Re-potting Plants

Hello,
I promised a customer over the weekend to discuss this subject.

Here are the basics:
First off, particularly with my plants, plants are tough, don't worry about hurting or killing them. Over the years, I've dug up, moved around, six, seven times until I got it right. They all lived...

Second, and I borrow this from my yoga class.... aim to practice not to be perfect. Gardening is supposed to be enjoyable. Practice, experiment and learn from what you did. Your space is unique, so what might not work for someone else with almost similar conditions may work for you.

In general, particularly if the plant has outgrown its present container, move up a pot size, a couple of inches is fine. Don't feel like you have to "massage" the roots. Scoring the roots is usually done with annuals when they are root bound. This helps the roots spread out more quickly.

Drainage is key. Water should drain from the bottom of any container. Use broken "shards" pottery pieces, rocks, gravel, etc... I usually place an inch or more inside the bottom of the container. Good drainage prevents the roots from setting in water.

Start filling with soil until you think the top of what you are re-potting will reach the desired top of the new container. I leave about an inch down from the very top. Fill the sides with soil. Don't pack down.

Water. Always. Your plant might settle in and drop a bit. Get in there... add more soil. Make it do what you want it to do.

Ok. Your plant might get drooping after re-potting. It's probably in shock. This is NOT the time you'd want to place it in full sun. Let it rest in a "peaceful" location. Let it acclimate a few days.

More things to consider, I like using a a well drained soil. You can mix in perlite to lighten the soil. Perlite is the stuff that looks like big white flakes in potting mix. If your soil is too dense, the roots have a more difficult time moving around and your plants won't grow as well. We carry perlite at the store. If by chance you are re-using a container and the previous plant in the pot didn't do so well, you might want to clean out the container with a hose and scrub it with a extremely light solution (couple of tablespoons to a gallon) of Clorox to water. This will sterilize the container.

Back in the days before I owned a garden center, I loved (had the time for) playing around with pots. I could "cluster" 'em for hours until I got it juuuust right. So a few tips if you have a lot of pots: high to low. Big pots towards the back smaller ones to the front and odd number arrangements always works best.

Every week we receive one to two shipments of new pottery. If you need new containers or looking for something different, chances are we have them.

Happy Gardening!