I have a lot of plants in my apartment, which I water and fertilize according to their needs. I like African violets, ficuses, dracaena, begonias, ferns, hoje. I also have several succulents (cacti, aloe and crusher) that can store water and survive in the homes of even the most forgetful and busy flower lovers.
Transplanting potted plants
In February, when the day is visibly longer and the plants finish their winter rest, I always replant them. Someplants need larger pots because the roots exit through the drainage holes in the bottom.I replant smaller specimens into containers 1-2 cm larger in diameter than those in which they have grown so far. Large plants receive pots 3-5 cm larger than the previous ones. I usually used plastic pots, which are very practical and available in various sizes. Recently, I have also been buying clay ones. They keep moisture for a shorter time, so they are good for plants that do not tolerate too wet a substrate. I also like ceramic casings. They are the decoration of the apartment.
Basic rules for transplanting potted plants
- I always remember about the drainage that I put at the bottom of the pot. It provides space for excess water and better air access to the roots. For this purpose, I use expanded clay (aggregate fired from clay), pebbles or broken clay pots.
- I buy ready-made potting mixes for various plants or prepare appropriate mixtures myself.I use leaf soil, peat, perlite (mineral granules), sand, clay and sometimes coconut fiber.I adjust the proportions of individual components to the plant requirements.All succulents, preferring dry soil, receive a substrate with a lot of sand and perlite. This makes it more permeable to water. I add some clay to the dracaena and a bit of acid peat to the ferns.
- Too already overgrown flowers, e.g. begonias, ferns, arrowroot or chrysanthemum, I separate. This way I have some new plants for my friends. Leaves of African violets broken off during transplanting can be successfully rooted in a glass with water.
- When I start transplanting plants at home, I have all the necessary accessories on hand. I lay out the foil, large sheets of paper or newspaper and prepare the pots, soil, sand, drainage and a spatula. At the bottom of each pot I put a handful of small pebbles, expanded clay or clay slates. Then I gently pull the plant with the entire root ball out of the old container. By the way, I cut dry shoots or damaged leaves. If roots stick out through the drainage holes and make it difficult to remove the flower, I remove some of them or cut open the old pot.
- I put a small amount of soil on the drainage layer into the new layer and put the plant on it, sprinkling it with fresh soil. Then I gently knead the substrate. Since it is generally quite damp, I do not water the flowers right after transplanting. I wait 3-4 hours for any damaged roots to dry slightly and not rot.
I start fertilizing flowersabout three weeks after transplanting the plants. I have noticed that Biohumus serves them a lot. On the other hand, I feed all flowering specimens with fertilizer with an increased amount of potassium and phosphorus.
Aldona Rybak
