You can water your plants in two ways, pouring water over the soil or bottom watering. In general, bottom watering is more affective, especially for larger plants and plants with leaves that don't like to get wet (like succulents or tradescantia), but bottom watering takes a bit more time.

When pouring water into soil, pour until water starts to leak from the drainage holes on the bottom of the pot.

To bottom water, place your plant into a tray or bowl of cool fresh water. Allow the plant to soak water in through the drainage holes until the top of the soil is noticeably wet. This may take an hour or more depending on the size of the pot. Do not let your plant sit in the water for long once it has fully saturated.

All plants have different watering needs! You can purchase sensors that you insert into soil to check soil dryness, but nothing works better than checking it with a finger! Rather than watering every certain number of days, water based on soil dryness, as your environment temperature, humidity, and sunlight can change often and affects how often your plants need water!

Tap water is okay for most plants, but some plants are more sensitive to the minerals in tap water. Especially if you live in an area with hard water (lots of minerals), using rain water, spring water, or adding a tap water conditioner to your water may lead to healthier plants! Spider plants, calatheas, prayer plants, dracaenas, and ferns are all a bit more sensitive to tap water and may develop some browning or yellowing with tap water.

Low: Plants with low watering needs like to dry out fully before being watered again. Do not water unless the soil is completely dry all the way to the bottom of the pot. If you are even slighly unsure, do not water. These plants can survive weeks or even months without water!

Low Watering Needs Plants: Succulents, Cacti, Snake Plants, ZZ Plant

Moderate: Plants with moderate watering needs can handle drying out a bit, but should be watered when the top 1/2 to 3/4 of the soil is dry. It's generally better to err on the side of underwatering than overwatering, so if you are unsure, just wait another day to water!

Moderate Watering Needs Plants: Philodendron, Pothos, Monstera, Ficus, Peperomia, Rhaphidophora, Dracaena, Aglaonema

High: Plants with high watering needs do not like to dry out and need their soil to be evenly moist. Water when the top inch for small pots or top two inches for big pots is dry. While these plants do not like drying out, it's still important to ensure the top level dries so that soil isn't soggy. These plants also have a tendency to droop dramatically when they need water, but should perk up within a few hours once having a drink!

High Watering Needs Plants: Calathea, Begonia, Alocasia, Fittonia, Tradescantia, Ivy, Purple Waffle, Persian Shield, Stromanthe, Fern, Polka Dot Plant, Syngonium

All plants need light to live!

Most plants require bright, indirect light. Plants should be in a bright environment, but not in a direct sunbeam or they may scorch. Ideal environments include to the side of (but not directly in) an east facing window, behind a sheer curtain in a south or west facing window, or several feet away from a south or west facing window. If you see that your plant that needs bright, indirect light is casting a shadow, it is getting too much light!

Some plants require more light. Cacti and some succulents (echeveria, agave, aloe, sedum) need more light, generally in the morning when light is not quite as harsh. 4 to 6 hours of a more direct light is good. A south facing window provides this light the best.

Some plants are fine without as much light or aren't too picky! In general, any plant will do fine in bright, indirect light, but if light is limited for you, ZZ plants enjoy low light. Many other plants can tolerate low light, but they will begin losing their variegated colors, grow slow, and may become pale.

Grow lights are a great substitution for your plants if a better light source isn't available. Make sure your grow lights are full-spectrum and place at least 6 inches away from your plant to avoid scorching. 12 hours of grow light is generally enough for most plants, but cacti and succulents need closer to 16 hours. You can reduce light to around 10 hours in the winter if you wish to mimic nature, but it isn't necessary.

Fertilizer provides nutrients for your plant to help them thrive, variegate, and bloom! Fertilizer isn't necessary for plants, but we highly recommend it to create the healthiest, most beautiful plants! Plants can be fertilized with granules, a solid pellet that breaks down over time to release fertilizer, or with liquid fertilizer.

Add granules directly to the top of soil and water immediately. Check the fertilizer directions to learn when you should re-fertilize.

For liquid fertilizer, follow the directions on the bottle to dilute it properly. Liquid fertilizer MUST be diluted in water or it will burn your plant. Liquid fertilizer should be used to water your plant as normal, so follow watering guidelines Most liquid fertilizers can be used weekly in the summer and biweekly or monthly in the winter, but follow the directions on your bottle. Do not overuse or you may damage your plant.

There are fertilizers available tailored to specific plants, but purchasing a multi-purpose indoor plant fertilizer is perfectly fine.

It's best not to repot your plants for several weeks after they arrive to your home so they can acclimate.

Plants should be repotted generally once a year for faster growing plants and once every two to three years for slower growing plants. If the roots of your plant are becoming visible, soil isn't retaining water, or your plant keeps tipping over, it's time to repot!

Only repot into a pot one to two inches bigger than the current pot to avoid overwatering. Plants do best in pots with drainage. If you want to put your plant into a pot with no drainage holes, we recommend putting the plant into a nursery pot with drainage holes first, and then placing that pot into the pot with no drainage.

To repot, soak the plant, remove the plant from the pot, and GENTLY break up the root ball and shake loose soil. Add a few inches of new soil (check out our soil info tab!) to the new pot, place your plant inside, and fill the remaining space with soil, making sure to cover all roots and firmly secure the plant. Do not pack the soil down. Water plant thoroughly after repotting.

Looking to repot your plant? For most houseplants, select a chunky soil that contains some perlite, peat moss, coir, and/or orchid mixed in with the dirt. This provides a nice aeration for the soil! We recommend choosing an indoor potting mix and adding some extra perlite!

Cacti and succulents need a much grittier, sandier soil with less dirt and more perlite, pumice, and coarse sand. This allows the soil to drain faster, as cacti and succulents do not like to stay wet.

Air plants are unique and require unique care!

Air plants do not grow in soil! But they are still alive and need water, sunlight, and nutrients.

NOTE: With most plants, browning can be a bad sign! But air plants often have brown staining at the base from where they were attached in the wild. A brown base is incredibly common. As long as the plant isn't black and squishy, it's doing fine!

Sunlight: Air plants prefer bright, indirect light, though some can tolerate more light. 12-14 hours of light in an east facing window is recommended.

Watering: With no soil to check, how do you know when to water?! Generally once every week to ten days is fine. If you notice your air plant is becoming crispy or brown at the tips, it's time to water. To water, fully submerge your air plant in cool fresh water for about 30 minutes. Remove from water and place upside down to dry overnight. Do not place plant right side up or back into a holder until it is dry or the plant may rot.

Fertilization: Many air plants plants bloom when happy! Air plant fertilizer promotes health and blooms. Liquid air plant fertilizers can be used once a month to promote blooming and health. Follow the directions on the bottle! After blooms die, cut down on fertilizing for several months so your plant can recover. Check out the air plant fertilizing mist in our shop!

Misting: Some recommend misting daily instead of watering, but this generally isn't enough water. Feel free to mist your air plants with cool, fresh water if humidity is low, but it's not necessary.