Taking care of plants, especially with a busy college schedule, can be an incredibly daunting task. If you’ve never thought of yourself as someone with a green thumb, that shouldn’t stop you from bringing some life to your dorm or apartment. There are tons of low-maintenance plants and easy plant-care tips that will allow you to throw out the cheap plastic leaves and start your own mini-greenhouse.
- Start With Something Low-Maintenance
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If you’ve never owned a plant before, it’s typically good to start with something that doesn’t require a ton of work to keep alive. I personally started by taking care of a snake plant, which, in my experience, can survive quite a bit of accidental neglect. My snake plant is still going strong after a year in a low-light environment with water every two weeks, or when I realize the soil has gotten overly dry.
Succulents, pothos, and ZZ plants are also incredibly resilient and can survive low-light environments as well as the occasional forgotten watering. As long as you keep a watering schedule, even if it’s a loose one, these plants will most likely thrive in your space, regardless of how much you know about plant care.
If you’re looking for a little more of a challenge, orchids are a beautiful plant that will brighten up your space with only a little more effort on your part. Orchids do well with indirect sunlight, so you don’t have to worry about having a dorm or apartment window that doesn’t face the sun.
While orchids are a little trickier to water, many people use ice cubes to make sure they don’t overwater the plant. For most orchids, three ice cubes once a week should do the trick, but that amount can change based on the size of the plant.
- Don’t Overwater
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If you’re anything like me and you’re terrified that you’ll forget about your new plant, unwittingly leaving it to die of dehydration, your first impulse might be to give it a ton of water. Although it might seem counterintuitive, you have to throw this idea out. It’s actually significantly better to wait to water your plant until the soil is dry.
Overwatering your plants can lead to root rot, as the waterlogged roots will decay, leaving your plant unable to soak up nutrients. Root rot can be hard to catch, with most of the damage happening below the soil. You likely won’t realize there’s a problem until your plant’s leaves turn yellow and squishy. By the time it’s visible, it’s very difficult to fix, as the roots can often be too rotted to recover by the time there are symptoms above the soil.
It’s also important to note that the amount of water your plant needs will probably change throughout the year. When there’s less sunlight in the winter, plants tend to grow more slowly and need less water. Waiting to water your plants until their soil is dry is a great way to keep up with their changing needs.
If you’re still worried about overwatering your plants, you can pot your plant in a planter with a drainage hole and a saucer. This allows the excess water to flow out so the soil doesn’t become waterlogged.
- Repot Your Plants
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It’s usually a good idea to repot your plants once a year, though it could be more or less often depending on how quickly they grow. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to upgrade to a bigger planter; sometimes, they simply need fresh potting mix to gain more nutrients. If your plant seems to be getting too large for its current size, it’s important to get a bigger pot, so it has room to grow.
If you’re getting your plant a bigger pot, make sure you don’t get something too big. It’s generally safe to get a pot that’s 1 to 3 inches bigger than the previous pot. This ensures you don’t overwater the plant by saturating too much soil, but it still gives your plant plenty of space to grow.
Plant care doesn’t have to be scary. There are so many plants that are easy for beginners to take care of, and tons of little tricks that will allow you to keep a plant alive regardless of how busy your schedule is. Plant care can truly be for anyone; you just have to know which plants will work best with your lifestyle!
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