5 Things You Should Never Do to Your Office Plants
5 things you should never do to your office plants
Office plants can be great for reducing office stress, promoting productivity and creating a welcoming working environment. But plants require a certain level of care to ensure they stay healthy and thrive. Here we look at 5 things you should never do if you want to keep your office plants alive:
1. Give Them too Much Water
It’s possible to kill a plant with kindness. Too much water for your office plant can be just as bad as forgetting to water it at all. Different plants require different water levels, and you’ll know if your plant is getting too much water, because its leaves will look limp, turn yellow and fall off.
One problem with overwatering comes from placing plants on dishes allowing them to sit in a puddle after being watered, leading to potential root rot. The best method for watering a plant is to give it a good drench over a sink and then let the excess water drain away. Alternatively, you can place the plant on a dish but pour the excess water away after about ten minutes.
2. Let Them Finish Your Drink
One of the worst things you could do for your office is to ‘feed’ the plant the dregs from your cup of coffee or tea. Not only does this contribute to overwatering them, but this could cause the plant to attract sciarid flies. Similar to fruit flies, these bothersome things germinate quickly and will annoy everyone in the office.
When watering your office plant, just use water, and make sure no one in the office is using it as a make-shift sink for their beverage waste.
3. Keep Them in Suboptimal Conditions
Plants can feel the rise and drop in temperature just like you do and kept in the wrong conditions the plant will be unable to thrive. However, given that most indoor plants are native to tropical temperatures where conditions are warmer than what most of our gardens will experience, the temperature within your office should be a good match to help them grow.
But you should be aware of the optimal temperature range for your species of plant. Some potential problems can arise, such as keeping plants on a windowsill – whilst great for light and warmth, cold draughts in the winter can cause problems – or any sudden drops in temperature or prolonged periods of cold. Keep your plant in a good spot, where they have enough light, ideally daylight, and away from fluctuating heat. Keep an eye out for signs the temperature might be incorrect, such as flowers dying, and yellowing, wilting and falling leaves.
4. Let Them Overgrow
There are several reasons to prune your office plants. You might need to trim away dead leaves or branches to keep the plant presentable. You might prune to encourage a more balanced growth habit, or you might prune to keep a runaway plant from taking over the office. Whatever the reason, you should take steps when pruning to encourage healthy growth. Pruning encourages healthy growth and should be done periodically when needed. You should be able to find out information about your plant species, regarding how and when to prune.
5. House Them Incorrectly
Plants have an ideal home in mind, just like us. Housed in the wrong place, plant growth can be stunted by a lack of light, or their leaves can become bleached from too much light. Be sure to research your office plant species to determine the levels of light needed. Consider having a light metre for the office to determine how much light you get in various places and house your office plants accordingly.
Contact Us
Of course, the easiest thing to do is to leave it to the experts! Here at Planteria we have over 40 years of experience of finding the perfect office plants for every type of office or corporate environment. We provide a full office plant rental, plant design and maintenance service ensuring that your plants are healthy and well cared for all year round.
If you have any questions or would like to talk to us about any of our services such as corporate flower displays at Planteria Group, do not hesitate to contact us today – we will be happy to help.