5 expert tips for thriving houseplants

[@HousePlantJournal]

Great video and thanks for sharing my lighting table! I wanted to hear more at the end - haha!

[@KillThisPlant]

Your lighting resource is going to burn into my phone screen I have it open so much! Thanks and congrats on the little one.

[@fretboardgymnast]

I was a fool and bought one of those plants from the bargain bin at the store. I had it in a very sunny spot with southwest facing windows. I watered it regularily, it got lots of sunlight. But the plant wasn’t growing. I was ready to pull my hair out. I got myself a light meter and realized I wasn’t getting enough sunlight. I renovated the windows and put another hole in my s/w wall to let more light in. After that I was getting 1400fc for half the day. But after a few weeks I still didn’t notice any change. I called my mother and she came over to look at it and help me out. She took one look at it and said “this plant is made of plastic.” Lesson learned!

[@KillThisPlant]

You're being a menace.

[@SeasonedBeauty_MyrnieS]

😂😂😂

[@Rawkicks]

😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@janetharris7864]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@braukorpshomebrew6039]

Do a whole video breaking down the light info! This is such a niche community, so it would be appreciated.

[@slamrock17]

This man knows his plants. Good advice. I will be sending my customer to this channel.

[@KillThisPlant]

Much appreciated

[@marieb3630]

I always send people to this channel when looking at question from Reddit! The info is great and it’s communicated clearly!

[@joevictor8431]

The bit about soil mix components is super enlightening for me... Thanks you!

[@hedgewitch59]

I've saved many plants from the bargain bin and they've rewarded me with exceptional growth. I like to save them from the garbage. They're living things after all.

[@triax7218]

Getting seemingly well established plants for slightly higher prices than the clearance sales has done wonders for me. I check if they've been in their pots for a while and are producing new roots, leaves or flowers. Then compare the selection of plants to each other. Just doing this has made my home become an oasis of thriving plants instead of a morge. These have almost always stored up enough energy and resilience to handle the moving and adapting to your home climate and will almost always thrive after a short pause. Where as most of the clearance ones begin their slow decent of withering away, regardless of my efforts.

[@vivaldi1948]

That Monstera is beautiful. Thanks for the tips.

[@janeesimone]

Very informative and thanks for revealing the secret of that dang cactus soil 😩 Very interesting about the light meter. I might look into that 🤔

[@KillThisPlant]

everyone should have one!

[@sheilaluta]

I got thrips bringing a plant home from another plant enthusiast 😭 battled them for MONTHS and I think I finally might be free. Lesson learned. Probably.

[@carolstuff]

Thanks for the helpful tips, esp about buying healthy plants. Thanks for sharing Lee!

[@ildikojones7073]

Informative, as always! Thank you. Your pothos is to die for!!!!

[@KillThisPlant]

thanks! I'm trying to grow it as big as possible.

[@ildikojones7073]

@@KillThisPlant I understand. I have four huge Epipremnum Pinnatums. Started from one small leaf at the beginning of the pandemic. I paid $35 for it. Now there are four of these! Truly amazing!

[@annissa485]

I love all your videos. When I new one comes out I get so excited to see what knowledge you will share.

[@adrichapoy6525]

@Kill This Plant I agree but unfortunately I’m economically challenged. Therefore I’m a clearance dumpster diver. 🥀Cheers!

[@KillThisPlant]

That's fair! As long as you know what to prepare for.

[@adrichapoy6525]

@@KillThisPlant Yes 🙌🏿

[@sushiegirl]

I find if you buy when shipment arrives you’ll have better luck. Even at the greenhouse where I buy my plants sometimes I’ll get thrips

[@jeremiahbullfrog9288]

Looking forward to your upcoming deep-dive into DLI metering

[@KillThisPlant]

No, please 😢 it's so boring. 😅

[@jeremiahbullfrog9288]

@@KillThisPlant 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@OceanSwimmer]

​@@KillThisPlant, Perhaps a video explaining simple use of a light meter in fc terms as s start -- for us beginners. Light exposure is such a variable subject! With outdoor plants, even minor effects can be deadly. I planted two 'Alice du Pont' (Mandevilla splendens) in two identical planters six feet apart, next to a South facing wall that collects heat even in Winter. Same soil mix, same fertilizer, watering, etc and they were good specimens at full price.....one died after a single season. The other has survived many, many winters here & is currently blooming like crazy. When I removed the dead one, it's root system was extensive and had no signs of rot or pests. Upon watching it's "twin" over the years, I've concluded the specimen that failed died from overexposure to the cold breeze that flows from the street up around the house when we have our coolest temps in January & February. As a result I observe and consider our micro climate more carefully. The Devil is in the details!

[@JodiDavidsonSmith]

Always amazing content and tips! Thank you so much!!

[@thegnome4874]

I started follwing you about a year ago, right before that I did the thing you said not to, I bought a Monstera at Walmart. Using your tips over the past year my plant has doubled it's size. Now I am faced with the question is this two plants and do I need to split it. I have already re potted it in better soil conditions a few months ago and it really reacted in a positive growth after that with much bigger leaves.

[@LCEVIDS]

I know I’m probably gonna jinks myself but I’ve had really good luck with discount plants. Just picked up a blue cebu and a monstera Peru for six bucks each. Gave them a leaf wash and will keep an eye on them. Fingers crossed

[@konibridgham5977]

Thank you Lee, very informative!!! Your pothos and monstera are absolutely beautiful!! My monstera will not give me any holes in my leaves even though its in front of my east facing patio door, so I really admire yours!!!

[@KillThisPlant]

invest in a light meter to see whats really going on.

[@belenharris8174]

I love getting cuttings!

[@diamondtucker5979]

Thanks for this video. Very informative ❤

[@forg0tten]

I got my first inner fenestration on my most recent monstera leaf - thanks to your tips.

[@KillThisPlant]

Fantastic!

[@suwayhamblaylock7357]

Ohhh mannn 🥴 I’ve definitely learned my lesson SLOWLY but surely with all the clearance/ rescue plants I have! This is really great advice! Wish I had known sooner! Haha!

[@I_dont_need_more]

Thanks for the advice! I think I should invest in some standing grow lights instead of hanging. My monstera and climbing philo will probably appreciate it 😂😂

[@aplantprocess]

That ending 😂 I was shocked to see how much light I could acclimate my plants too and how beneficial more light actually is for most of my plants. Great content. Thanks.

[@muhammadkhateeb1487]

Thanks, this video has been very informative. my plants do well outside but i have to bring them in the fall.

[@camronbitzer3159]

I love this channel. So much information. Thank you

[@KillThisPlant]

@@camronbitzer3159 thanks for watching!

[@KauaiGarden]

I'm obsessed with how beautiful these rare plants are! I've got 3 Thai Constellations that I grew from tissue culture - what a challenge! As an artist on a budget, I can't always afford the real thing, so I've started making realistic versions of any rare or expensive plant I like, without breaking the bank. haha.

[@macova944]

I'd like to know how you position your plants and why. If I put my monstera right in front of my window it may produce gorgeous leafs but only my neighbours get to see them full on.. :/

[@KillThisPlant]

leaves face the light source. my neighbours also like to look at my monstera leaves. 😄

[@PinkPrincessPlants]

Unrelated but DARN LEE??? YOU BEEN LIFTIN? Arms lookin swole in that shirt. Great video! Didn't know the clearance rack was such a hazard but makes total sense. You got me really thinkin about getting a legit light meter instead of the phone app ones 👀

[@TheZophisticatedDove]

I saw them guns too

[@KillThisPlant]

my plants must just be getting very heavy. 💪

[@Darknamja]

@@TheZophisticatedDove 😉😉

[@cheliajones9907]

I love the information very informative . you've peaked my interest in the lighting factor, would like more info about it 😉

[@laurajames2264]

I need dis quality content

[@rysrys5213]

Thanks 😊

[@KillThisPlant]

You're welcome!

[@brandynelson4650]

The high tech pro plant growing, I dig it, if you can afford it. But let me say, I don't have the best lighting and my plants thrive. I've got a large variety. No grow lights in sight. People have been growing plants in their homes for many years with regular potting soil and lighting. We just have to adjust how we tend to our plants, if you're a single parent having to shop the clearance section. What my point is, you don't have to spend a fortune for this fun hobby!! More patience and self awareness on how you are tending to your plant babies is key. I didn't begin with a green thumb. I had to "self grow" a green thumb 😊

[@arcanumbysamiha]

Your videos are best

[@JessicaNichole89]

I had around 55 African violets. 2 of them were my grandmother’s that passed a few years ago. I ended up getting a rescue African violet. It was such a terrible mistake. I lost my entire African violet collection due to thrips. 😢😢😢. Never again.

[@KillThisPlant]

That's horrible. I'm very sorry that happened.

[@JessicaNichole89]

@@KillThisPlant thank you so so much! I know it’s just plants to some people, but it is something that I cannot replace with it belonging to my grandma.

[@illusivity3701]

Newbie here! Are thripes super hard to treat? I hear many people discard their plants once they find out their plants have thripes. Just searched up the plant. They are so beautiful. ): I am sorry you lost such a collection.

[@JessicaNichole89]

@@illusivity3701 thrips can be absolutely devastating to a plant collection! The terrible thing about them is that the adult stages can fly! I treated and treated and treated until there was no coming back. That’s why I only purchase from reputable breeders when it comes to African Violets, and still quarantine when purchasing one. For some reason, thrips LOVE these AV’s. Knowing what signs to look for before bringing it into your home is crucial! For instance, I can now easily spot thrips on a flowering African violet because you can visually inspect them and look at the flowers themselves. Some flowers will have what looks like pollen dusted on them, but upon further inspection, you’ll notice that it’s just residual from where the thrips larvae have been munching away on the plant pollen. If you take an even closer look, you’ll see little tiny larvae that look like little grains of rice wriggling around on the flower.

[@meikahidenori]

There's a native plant mix I use here in Australia for ALL my plants mixed with clay balls and everything grows great. The native mix here is almost like a bark mix but it has low phosphorus & low amounts of other fertilisers so plants being transferred into it suffer way less shock & if anything is in a Roman pot (self watering) it dries out nicely inbetween top ups. I fertilise with fish tank water from my aquarium as well so I'm not needing to add extra fertilisers, though I do have liquid fert for the plants within the tank so....😅

[@belenharris8174]

I always find that most houseplants need more light than what the store tags claim! So I tell friends to give more light, and to acclimate them slowly to their new amount of light.

[@MarisaAndChew]

Lee, my nursery plants are always in worse shape and they really shouldn't be BC it's locally owned and operated and they have a massive staff. I did realize though that a lot of the plants I thought were REALLY BAD based on looks, were actually very healthy and pest free BUT shredded up BC they were putting them too close to their parrot! Once I recognized that the parrot was just shedding up what he could reach I stopped feeling like I was being ripped off. I only realized this was the issue BC my own bird shredded an orchid up and it healed looking the same. This damage is unsightly but doesn't seem to kill the plants (I assume BC in the wild most of these plants would have similar issues with the local tropical birds?) When I buy from the grocery store, I get plants that are only a day or two in stock and if it's somewhere longer like Walmart I look at them like crazy and don't hesitate to basically empty the shelf to check them ALL for pest damage! I do put them back so I'm not a complete jerk but it's my money and my collection so I'm going to look at the stock well 🤷‍♀️ I don't have space to quarantine and I know from when my grandma had a nursery that quarantine really only helped if you need what plant was patient 0 and began treatment before even bringing it in. I also learned that a vast majority of pests come in on pests... Which seems accurate since the plants around my dogs crate and food and water are the ones needing treated for spider mites etc the most. He rubs on them when he comes in! 🤬

[@vickykent353]

Lee, or anybody who can answer this question and know for certain that the answer is 100% accurate, when you refer to *sand*, what type of sand are we talking about. Beach sand, construction sand, sandbox sand. I live in NC, and I have plenty of very compacted driveway sand. Is that usable in a DIY potting soil recipe? The nice guys or girls at Lowe's, although trying hard to be helpful, don't have a clue. Maybe a landscaping company would know, but I'd probably have to commit to buying a dump truck full. Thanks in advance for answers you can provide! ❤ 😊

[@KillThisPlant]

@@vickykent353 you will want coarse sand. Play sand is too fine, and compacts when dry. Specifically you're looking for silica sand or horticultural sand.

[@KillThisPlant]

@@vickykent353 you will want coarse sand. Play sand is too fine, and compacts when dry. Specifically you're looking for silica sand or horticultural sand.

[@vickykent353]

@@KillThisPlant Lee, I can't thank you enough for clarifying that for me!

[@daisywrabbit]

3:35 pot head 😂🪴

[@joneslandstreet]

Was that an Orchid Bark pole you made at 3:56?

[@KillThisPlant]

Those are from Beyond Beleaf. Discount code in the description.

[@deedeewieland4005]

You can get good plants from clearance racks, but you have to be careful to select healthy ones. My $1 zz plant was only there because its root ball had gotten so big it had shattered its pot (it's now 3 feet tall, lives in a 2 gallon pot and needs repotting again soon), my paddle plant has nearly tripled in size (it was $3), and I picked up an orchid in perfect condition for $1 because I happened to be there right after Mother's Day just as the clearance stickers were being put on (orchids are often put on clearance just because they've finished flowering). Not all my rescues have gone so well, and you do have to keep an eye out for pests, but it's possible to get perfectly healthy plants from clearance.

[@bigmama1202]

Thanks for another GREAT video! Also, did you get a new camera?

[@KillThisPlant]

Thanks! Also no

[@cherylboyd5548]

Hello I have a Monstera and don't know what to do the leaves are leaning and I don't know if I should repot the plant or something 🤔

[@sarahsj8109]

Really glad you cut yourself off there at the end because you were losing me ! 😂

[@13BulliTs]

Rule number 1, Don't overwater your plant. Rule number 2, Do Not overwater your plant. Rule number 3, Overwatering your plant kills it.

[@KillThisPlant]

Please add rule 4 + 5

[@killahb33]

I assume with aritificial lighting I don't need to stress to much about that number?? Watering part is what I always struggling with, I just ran out of soil so when I restock I'll grab the pro-mix HP and use that going forward. Thanks for all the great knowledge share and for always looking cute while doing it 😊

[@KillThisPlant]

Sorry I have a girlfriend.

[@killahb33]

@@KillThisPlant 😢

[@PlantPerson58]

Brought mealy bugs home on a big box store Monstera. Luckily I quarantine new plants so they didn’t spread to my other plants. I failed to eradicate them so in the trash it went. Lesson learned.

[@enjoielife]

I noticed you dont have moss poles but stakes on your beautiful monstera, should I avoid moss poles? i need it to be less maintenance

[@KillThisPlant]

@@enjoielife moss poles in general are extremely high maintenance. If you're ok with marginally less growth, you should skip them.

[@francescoa1325]

very helpful video! can you tell me which grow light is the one you glimpse when showing the monstera? it is the kind of tall and elegant growlight i am looking for but I can't find any around, I would appreciate it very much, thanks! also, a video dedicated entirely to grow light would be interesting not many can be found, just a few mentions here and there and usually little importance is given to grow lights from an aesthetic point of view but I think for many of us plants are part of the decor so why use lamps that look like they are dedicated to plant nurseries? :D

[@KillThisPlant]

Soltech Aspect Growlight Links and discounts in the description.

[@Thetinyfit]

Oh man. I was so close to buying just a random monstera to test prop bc I’m scared of ruining my beloved… glad I didn’t but it was still on my mind. Crisis averted!

[@hedgewitch59]

I like to think I'm rescuing a plant from certain death. I quarantine them in an outside room for 40 days so I think that covers all things. If they don't start thriving in that time I'll ditch it but I always give mistreated life a chance. I've been doing that for 50 and haven't had a problem.

[@adam2802]

Same, i love rehabbing, but lets face it, i’m also not buying a £1 inch high dried out waffle expecting it to become a massive thriving plant over night, if ever, I’m doing it cos i find rehab fun. Ironically the only plant i have a reoccurring pest issue with, is a full price one from the local high end nursery, instead of the cheaper garden centre i usually go to, so you know, ymmv.

[@KillThisPlant]

Rescue and rehab is definitely a fun hobby on its own as long as you have systems in place, access to pesticides, and know what you're getting into.

[@ellencnixon]

💜💜

[@allonewordcaps]

😊 I have a full light window that has direct light for about 5 hours a day. I am having a hard time finding some plant to live there. Even the pony tail palm I have there is experiencing some sun stress. Any suggestions for other plants? It has to stand on a stand because my dog will eat the dirt.

[@KillThisPlant]

having pets makes things difficult. I imagine you'd be able to slowly acclimatize some lager plants to the spot if you do so over the course of a few weeks/months. Some plants may just be too small to get use to the level of light.

[@allonewordcaps]

@@KillThisPlant thank you. I think I just may not be able to have a plant there. It’s to bad.

[@deedeewieland4005]

Some succulents might do well there. Many are pet-safe (though not Euphorbias).

[@allonewordcaps]

@@deedeewieland4005 thank you. ☺️

[@khloerivera7208]

As long as you use insecticidal soap and repot as soon as you buy it you good I most of my collection is from clearance and I saved all of them and I was beginner and pest free just fungus knats

[@khloerivera7208]

And yes I use fox farm both blue bag and brown and mix it with pumice bark and charcoal works great and use miracle grow fertilizer

[@KillThisPlant]

My friends Grandpa smoked everyday and lived to 100. But he ate his vegetables.

[@illusivity3701]

All my IKEA and home depot plants have died. My IKEA monstera came with root rot, and now I'm propagating 6 cuttings of that one monstera. What other places would you recommend to get plants from? I just want a plant to survive for once ):

[@blancacrum2873]

How is this the first video on my feed when I just bought a clearance philodendron at Lowe’s 😭

[@KillThisPlant]

I'm hoping its pest free!

[@GorgexReforge]

Now you have thrips! HOLLERING😂💀😭

[@floroma2820]

Great information but coming to the end of the video,I was lost. Simplify.

[@momackone]

My monsteras leaves are all brown and dry, don't know why I'm the kiss of death to plants 😢

[@KillThisPlant]

you should probably join our discord community

[@rationalbacon5872]

Clearance rack? I'm not wealthy enough for that. I get all my plants from the dumpster outside the rich peoples florist store. Sometimes they live.

[@laurajames2264]

First

[@qaphqa]

Healthy orchids that are done flowering and slightly thirsty succulents, for example, are plants that I'll get on clearance, but yes, even then I'm looking for healthy specimens whose price is knocked down. And agree that soil mix tailored to you and your situation is v important. And that light is so important that it's difficult for a non-photosynthesiser to comprehend. 💚🪴💚

[@Planty-Mandy]

The ending is exactly how my brain works when I start trying to figure out all the ways to measure light readings. 🫠 Music plays, brain tunes out, annnnnd we’re done. FC is great but then you find out that it doesn’t exactly work that way for grow lights since it doesn’t measure usable light, and then I check out. Also, have you ever compared the proper light meter with using a light meter app on your phone? I’ve just been using an app and wonder how accurate they are.

[@KillThisPlant]

The apps are pretty accurate depending on your phone up to around 6000fc. Then it starts getting less reliable. As for using FC in growlights, it's close enough. And I don't think getting an accurate reading from a par meter is worth getting a more exact number unless you're trying to do a larger scale commercial operation.

[@Planty-Mandy]

@@KillThisPlant thank you! That is helpful.