This Is How Often You Should Really Water Your Houseplants, According to a Plant Cultivator

Come on, admit it—you've sent at least one of your precious plant babies to an early grave. Don't worry though, we've all been there. It's easy to cover up the shameful secret by replacing it with a shiny new version, but without some vital guidance on how to care for it, it's destined for the same deadly fate. Jason Chongue, plant expert extraordinaire states that watering, whether that's too much or too little, is the number one cause of houseplant deaths. It can be easy to fall into a trap of overwatering your new leafy pal in an effort to give it extra love and attention. However, that's an issue if your apartment is full of desert-loving cacti. Likewise, Jason says that while maintaining a consistent watering routine is a great start, your houseplants will need different amounts of water from you from season to season. It's all about being attentive and responsive to the greenery in your life. Read on for tips on how to become the best houseplant parent you can possibly be.

So, how on earth do you determine how often you should water your houseplants? For starters, it's time to get familiar with the soil that your plants are housed in. Every week, place your finger into the soil of the pot and test how dry it feels. if you find dry soil, it's an indicator that it's time to give it a water. If it's moist, hold off watering until next week, and if it's wet then your potted friend should be happy for a while.

There is a couple of different ways you can water your plants to make sure that they receive a proper drink—directly on to the soil or by soaking from the bottom. Jason reveals that soaking a plant from the bottom is a good way to make sure the water is completely absorbed by the soil. You can easily do this by placing the entire potted plant directly into a bucket of water. It's important that you water from above sometimes as well to remove and flush out any waterborne salts which can build up over time. A great watering tip is to pour until the water runs out from under the pot, using room temperature water.

To make things a bit easier, here's a guide to how often some of the most common houseplants should be watered.

• Monstera: Regularly, every 5-10 days
• Rubber plant: Regularly, every 5-10 days
• Succulents: Infrequently, once every 10-15 days
• Peace lily: Regularly, every 5-10 days
• Snake plant: Infrequently, once every 10-15 days
• Fiddle leaf fig: Regularly, every 5-10 days

Looking to add to your collection? These hard-to-kill houseplants will be everywhere this spring.