Seven Reasons Your Houseplants Keep Dying

Believe it or not, you don’t have to be a knowledgeable and successful garden designer to succeed with houseplants. But at the same time, you’d probably be surprised as to how many garden designers find it fundamentally difficult to keep their houseplants alive.

Plants of all shapes and sizes have the potential to bring a real sense of colour and life into the rooms of our homes. That is, until they begin wilting, rotting, changing colour and ultimately dropping dead. If all of this sounds familiar, the good news is – you’re far from in the minority.

And the even better news is that it is usually pretty easy to identify where you are going wrong, in order to make the necessary adjustments.

So sourced from the very best indoor garden designers out there, here’s a brief overview of seven possible reasons why your houseplants keep dying:

1.  You are keeping them in unsuitable locations

First up, the single most important thing you can do with any plant is ensure it is positioned in an appropriate location. Sooner or later, unsuitable locations are guaranteed to either damage or destroy your plants entirely. Direct sunlight, indirect light, plenty of shade, balanced temperatures etc. – every plant has its own unique requirements and tolerances.

2.  Continually changing locations

That said, it can be just as damaging to change the location of any given houseplant unnecessarily frequently. The reason being that plants, just like people, need a good amount of time to adapt to their surroundings and the surrounding conditions. If you fail to give them sufficient time before then moving them once again, you risk doing potentially irreparable damage.

3.  Using the wrong soil

The first thing most garden designers will tell you when it comes to plant health – it begins and ends with quality soil. And not only quality soil, but the right type of soil with the precise blend of nutrients and elements your plants require. Given the fact that these requirements differ from one plant to the next, you may need to do your homework.

4. Overwatering

Even the most experienced garden designers in the world have a habit of falling victim to this particular mistake from time to time. Far too many people assume that because their plants need water, more water is a good thing. In reality, there are countless plant species where if you are not extremely frugal with the water, you are largely guaranteed to destroy them. It’s easy to find specific watering guidelines for every type of house plant online, so there’s really no reason to make this painfully common mistake.

5.  Insufficient or too much light

This particular mistake could be bracketed under the first in our list regarding strategic positioning. Nevertheless, wherever you decide to position your plants around your home, you are going to need to ensure that they are provided with the right amount of light. Just as some plants only need the smallest amount of light to perform to their maximum potential, others need strong and relatively constant light throughout the day. Rather than simply making things up as you go along, find out exactly what it is your plants require in terms of light provision.

6. Exposure to extreme temperatures

Temperatures that are too hot or too cold – even for a relatively short period of time – can send your plants into a state of shock. The kind of shock that can have a severely negative effect on their health, not to mention their chances of survival. What’s more, professional garden designers also warn against exposing plants to sharp or frequent changes in temperature. If it goes from too cold to too hot (or vice versa) in a short period of time, you could be headed for trouble.

7.  Inappropriate pots

Last but not least, it’s worth considering whether the very pots in which you have positioned your plants are suitable in the first place. For example, if the pots you choose are too small, your plants will not be able to develop the required root structure to grow strong and healthy. Likewise, if you do not ensure that sufficient measures are taken to facilitate good drainage, the roots of your plants could be permanently damaged due to excess water.

Bear these seven common mistakes in mind and you’ll be nurturing the healthiest of houseplants like an expert indoor garden designer in no time!