FIRST AID TO REVIVE YOUR PLANTS AFTER SUMMER

Posted By: Manuel Gaviño In: Plant care Comment: 0 Hit: 6739

When comming back from vacation, it is very common to find our plants dried, sunburned or attacked by pests. Do you want to know how to revive them? Find out in this article.

September is finally arriving. As we return home from vacation, it is time to check the state of our plants after the summer. Even if we have taken all necessary precautions, it is normal that some of them have suffered from heat. But with proper care it is possible to revive them.

Usually, our plants have dried up due to lack of water, or maybe are overwatered because the person who took care of them while we were out was not an expert. Sunburned leaves and the presence of pests are also common.

Whatever the problem, there is a way to save them. In this article we are giving you several tips to revive your plants after summer.

How to safe dried plants

When you have come back from vacation, have you found your plants dried and with wilted leaves? It is very common, but fortunately is easy to save them. Simply rehydrating the soil, most plants will revive in a few days. Just follow these steps:

Remove dried leaves and flowers, which would keep part of the water

Remove the plant from the pot, leaving a piece of soil around the roots (root ball).

Place it in a large container, where it has plenty of space. Fill the bowl with warm water so that the soil absorbs it faster and leave it there for about ten minutes.

Drain excess water on a plate and put the plant back in its pot

Spray water on the leaves

During the following days, be sure that the soil is always wet. This way the roots will gradually absorb the water they need and the plant will recover its vitality.

How to save overwatered plants

Despite what we usually think, overwatering is the greatest danger to our plants. Most species can withdraw a dry period better than a flooded soil. If this has happened to you, you will notice it because your plants have yellow leaves and hardly any new sprouts have come out.

Reviving an overwatered plant is not easy, but it is worth a try. You must do the following:

Remove the plant from its pot.

For the next 24 hours, wrap the root ball in absorbent paper towels. Change the paper every time it is completely soaked. At the beginning this will happen very often, but soon the soil will drain all the excess water.

Check out the condition of the leaves. If you find brown spots on them, they are probably being attacked by fungi. Spray a fungicide on them.

Return the plant in its pot. To make sure it has good drainage, fill the bottom of the pot with gravel.

Let a couple of days go by without watering, until the soil has dried completely.

If in a few days your plants have not recovered its green colour, it was probably too late for them.

How to revive sunburned plants

The sunburned leaves are one of the most frequent problem of our plants during the summer. It takes the form of yellow or brown spots on the leaves, which often causes the leaf to dry and fall.

Luckily, these sunburns are very simple to treat and rarely become dangerous for the plant. You just have to do the following:

If you have the plant in a pot, remove it from the sun. You can put it at home and leave it in a space with indirect light. If not, protect it from light with some kind of awning or cover.

Spray the leaves with water often, always soon in the morning or late in the afternoon.

Once it has recovered, turn back the plant to the sun little by little: at first, just a couple of hours a day. Then four, six and finally eight hours a day. Increase the exposure time over one or two months, so that the plant can recover well.

If you see that sunburns continue, move the plant to a corner less exposed to the sun.

How to revive plants affected by pests

The high temperatures favour the appearance of several insects and fungi that attack our plants. Its presence is much more common in overwatered plants, or on those which have not received a preventive treatment against pests.

If your plants suffer any kind of pest, the most effective solution is to fight them with specialized insecticides or fungicides.

With these simple tips you will be able to save your plants after the summer.

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