Plant Care

Guide to Growing Healthy Houseplants

Houseplants enhance your home and well-being. With a few simple tips, caring for them is easier than you think.

Optimum Placement

Light is essential for plant growth. Most plants thrive with bright, indirect light (filtered through trees or a sheer curtain) for at least 4–6 hours a day. Avoid direct sunlight, except for succulents. Signs of too little light include yellowing or dropped leaves; too much light causes brittle, brown-spotted leaves. Note that growth slows in winter and resumes in spring.

Watering Your Plants

Water keeps plants firm and healthy by moving minerals to the roots. Most plants do best when the top 2–3 inches of soil dry out before watering. Ferns and peace lilies prefer consistently moist soil, while succulents and cacti need the soil to dry out completely between waterings.

Water around the base of the plant (not over the crown) until it drains from the bottom. Overwatering causes soft, drooping, or yellowing leaves; underwatering leads to dry, compacted soil and slower growth.

Follow these tips and your houseplants will thrive!