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| Photo Credit: Sarah L. Ivy |
| A good leaf-dusting can make a huge difference in your plant’s overall health and appearance. |
Do you love the quiet, cold days of winter, or do you prefer to bask in the rays of the summer sun? I happen to enjoy both, but for many gardeners, winter is an uninvited vacation from their favorite pastime. The good news is that there’s plenty of things that anxious gardeners can do inside that’ll keep their green thumbs growing when it’s cold out.
For starters, you can tend to your indoor garden – all those nice houseplants and floral arrangements that often get a bit neglected while you’re busy tending to your landscape during the growing season. Winter’s a great time of year to pamper these plants that add so much color and texture to the home. While your potted plants do go through a winter dormancy period and their growth slows, they still need watering and dusting. So when should you water? Well, the finger may know best. As a general rule of thumb, stick your finger into the potting soil. If the soil’s moist, don’t water the plant. If it’s dry, water. It’s as simple as that. The plant-care part that’s not so simple is dusting, and our indoor potted beauties seem to be dust magnets. (And unfortunately, dusting happens to be one of my least favorite chores.) As annoying as dusting can be, it has to be done. Dust blocks sunlight from plant leaves, decreasing the rate of photosynthesis and clogging stomata (openings in the leaf surface). Both can restrict houseplant growth. One way to clear off the dust is to gently wipe each leaf with a damp cloth. But if you’re a lazy duster (like me), just give your plants a rinse in the shower. Voilà – dusting done!
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