How to Water Your Plants with Chris Satch

So thrilled to welcome Chris Satch back to the show for an UNBELIEVABLE, comprehensive conversation on all things WATERING! We cover everything from top watering, bottom watering, troubleshooting, how to identify root rot and many listener questions. This is not an episode to miss if you have any questions around watering your plants!

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Check out my youtube video on how I water my plants

In this episode we learn:

• [5:00]What Chris is loving in his collection lately
• A quick overview on how to propagate fern spores
• How to grow mosses
• [12:30] What BAGR listeners are struggling with when it comes to how to water your plants
• [13:00] Why is watering so important to our plants?
• [14:20] What are xylem and phloem and how do the affect watering?
• [15:40] What is transpiration?
• [16:20] The connection between soil moisture and light
• [18:18] How humidity affects transpiration and our plants watering schedules
• [21:15] What are microclimates and how do they affect humidity
• [23:30] Watering Hack #1: Group Plants with Similar Needs Together
• [24:50] Chris's opinion on Top Watering Vs Bottom Watering
• [26:20 ] Best Top Watering Practices
• [29:00] Maria's (STRONG) opinion about care cards and watering instructions
• [30:50] What does "water when dry" mean- how many inches of soil should the top of the soil dry out
• [32:42] Watering Hack #2: Use the pot weight to understand how heavy soil saturation feels and get to know how a dry pot feels like as well
• [36:20] What is the ideal temperature for watering your plants
• [36:50] How to leave water in the catch tray of your pot with drainage
• [ 40:20] Best Bottom Watering Practices
• [42:10] Chris's issues with Bottom Watering
• [46:34] Root Rot: what it is, how do we fix it, how can we avoid it
• [48:30] Signs that you've under watered your plant
• [48:40] Signs that you've over watered your plant
• [49:50] Maria's honest experience about overwatering her plants this year
• [55:30] How Chris saves his plants from root rot
• [55:50] Chris's (STRONG) opinion about self watering pots
• [1:01:22] The truth about spritzing (you might not like this)
• [1:01:53] How brown tips can actually be a sign on fungal infection and not humidity or underwatering
• [1:06] How to use fungicide to treat brown edges on a plant
• [1:07] Why using warm water is important for watering
• [1:07:30] Where the ice cube watering myth started, why it's bogus and why you shouldn't use this method
• [1:08] Tap water vs distilled water vs rain water = does the type of water you water your plants with actually matter?
• [1:10:00]What white spots on leaves are and how to remove them
• [1:10:10]  Hack # 3: use lemon juice to remove white spots on leaves
• [1:11:43] When during the day should you water?
• [1:11:55] Do you water your plant before you repot? or leave it with dry soil?

Mentioned in our conversation:

• Episode 97: How to Care for Ferns with Lisa from Houseplant Guru
• Maria's Youtube Video on How I Water My Plants
• Maria's Youtube video on The Perched Water Table and Drainage
• How Maria saved her variegated Watermelon Peperomia from Root Rot

Thanks to our episode sponsors!

Espoma Organics: for responsibly made, fabulous indoor and outdoor organic soils, fertilizers, pest control sprays and more visit espoma.com to find your local dealer or check out my amazon storefront of my favorite Espoma products here.

Soltech Solutions Luxury Grow Lights: Whether its simply getting through the lower light winter- or if you’re like me and you’ve just got too many plants  and too few windows and need to bring more light indoors so your collection can keep growing- Soltech Solutions has the luxury lighting option for you! Soltech is offering BAGR listeners 20% off with code 20BLOOM at soltechsolutions.com once again thats soltechsolutions.com and code 20BLOOM at checkout for 20%off.

 

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Instagram: @botanictonic

Website: christophersatch.com

 

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