Your houseplant is growing like a weed, so when is it time to repot a plant might be on your mind. We are going to tackle this subject that very well could help many of you with this question, this one is dedicated to my grandparents who got me started in gardening at the age of four.
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When It Is Time To Repot A Houseplant
Let us get right to what to look for when your houseplant is ready for a new home, many of us might transplant them too early or too late, so knowing the signs is important for every gardener to know.
- Visible roots are a sure sign it is time to transplant your plant baby to a larger home.
- The dropping of many of its leaves is another red flag that it may be root bound, if the plant has been living in its pot for some time this might be a sign to check it out more carefully.
- Your houseplant suddenly stops growing new leaves or growth for quite a while, every plant goes into a rest period but if that occurs during the peak growing season something is definitely wrong.
- Are you experiencing drooping leaves with proper watering, if you know for a fact they are watered properly, and appearing thirsty this most often is the lack of water to the root system.
- Yellow leaves can be another confusing sign for gardeners, when a plant is overwatered or underwatered this also occurs, If you know for a fact the amount of water is correct, transplanting them into one pot larger could save your houseplant.
- The plant just is way too large for the container it is planted in, if the houseplant is two to three times larger than the pot it is a must to transplant as soon as possible.
By knowing what to watch out for you are prepared to transplant whenever the time arrives, you can learn from an expert how to do this by watching the video at the beginning of this guide.
Are Mushrooms Harmful To My Plant
Houseplant Pest Problems
It can be frustrating to invest in a beautiful houseplant only to watch it die, one common problem-solver in this guide is knowing more about the pests that can cause us to lose our precious plants.
| Aphids | Tiny green, brown, or black insects, located on the undersides of leaves | Feeding damage causes: stunted plant growth and curled or distorted foliage |
| Mealybugs | Scale insect with a white cottony appearance on stems, undersides of foliage (leaves), and on nodes (where the leaf or bud attaches to the plant’s stems) | Feeding damage causes stunted plant growth |
| Mites | Tiny, light-colored arachnids (not insects) | Produce webbing on foliage and stems. Feeding produces distorted yellowish foliage. |
| Scale | Oval or round, brown insects, Located on stems and leaves | Suck plant juices resulting in poor or stunted plant growth |
| Thrips | Extremely tiny insects. Adults are light tan to dark brown; appear white when young | Feed on foliage and flowers, causing them to become distorted and discolored |
| Whitefly | Small, white, gnat-like insect | Adults and young feed on leaves, causing the leaves to turn pale yellow or white |
This chart was found on the website “Extension.PSU.edu”, I am positive this will be extremely interesting and helpful for any gardeners reading “When is it Time to Repot a Plant”. You might want to jot this website down or add it to your browser favorites, I highly recommend this as a resource that you will refer back to time after time.
Is Your Plant Suffering From Root Rot?
Believe it or not, many people lose the majority of their houseplants not to the pests on the chart above. Instead, what is the reason more often overwatering causes the roots to begin rotting? I lost many of my favorites when first starting indoor gardening, so from my own experience, I can tell you this is super easy to do.
- The first signs are the yellowing of the leaves, and this usually happens with the lower leaves. You might begin to panic and overwatering thinking, it requires more water, and by doing this we are causing more damage.
- Wilting and beginning to fall over is often your next clue, again many of us take this as needing to water the houseplant.
- A stinky aroma is also a good sign you are experiencing root rot, so now is there anything we can do?
Let Us Check for Root Rot
Whenever I check my plant, I do this on my apartment balcony to avoid a mess. If you have no choice but to do this indoors, I highly recommend putting down newspapers or a plastic garbage bag. This will be well worth your time, so seriously consider this before checking for root rot.
- Gently remove your plant from its nursery pot
- Look at the roots, healthy roots will be white.
- Rotten roots will be very brown or black.
- If the roots are mushy, root rot is to blame.
You now know how to check for root rot with these very simple steps, if this tip has been helpful please share it with your family and your friends. The more people who know about this, the better for the success of indoor gardeners.
Indoor Plant Deals
Can You Save Your Houseplant?
I have been lucky enough to save some of my plants with root rot, so I wanted to include this in this guide to help you. We can only save them if we catch the problem early enough, but what do we have to lose by trying the steps provided below?
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Remove the plant from the pot and break off the soil from the root ball. Wash the plant roots under running water.
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Trim away rotting roots.
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Trim back the foliage at about the same rate as you had to remove roots,
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Dispose of the remaining soil.
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Wash the container with bleach water to kill any fungus or bacteria.
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Dip the roots in a fungicide solution.
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Transplant with new potting soil.
The steps above are your best chances of salvaging from root rot, you must realize this only works when you catch the problem in its early stages. Just like cancer, the earlier you treat it the better your chances of recovery.
Houseplant Diseases
We are now going to learn about houseplant diseases in this paragraph, you often do everything within your power to take care of them and still might lose them to disease. Including some of the diseases is important to me, below I have listed ones that you might be interested in knowing about.
- Crown and Stem Rot
- Grey Mold
- White Mold
- Nutrient Deficiency
- Powdery Mildew
- Rust
- Scooty Mold
- Viruses
Now you are aware of the most common diseases indoor plants can experience, I am sure you are wondering if there is anything you can do. You are in luck, Gizmo is going to provide just that information in the remainder of this article.
Mold Prevention and Treatment
Crown and Stem Rot
Black or discolored rotten patches at the base of the plant are what you will notice usually first from this disease, succulents and cacti are most at risk. We now are going to learn what treatment we can try, thank you once again for reading “When is it Time to Repot a Plant.”
What Can You Do?
Cutting out the rot and dust with an anti-fungicide such as sulfur is the only option you can try, taking cuttings from the healthy parts and trying to propagate is what I would recommend you do.
Grey Mold
Grey mold disease occurs when the plant is weak and the environment is humid and cool. If the plant is relatively healthy, this usually isn’t a major problem. White or pale brown spots on flower petals are sure signs of this problem, what can you do is listed below.
What Can You Do?
Remove the infected parts of the plant. Going forward improve the ventilation or find ways to reduce the humidity. If the Mold has got out of hand you may have to throw it away completely.
White Mold
White mold is another fungus that quickly occurs on the soil surface when conditions are moist and humid. The surface of the soil is coated in a white fluffy substance that looks like cotton wool, this is very common during the winter months in northern parts of the United States.
What Can You Do?
Simply cleaning up the white-covered potting soil is all you will need to do, this most often does not do any permanent damage to your plant.
Nutrient Deficiency
Poor growth is one of the most common signs when lacking nutrients, another thing to watch for is extremely small leaves. The color of the leaves will be dull and even might appear to be somewhat transparent in some areas.
What Can You Do?
Simply applying an all-purpose fertilizer is the only treatment plan that you will need, another option is to transplant it in a new pot with fresh potting mix with fertilizer already added.
Powdery Mildew
This one is more of an eye-sore than anything else, you will notice a white dusting on the leaves. With time it may spread over your entire plant, so let us see what we can do about this one.
What Can You Do?
Removing the leaves is your first step in treating this, then spray with a product containing Myclobutanil.
Rust
Roses, Chrysanthemums, Pelargoniums, and Fushias are mainly affected by rust. You will notice brown rings or spots on the leaves, which most often will be found underneath the leaves.
What Can You Do?
Carefully remove the infected leaves and try not to shake the rust spores any more than you absolutely need to, a natural method is to use neem oil if you are into using essential oils to treat this problem.
Scooty Mold
Black or green spots on the leaves are what you will notice, this also is not a pretty sight for gardeners. Central heating during the winter months is often the time of the year this fungus will be seen, let us see what we can do about this.
What Can You Do?
Not usually harmful to the life of the houseplant, but it really is quite an ugly sight that none of us are going to be happy with. You can remove it by wiping over the leaves with a damp cloth, and after you do this rinse the leaves with clean water.
Viruses
Aphids are usually what spreads viruses to our indoor plants, there is no known cure for viruses that attack houseplants. Stunted growth is one sign most gardeners notice, also yellow spots are very common.
What Can You Do?
As I mentioned there is no known cure, but if the appearance doesn’t bother you the plant usually survives. If you just can’t stand the sight, you might as well dispose of this one as hard as it might be if it is one of your favorites.
Houseplant Seed Deals
Indoor Gardening Resources
Resources are always an important part of this website, I am proud to include them in every article. Feel free to browse all my self-help guides by clicking here, this is a great time-saver that I am happy to provide.
Thank you for taking the time to read “When is it Time to Repot a Plant”, and if you found the content worthy please leave me a comment in my comment section. Do you have any of your own indoor gardening tips to share, we all would love to hear from you if you wish to share them.