October 3, 2019

Caring for Your Container Arrangement

4 Container Arrangement Care Tips to Live By:

Container gardening can be incredibly rewarding, as it showcases your creativity and your signature style. Flower-filled containers are a beautiful way to accent a porch, patio or walkway.

Creating a container garden can be relatively simple – and as time passes, easy to maintain. Here are some tips to ensure your arrangement keeps looking its loveliest.

The process of moving the plant’s foliage aside to water

Watering:

It’s no surprise that watering is the crucial element to keep your plants thriving. Assess your plants’ moisture needs, factor in the climate (Warm? Cold?), and set up a consistent watering schedule. Do not let the soil dry out. Before you water, simply stick your finger into the soil. If it feels wet, you may want to delay watering. If the soil feels dry, water away! (To prevent overwatering, make sure you’ve selected a container with a drain hole at the bottom.)

When watering a container arrangement, it’s important to water each plant individually. By doing so, you’re ensuring each plant will get the water it needs. To start the watering process, gently move each plant’s foliage aside, and position the watering can’s spout directly above soil that holds the plant you’re watering. Watering the top of the plants will not evenly distribute the water. Water slowly, ensuring the water won’t roll off the top, and that the soil can evenly absorb the liquid. Repeat this step for each plant in the container.

Pruning:

Pruning your arrangement stimulates new growth and causes the plants to look fuller. Pruning also makes an unkempt arrangement look fresh again. Make sure to prune branches at the plant’s base. This method makes your plants look better, and it is more beneficial for them.

PlantVine’s Organic Outdoor Potting Mix in a pot

Fertilizing:

Choosing when to fertilize can be tricky. The right time depends on how nutrient-rich your soil is. If you use our PlantVine Organic Outdoor Potting Mix, you should start the fertilization process one month after planting. If you’re using a liquid fertilizer,( like a fish emulsion/seaweed blend), apply monthly to ensure your arrangement gets the nutrition it needs.

If you’ve used a different type of potting soil, check to see if the soil already has fertilizer in it. Overfertilizing can damage plants and cause chemical run-off.

Replacing:

Sad but true: sometimes a plant dies. Please don’t get discouraged if one of the plants in your arrangement doesn’t make it. This happens all the time to gardeners at every skill level. If one of the plants in your container dies, simply remove it and replace it with another. Arrangements are meant to be refreshed from time to time.

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August 15, 2019

Unboxing Your PlantVine Plants

Unboxing Your PlantVine Plants

Please be sure to bring your plant(s) inside and unpack them as soon as possible – shipping and extreme temperatures could place undesirable stress on the plants.  Plants left sitting at your doorstep for an extended amount of time in cold or hot weather could potentially damage them.

What to do IMMEDIATELY after your plants arrive:

Please remove your new plant(s) from their shipping boxes as soon as possible. To remove your plant(s) from their box, make sure that the arrows are facing up and simply tilt the box slightly to access the bottom of the box. Simply cut open the bottom and lift. Although our plants are packed with the utmost care, the sooner they can enjoy the light and fresh air, the happier they will be. As you remove the plant from the box, you may notice one (or several) of these occurrences:

  • Some dirt in the pot may have been displaced.
  • Your plant may have some broken branches.
  • Your plant may look a bit wilted.
  • Your plant has dropped several leaves.

Please be assured, all of this is completely normal.

PlantVine Unboxing Your Plant Order

What to do IMMEDIATELY after your plants arrive:

Please remove your new plant(s) from their shipping boxes as soon as possible. To remove your plant(s) from their box, make sure that the arrows are facing up and simply tilt the box slightly to access the bottom of the box. Simply cut open the bottom and lift. Although our plants are packed with the utmost care, the sooner they can enjoy the light and fresh air, the happier they will be. As you remove the plant from the box, you may notice one (or several) of these occurrences:

  • Some dirt in the pot may have been displaced.
  • Your plant may have some broken branches.
  • Your plant may look a bit wilted.
  • Your plant has dropped several leaves.

Please be assured, all of this is completely normal.

Here are your next simple steps to take:
  • Remove the paper sleeve from around your plant (if applicable).
  • Remove the plastic bag that wraps the pot, put any loose dirt in the bag back into the pot.
  • If the plant is tied to a bamboo stake, leave it at least a couple weeks for support. If there is a bamboo stake which isn’t tied to the plant, discard the bamboo stake.
  • Prune off any broken branches, if any. (This will actually promote new growth.)
  • Check the moisture about an inch below the soil surface. If it feels moist, do not water the soil – spray the leaves instead.  If it feels dry, thoroughly soak the soil. Those wilted leaves will perk up in no time!
  • Move the plant into a bright spot, but avoid direct mid-day sunlight for a couple days until the plant recovers from the shipping stress.
  • Do not fertilize plants for at least three weeks.
Plant Your Plant

Here are your next simple steps to take:

  • Remove the paper sleeve from around your plant (if applicable).
  • Remove the plastic bag that wraps the pot, put any loose dirt in the bag back into the pot.
  • If the plant is tied to a bamboo stake, leave it at least a couple weeks for support. If there is a bamboo stake which isn’t tied to the plant, discard the bamboo stake.
  • Prune off any broken branches, if any. (This will actually promote new growth.)
  • Check the moisture about an inch below the soil surface. If it feels moist, do not water the soil – spray the leaves instead.  If it feels dry, thoroughly soak the soil. Those wilted leaves will perk up in no time!
  • Move the plant into a bright spot, but avoid direct mid-day sunlight for a couple days until the plant recovers from the shipping stress.
  • Do not fertilize plants for at least three weeks.
PLEASE WAIT AT LEAST 10 DAYS FROM THEIR ARRIVAL TO TRANSPLANT YOUR PLANTS, WHETHER THEY ARE GOING INTO A NEW POT OR INTO THE GROUND.
August 15, 2019

PlantVine General Plant Care Instructions

PlantVine General Plant Care Instructions

First and foremost, you’ll need to determine a location your new plant: indoors, on the patio, or planted outside in your garden. Your plant’s final location will dictate some aspects of its care.

Here are some important tips and information from our professional care team:

WATERING: Developing proper watering routines is perhaps the hardest thing to learn. Spending a bit of time online researching the watering cycle of your specific plant will be incredibly beneficial. For example, it’s no surprise the watering requirements of Cacti and Succulents are dramatically different than, let’s say, philodendrons. In general, it is better to underwater then to overwater. Overwatering could result in root rot that might compromise your lovely plant. Pay attention to the soil drainage when determining how often to water your plant. Most plants will do well if you only water once the soil is dry to the touch and doesn’t feel cool. For succulents and cacti, you’ll want to leave the soil dry for a while before re-watering.

HUMIDITY: Indoor environments typically lack the humidity essential to many tropical plants. If you place your tropical plant in a “dry air” environment, remember to mist its leaves occasionally to keep them looking their loveliest.

SUN: PlantVine’s interior plants have been shade-grown. When these arrive at your home, be sure to place them where they will receive bright indirect light. Direct sunlight may scorch the plant’s leaves. Inversely, sun grown plants may partially defoliate if kept in shade. The shade houses where they grow are almost always going to provide more sun than inside your home. It’s normal for your plant to lose leaves while it gets used less light (the bigger the difference, the more leaf loss/yellowing will occur). It’s best if you place the plant where it can see the sky initially and slowly move it to its final location.

SELECTING THE RIGHT LOCATION: If you are planning to keep your plant on the patio, make sure you research the lowest temperature it can tolerate. Most of PlantVine’s plants are tropical, and can withstand temperatures down to 40 degrees. If a freeze is imminent, your plant should come indoors.

FERTILIZING: Please do not fertilize your plants upon their arrival, as they need some time to recover from shipping. We recommend fertilizing 2 months after delivery. Be sure to select the proper fertilizer for your specific plant, “Palm” “House Plant”, etc.

SOIL: When you’re ready to transplant your new addition (no sooner than 7 days after its arrival) to a new pot or in the ground, use the proper soil for your specific plant.

SELECTING THE CORRECT POT: If you are planning to keep your plant inside your home or on your patio, choose a pot with a drainage hole at the bottom. This is crucial, as it prevents excess water from building up and causing root rot or other fungal issues.

We hope you enjoy your new plants! Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns. Our friendly customer service team is standing by to help.

ONLINE: Click here to contact us!

BY PHONE:  888-361-9998

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