A: Spring is here and in some areas of the country, so is severe weather season. So what can you do to give your plants a fighting chance when Mother Nature shows her ugly side? Here in Florida, spring and summer thunderstorms are a normal occurance. Unfortunately, those storms often come with small tornados, high winds and sometimes hail.

The photo below was from a hail storm that came through the north side of Sebring, Florida in April of 2022.

So the question remains. What can we do to help our plants when this type of weather strikes? Well the short answer is that there is not much we can do to prevent it from happening. These storms usually strike pretty quickly and most of us, given some warning, will chose to make sure vehicles are in the garage if possible and that loose items in the yard are brought in to a safe place. If you have time to move potted plants, that would be great, but it is not worth risking your own safety to do so.

The good news is that most plants will recover on their own. Even though they may look ugly for a while, patience is the best cure for most of them. Of course, the healthier the plant, the better chance it will have when it suffers damage due to severe weather. A good fertilizer plan along with regular doses of micronutrients will help your plants to be at their best so that they can recover quickly. And here is what you can do... CONTINUE READING >>

A: One of the most common challenges in tropical plant care, including houseplants, is overwatering, particularly in container gardening. So, how much water is too much?

The rule of thumb: let the soil dry out a bit before watering again, and never water if the soil feels wet to the touch. For indoor plants with saucers underneath, ensure they don't sit in standing water by removing any excess from the saucer after watering. However, remember that the watering schedule alone isn't the only key to success!

Improve drainage. Surprisingly, water itself isn't harmful to plants, no matter how generous your watering is. The real issue is poor drainage, which leads to stagnation and bacterial buildup, ultimately causing root rot.

In the nature. If you've traveled to places like Hawaii or explored tropical jungles, you might have noticed plants thriving between rocks with minimal soil, receiving a near-constant fine mist of rain. Conversely, swamps support very few trees - only bog or water plants adapted to wet conditions can survive there. The lesson? It's not the water, it's the growing medium!

The Soil Solution: for potted plants, always use a high-quality potting mix with excellent drainage properties. This should include ample "soil conditioners" such as perlite, vermiculite, and pine bark. At our nursery, we use a professional soil mix called Abundance. Learn more about potting soil.

Pot size matters. And the last but not least: if you tend to overwater your potted plants, consider using the smallest container size that comfortably fits the root system. A pot that's too large can mean excess wet soil, increasing the risk of root rot. With proper fertilizer program, container plants don't need to much soil to thrive.

Photo above: Datura Metel

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