While housing plants has become a social trend over the years, it’s a pretty great hobby to have, as it holds many benefits for your physical/mental health, such as providing better air quality (duh, cause plants produce oxygen and stuff) and relieving stress and anxiety. Besides, don’t they make such an appealing and comforting addition to your house decor?
Don’t get me wrong – taking care of plants and housing them can be pretty tedious, especially if you’re new to it. And don’t get me started on the watering, lawd that can be a real b*tch. I am telling you, taking care of plants is just as big of a responsibility as having a child or a pet, don’t @ me. But there’s an easier way to do it! Keep on reading to find out about this unique plant-watering technique that is totally in vogue right now!
Other than repotting and propagating, watering is the most common task you perform with your potted plants, and you probably do this task by pouring water onto the surface of your soil. There’s nothing wrong with this – I mean people have been doing this for years – but the water won’t reach the roots which are usually growing downwards.
So what is bottom-watering?
As simple as it sounds, it is a method of watering plants from the bottom up, which allows the water to be taken up through the roots, which then ensures that the soil is soaked all the way to the bottom of the roots. In this way, the roots of your potted plants will grow stronger because they will begin to grow directly down towards the moisture. Plus, this is a cleaner method which prevents any excessive mess – so it is perfectly suitable for both indoor and outdoor potted plants.
All you gotta do is fill up a large bowl or container with water, plop in your potted plant, sit yourself down and let it do its thing! It makes for the perfect watering method, as it reduces the chance of over- and underwatering, because it only takes in what it needs and nothing more – so you can just sit there and let your thirsty boi chug on that water. You can leave your potted plant in the bowl for up to 10-20 minutes, or just whenever you see that the water level is not going down any further.
This method will also help to reduce those pesky little fungus gnats that like to thrive at the top of moist soil. By watering from the bottom, you can leave an inch of soil at the top to remain dry, so there won’t be any larvae getting all cosy in your plant. If you want to make sure the top of the soil stays dry, cover it with a thin layer of sand – this will eliminate the chances of fungus gnats getting into your plants.
Stay tuned for more tips and techniques on plant parenting!
