow strong and tall. During the hot season, you might need to increase the frequency of watering the plant, and you can also try some pruning to encourage the fuller growth of your plant. This is a good way to spend your time, and you will also enjoy being close to nature as you take care of your plant. Have fun!