Repotting 101

Supplies to Gather Before Repotting

Hi, my name is Paige and I work at Gardens of Babylon. Today I’m going to show you how to repot your house plant. A few things that you’ll need are: your plant (of course) a pot, some rocks and potting soil. One of the signs that your plant needs to be repotted is if it is clearly growing too big for its pot and becomes top heavy. Also, if the roots start to come out of the bottom of the pot, or if it dries out faster than normal, it is definitely time for a repotting.

Repotting Steps

Using a container, you’ll want to make sure that it is around two inches in diameter larger than the nursery pot. So, you’ll want to prepare it for potting by putting rocks or pebbles for drainage. This creates space between the roots and the soil and you’ll want to do about an inch layer at the bottom. Then, you’ll take some potting soil and just put a little bit at the bottom before you add your new plant.

First, you’ll remove the nursery pot and gently tease some of the roots out so that the plant can grow more easily into its new home. This isn’t going to hurt the plant, at all. Then you’ll place it about level with the top of the container and fill in with fresh soil. The new potting soil has plenty of nutrients to help feed your plant and the pot has extra space for the roots to grow as well. Gently press down, there’s no need to pack the soil down very tightly because it will settle over time as you water.

Optional Add-Ons

Then, you can add a top layer of pea pebbles if you want. This will just help keep moisture in and it just looks nice. So, after you’ve adjusted your plant to be the way you’d like it to, you’ll water it in. This way the soil relaxes and it gives the plant a drink as it settles into its new home.