Winter is a time when your outdoor gardening can take a hiatus.
However, before you hang up your gardening tools for the season, winter is a good time to do a little indoor maintenance.
Of course, you will want to bring your cold-sensitive potted plant friends inside to winter in your cozy home. Bringing pots inside can also mean bringing in those little gnats or fruit flies that lurk in the soil of your pots. One solution for these pests is yellow sticky traps. A shout out to my friend, Terri, for introducing me to these butterfly-shaped fly traps that you can place directly in your pots. I tried them for the first time this season and have been very pleased with their effectiveness.
Winter can also be a good time to see if any of your plants need repotting.
Remember my poinsettias from last holiday season? They are still alive and doing well; yet, they were beginning to outgrow their pots.
To repot a plant: Choose a container a size or several sizes larger around and deeper. Add good-quality potting soil at the bottom of the new container (there are many good potting soils available; here I do not have a strong preference). Carefully remove the plant from its current container. Place the plant in the center. Add soil around the plant, filling the new container. Water thoroughly initially, then continue with your normal watering schedule.
In assessing my indoor plants, I also found several of my orchids needed new pots and a good trim. This little orchid had come in a small pot and was totally root bound. Orchid roots need room to spread out.
There are several mediums you can use for planting or repotting orchids. My preference is a chunkier medium such as Miracle-Gro Orchid Potting Mix Coarse Blend.
Prepare the new pot with a little medium in the bottom. Carefully remove the orchid from its current container. Remove any old medium or debris and trim dead roots. Gently place the orchid in the new pot, adding your potting medium in and around the roots.
After repotting an orchid, I like to water it thoroughly using an additive to give the orchid a boost of nutrients. My preference is Better-Gro Orchid Better-Bloom.
Repotting plants can be stressful for the plant or maybe even for you, but within a day or two, your plants should be looking healthy and happy in their new space.
Laurie's Leaves 