Discover useful tips and tricks for caring for house and garden plants during your holiday. With these tips, the plants in the house and garden are just as beautiful and cared for when you return as before the holiday
Whether it's the summer holidays or a weekend away, plants need almost daily care. Would you like to know more about caring for your plants? Read also 10 tips for taking care of houseplants. Unfortunately, many plants have to lose out during (longer) holidays and when the plants return, they are only suitable to throw in the compost or put in the organic waste bin.
In this article you will find useful tips for caring for plants during the holiday, so that the plants in the house are just as beautiful and well-maintained when they return as they were before the holiday. And let's face it:nothing is more beautiful than coming home to a house where the (flowering) plants give your house life and color.
If you dare, you can of course choose to engage a third party who will take care of the plants during your absence/vacation. The easiest way here is to ask a family member. If you have trustworthy neighbors, you can also bring it up and the neighbors may be willing to help. Perhaps with the agreement to mutually help each other, so both parties are assured of the care of the plants during the holidays.
– In any case, make sure that the person who will take care of the plants knows exactly HOW the plants should be cared for. If necessary, make a list with the instructions for the care of the plants.
– Put all the equipment needed for the care of the plants (fertilizer, watering can, sprayer) in a clear and pre-arranged place
– Don't shut off your water
– Don't move plants just before you leave. Plants are not always very resistant to movement and that could mean that your plants still have to go into the clicko
– Plants need fresh air to grow and flower well. Leave room doors open as much as possible. Perhaps it can be agreed with the caretaker that there is occasional airing while taking care of the plants.
It is somewhat more difficult with a garden, especially if the garden has many plants and the weather conditions have to be taken into account when caring for garden plants. It is certainly desirable to look for someone who has some understanding of the care of garden plants. If you have a lawn, don't forget that the lawn also needs care. This is especially true during extended absences. Arrange this well in advance with the person who wants to take care of the garden during your absence.
For garden plants in the garden, almost the same applies as stated above, but there are a few extra things to consider:
– Do you have fruit plants in the garden, such as strawberries that ripen and need to be picked during your absence, pass this on to the caretaker (of course also applies to vegetables)
– Should the grass be mowed or weeds? Then make sure that the tools are accessible (give the key to the shed or put it in another accessible place)
– Is it a winter holiday? Then let the caregiver know exactly what to do during any frost or snowfall
If there is no one else to care for the plants, then you will have to be creative yourself so that your plants survive. There are a number of tricks that can be used for this. However, it must be immediately stated that these tips only work during a short absence of a maximum of one week. After that, the care will really have to be taken up again. This option is therefore not suitable for people who will be absent for a longer period of time. These people would do well to find someone who is willing to help them with the care of the plants.
The basis of the tricks below is always the same:the plant is always watered drop by drop. All plants should be placed in a cool room protected from the sun to prevent too much evaporation. Note:some plants need a lot of sun, so make sure that the water supply is protected against too much sun.
Leave room doors open so that there is some movement in the air, because plants cannot survive without fresh air. If there is a ventilation window, it is a good idea to leave it open.
In winter you should make sure that plants do not get too cold. The room where plants are located must therefore have a certain temperature (constant).
A very special way is to provide the plant with water by means of a woolen thread.
– Wet a woolen thread and hang one end in a waterfilled bottle. Make sure the wire is long enough to reach the bottom of the bottle. Tuck the other end into the plant's root ball. Make sure everything is tight, otherwise the system will not work
– The plant will now be supplied with water drop by drop
The bigger the plant, the more wires will be needed! Instead of woolen thread you can take a cotton thread.
Earthenware pots have the advantage of soaking up water, making the following trick particularly useful:
– Soak a towel or mop so that it is soaked with water
– Fill a large bucket or baby bath with water and let a hang part of the towel in this
– Spread the rest of the towel on the counter or in the shower tray
– Now place the earthenware pots on the wet towel or mop
Suitable for a number of small potted plants.
– Take a container (e.g. baby bath) and place a few cm of peat dust in it
– Wet the peat dust thoroughly and place the plants on it
– The soil will suck up the water when it dries out, in addition, water is also released through evaporation that is absorbed by the leaves
If you plant plants in hydroponics, you don't have to worry about your plants during the holidays and you don't have to apply any of the tricks mentioned above.
The garden plants are a bit more difficult to care for while you are away, but here too there are a number of things you can do, especially for container plants
– Make sure the container plants are in sufficient shade, which limits evaporation and dehydration
– Just like with houseplants, you can put container plants in peat dust (pack in peat dust)
Although there are special automatic watering systems in garden centers, you can choose to make your own watering system for the garden with few resources. Here's how:
– Take a plastic bottle and fill it with water
– Screw on the cap and drill a hole
– Make sure your garden is quite wet before you leave is
– Stop the bottle upside down near the root ball, so that the plant is supplied with water drop by drop
Do you have any tips and tricks for caring for house and garden plants during your holiday? Let me know in a comment below this article.
