How can humidifiers help your plants grow healthily?
Many people are unaware of the benefits of humidifiers to your indoor green buddies. You see, plants are important to improve the air quality of your home or building. But at the same time, you need to take care of them to ensure that you can get the most out of them. It is a mutual relationship that you have to maintain.
Aside from basking them with sufficient sunlight, you should also provide adequate moisture to your plants. It is an essential component so that they can maintain their regular processes, such as photosynthesis, even if they are placed indoors.
There are multiple reasons why a humidifier is beneficial for plants. Let’s discuss them here.
How Can Humidifiers Help Your Plants Grow Healthily?
Humidifiers produce moisture to increase the humidity levels of a given area. If your air is too dry, it can cause multiple problems such as health issues and structural deterioration. Plants can get affected by dry air, too, and it is evident once their leaves turn brittle and paper-like.
Always remember that plants inhale carbon dioxide via their leaves. This is an important gas utilized in their photosynthesis. Every time the pores of the leaves open, the moisture within them escapes, too. Because of this, plants tend to generate or produce water vapor whenever they are “breathing.”
If the air in your house is dry, it causes plants to lose more moisture than it should be. The moisture in the leaves quickly evaporates, which is something that doesn’t happen in a regularly humid environment.
Specifically, if the plant loses water more on its leaves than the water that the root absorbs, unlikely things can happen. Plants have survival abilities, too. If such a predicament happens, plants will close the pores on their leaves. It prevents moisture from leaving. But at the same time, the absence of carbon dioxide causes the plant to become wilt and weary.
The most important thing to remember here is this: most plants don’t like dry air.
Hence, if your home has low humidity, you have to make sure that you have a humidifier that can treat the problem.
Does Watering Plants Solve This Problem?
Interestingly enough, many people suggest that watering the plants can help them retain their moisture.
Of course, it does help. But you have to make sure that your indoor air is not dry. Otherwise, the water you pour on your plants will not do much. In fact, if you water your plants too much, the amount of air that can get into the soil reduces.
At the same time, excessive watering can cause the rotting of the roots.
In short, poor humidity in plants is never solved by watering. Instead, you need to regulate your indoor moisture so that your plants will get a supply of enough water vapor.
If plants thrive in an environment that has the right level of humidity (roughly around 40% to 60%), it is easy for them to breathe. Their leaves can open their pores without losing too much water.
But then again, you have to guarantee that you will never over-humidify your space. Plants don’t like a damp environment, either. Besides, extreme dampness may result in mold growth, allergies, and other unwanted health issues. If you let your humidifier go unchecked, it can cause condensation, too, which is not a good thing.
Tips In Improving The Humidity For Your Indoor Plants
Get A Humidifier
As a plant owner, you know the importance of ensuring the right humidity in your home. Not only is it a necessity for the health of your plants, but also for your comfort. After all, who wants to live in a home that feels like a desert? But keeping the humidity level high can be a challenge, especially during the winter. That’s where a humidifier comes in—to benefit not only your plants but you, as well.
Create A Humidity Tray
The humidity tray is an essential tool in the indoor gardener’s arsenal. There are several types of this humidification device, but the most common is a shallow tray filled with water. This water evaporates and increases the humidity in the surrounding area. Another common type of humidity tray is a shallow dish containing pebbles or marbles.
The humidity tray is typically placed under a plant’s pot and using a spray bottle; the plant is sprayed until the soil is thoroughly damp. The plant is then placed on the tray so that as the water evaporates, the plant is watered. This is a very useful tool for those people who forget to water their plants or simply don’t have the time to water them daily.
Plant Grouping
It has been proven that grouping your plants in the same area is beneficial. It helps in creating a microclimate while they are absorbing and releasing moisture from their leaves. Specifically, it helps in regulating the humidity within their proximity.
Fine Misting
Mist systems are an ideal way to keep the humidity level in your home in check, especially if you have an extensive collection of indoor plants. These fine droplets of water that come as a result of misting are vital for keeping the soil moist and for maintaining foliage healthy and free from disease.
Tips In Raising Healthy Indoor Plants
Do Your Research
Before you even start planting foliage in your indoor space, it is vital that you know the natural environment of the plants. Specifically, the idea here is to ensure that you can replicate the settings that support the healthy growth of plants. Study their natural habitat and know all the elements that improve or affect their well-being. By knowing the details, you will be able to determine how much humidity, temperature, and water that your plants need.
For example, desert plants don’t need too much humidity and water to survive. But at the same time, you need to expose them to sunlight all the time. On the flip side, tropical plants such as ferns are better off in dim environments with high levels of moisture.
Tropical Plants Require More Humidity
Most of the indoor plants today have tropical origins. It is also possible that they came from rainforests. Since these regions are often rich in humidity, you have to anticipate that all plants that came from them require the same setting, too.
Specifically, tropical plants need the following elements: moisture, water, and warmth. You have to produce these things to guarantee that your tropical plants will not wither or die. Having a humidifier can help you generate water and moisture. The only thing you need to do is expose your plants to sunlight for a few hours every day. If you can do this, you’ll notice that your plants will grow green and luscious leaves!
Knowing When The Humidity Is High Or Low For Your Plants
You need a humidifier if your plant experiences the following:
- The tips or ends of the leaves have brownish coloration
- The surface of the soil is dry
- The plant is shedding an unusual number of leaves
You need a dehumidifier if your plant experiences the following:
- The tips or ends of the leaves have yellowish coloration
- The soil is quite muddy and sticky
- The soil emits a noticeable odor
- Bugs and gnats are living around your plants
- The stem is mushy and blackish (a sign of rotting)
In Summary
When it comes to keeping your houseplants alive, there are a lot of different things that you may want to consider. It’s easy to forget that you are keeping a living thing, and not just an ornament, in your home. Although all plants need water, light, and air to survive, other factors often get overlooked.
One of the things that have a significant impact on plant health is humidity, and it is something that you will want to consider whenever you want to grow plants inside your home.
It is better to put a humidifier in your house, especially if you are experiencing dry air all year round. This device helps in boosting indoor humidity, which is beneficial for you and your plants.
That’s it for now. If you have other inquiries, feel free to ask me in the comment section below.