When it’s time to repot your favorite houseplants, it can seem daunting, especially if you aren’t used to gardening or taking care of plants. We’ll share the method that works best for our plants using 5 easy steps!
You will know the plant needs to be repotted if the houseplant has outgrown the current pot and a lot of roots are coming out of the bottom (or even the top). You definitely want to make sure your plants have enough room for those roots to grow. We decided to repot one of our houseplants from its current plastic planter into a larger pot that we already currently had in our garage.
You’ll need to remove your houseplant from its original pot. Note that this step is simple but tedious because you don’t want to damage the roots of your plant. Gently tilt the houseplant, lightly squeeze near the base and give the stem(s) a little tug to remove it from its old pot. If the plant and its roots are not moving out easily, you may have to give it some water to loosen the dense soil a bit. We also used a shovel to go around the perimeter of the pot, being careful not to go too far into the soil and roots.
Now it’s time to officially give your houseplant a new home! Carefully place your houseplant into the center of the new pot. You will have to hold the plant in place (or have an extra pair of hands help you do this) while adding more soil until you reach the top of the new pot.
Supplies
- Larger Pot/Planter
- Potting Soil
- Top Soil
- Fertilizer
- Shovel
- Gloves (optional)
Instructions
Step 1 – Choose Your New Pot or Planter
You can’t repot a houseplant without a new pot! Luckily the type of pot doesn’t matter as much as the size, unless you have a special type of plant. So your best bet is to choose a pot that is one to two inches larger than the existing one. It’ll also be very useful if the pot has a drainage hole on the bottom.Step 2 – Half Fill New Pot with Soil
You will fill your new pot about 1/2 to 1/3 full using the soil of your choice or what best suits your houseplant. We used a combination of potting soil and top soil for our plant, which seems to work well. Some houseplants may work well with added minerals like perlite or pumice, to prevent overwatering. You may also sprinkle fertilizer in at this point. Also, if you are dealing with a larger houseplant with a lot of soil, you may decide to add a little water as you go, to make sure you have full coverage at the end (but be careful not to overwater of course!)Step 3 – Remove Plant from Old Pot
You’ll need to remove your houseplant from its original pot. Note that this step is simple but tedious because you don’t want to damage the roots of your plant. Gently tilt the houseplant, lightly squeeze near the base and give the stem(s) a little tug to remove it from its old pot. If the plant and its roots are not moving out easily, you may have to give it some water to loosen the dense soil a bit. We also used a shovel to go around the perimeter of the pot, being careful not to go too far into the soil and roots.
Step 4 – Add Houseplant and Fill Up Pot with Soil
Now it’s time to officially give your houseplant a new home! Carefully place your houseplant into the center of the new pot. You will have to hold the plant in place (or have an extra pair of hands help you do this) while adding more soil until you reach the top of the new pot.
Step 5 – Water the Plant
After your have packed in the remaining soil, you’ll want to give your plant a decent amount of water. You want to make sure the plant has all of the nutrients it will need to survive in its new environment. And that’s it! Hopefully this quick 5 step method was helpful to repot your favorite houseplants.
