Those of us who have graduated from plant offender to caretaker agree that the killing of houseplants is not done by maliciousness but by lack of knowledge and insufficient experience. Because, as I’ve stated before, even though many green-thumbed growers won’t admit it: “Most of us have killed many, many plants along the way to achieve a present-day harmony with our leafy beauties” Many plants.

So we’re all guilty.

And we remain guilty until we begin to make an effort to learn a little something – at least the basics - about how to take care of plants, either by continuing to kill many more of them until the botanical light bulb finally goes on (this is the long, hard way) or by reading a book, asking questions and surfing the internet (a much faster learning process). There is no magic formula, folks, or a natural disposition to a ‘green thumb’. There are three things you need to help you succeed with houseplants and shed the ‘black thumb':

1) Knowledge: you have to make an effort to learn about plant care
2) Passion: you have to like growing houseplants, at least a little, to want to learn something about them
3) Experience: you have to grow plants to put that knowledge into practice

Knowledge + Passion + Experience = Thriving Houseplants

I personally think the fine line between killing a plant by mistake and doing it on purpose is crossed by individuals who make no effort to learn a little something – at least the basics – about indoor plants and their associated needs. Instead, every time they toss yet another dead plant in the trash, they throw their hands up in the air and declare: “I’m just not very good at this. I have a black thumb, you know”

No, I don’t know.

I just know that a green thumb, just like any other skill, can be acquired – with a little effort – by anyone. And no, I don’t have a problem with people that are not interested in learning, unless these same individuals keep making excuses for all their bad plant growing behaviour, as if it’s completely out of their control. (“It’s not my fault; black thumbs run in the family. You should see how many plants Aunt Ethel has killed...”).

Or when they praise someone who grows houseplants successfully as if there’s some big mystery involved or an exclusive club that people with (earned) green thumbs belong to that they’re forbidden to join. (“I envy people with green thumbs”, “It must be genetic”, “Too bad I don’t have the knack for growing plants”) Yadda, yadda, yadda. How long can you feign innocence – or ignorance?

I’m sure you don’t feel like listening to me go on and on about this, so, I’m going to get off the soapbox and write about how you can kill plants, followed by what you should do to avoid those types of death. If you’re interested, stick around. If not, don’t come crying to me when your plant bites the dust.


You Kill Plants By:

1) Drowning Them

The number one killer of houseplants is over-watering. Houseplant growers – especially beginners - don’t commit this crime intentionally. Wanting to fuss and pamper their leafy beauties, they tend to carry around a watering can with them, which they use at the slightest hint of thirst. Many times, a plant may not necessarily be displaying signs of thirst when its leaves are wilted or brown tips develop; there could be other reasons for the stress. But the houseplant enthusiast sometimes jumps the gun and misdiagnoses, pouring water into soil that is already waterlogged. In the end, the plants are killed by kindness, not neglect. Unfortunately, lavishing the wrong type of care on a soil-grown plant can bring on a fatal outcome.

What you should do: Don’t water a plant over and over again until its root system has died. Water well when it’s thirsty, enough to soak the soil (until you see water emerging from the pot’s drainage holes) and then allow your plant to dry out as needed before soaking it again. By watering heavily, you are also leaching excess salts that accumulate in the soil and discouraging any dry air pockets from developing. Make sure to never leave your plant’s pot sitting in water; dump the excess from the pot’s saucer within the hour. In addition, don’t water your plants on a schedule, only when they need it. Plants do not get thirsty on a specific day at a specific time.


2) Dehydrating Them

Most plants are tough enough to recover from minor water deprivation with just the loss of a few leaves and premature bud drop. But if you take a plant past the point of no return, you can kiss it goodbye; chronic under watering results in plant death. Under watering usually develops into a bad habit when houseplant growers discover – after many casualties – that they are killing their plants by drowning them. Fearful of repeating the unfortunate experience, they become dreadfully frugal with the watering can, offering only tiny sips of water, hardly enough to satisfy their plant’s thirst. While this may not kill a plant outright, it will damage the health of the root system, which in turn will damage leaves, flowers, etc. Roots damaged repeatedly may lead to plant death.

What you should do: Unfortunately, the symptoms of both watering fallacies above are often similar, which makes it difficult to diagnose properly and act accordingly. Eventually you will – through a hands-on approach and a little education – get the hang of it. In time experience will come into play and one day you may even be able to judge whether your plants need watering or not by lifting up the pot and checking the weight, by the overall appearance of your plant or by feeling the leaves between your fingers. In the meantime, follow the steps above. Water well when the plant is thirsty and don’t water again until necessary.


3) Keeping Them In The Dark

As a houseplant lover, you already know that the most important factor for growing healthy houseplants is light. Most homes have inadequate light to begin with and if you don’t place plants in an area that has some decent lighting its health will deteriorate. Sure there are a few plants that will survive a dark location for a long time, but even they will eventually suffer from lack of proper lighting. Death by insufficient lighting is slow but inevitable; plants need light for photosynthesis, and they will slowly but surely starve to death without adequate amounts.

What you should do: Learn as much as you can about the care requirements of a plant you are growing, especially the amount and type of light (direct, indirect, shade) it requires to keep it healthy. Then place the plant where it will grow best.


4) Freezing Them

Most houseplants come from tropical regions where the weather is warm and cozy year round. Imagine how stressful it must be to these warm climate lovers when they are exposed to subzero temperatures - weather they are not equipped to handle. It’s lethal. You have to be extra careful and take special precautions if you buy houseplants on days where the temperature is well below freezing. Many plants are quite resilient but exposure to such bitter weather can and will kill them. When a plant is moved from a sheltered environment to the sudden chill of the outdoors, the shock can prove deadly.

What you should do: Bundle your plant up. Even a few seconds of exposure to sub-zero weather can cause severe damage to a plant, so why chance it? Keep the plant warm while transporting it. Wrap it well before taking it outside, warm up your vehicle in advance, don’t place it in the trunk where it’s generally colder and take it straight home (don’t leave it in the car while you do more shopping). For more information: Getting Houseplants Home Safely

Remember to also protect your plant from other sources of cold damage such as cold windowsills, chilly drafts and unheated rooms.


5) Scorching Them

In the summer time, the temperature inside a car parked in the sun can be fatal, producing enough heat to do in the toughest plant very quickly. But because it’s warm outside, it’s assumed that the new plant is not in any danger of damage, so shoppers have no reservations about leaving a houseplant in a hot vehicle while they run errands or attend to other business, sometimes for extended periods. But it’s important to be just as careful in the summer as you are in the winter because if you leave your new flora in your car’s sizzling temperatures, chances are you’ll come back to a cooked plant.

What you should do: First, make sure the plant you transport on that sizzling hot day is well hydrated. Choose one that has been recently watered or ask that it be watered before purchasing it. Once it’s in the car, shade it from the rays of the sun; cover it or place it on the floor of the car. Sunlight shining through glass can burn foliage. Don’t place the plant in the trunk where it’s generally hotter, and make sure to take it straight home (don’t leave it in the car while you do more shopping). For more information: Getting Houseplants Home Safely

Also, if you are growing your plant in a warm, sunny location in the house, keep it adequately hydrated; check it daily and water accordingly. Move it out of the sun if there are signs of sunburn.


6) Feeding Them To Pests

Houseplants are susceptible to pest infestations, primarily by the usual suspects: spider mites, aphids, fungus gnats, mealybug and scale. These unwanted pests reproduce rapidly, and if they’re not dealt with promptly, their population explosion will kill the infected plants. Most pest infestations, if caught in the early stages, can be wiped out completely, therefore many of these infested plants can be saved. Unfortunately, indoor gardeners do not always check their plants for problems, even when there are obvious signs of stress or damage; instead, they end up feeding them to the pests.

What you should do: Inspect your plants every time you water them; check their leaves, stems, growing medium and surrounding area for signs of trouble. If you discover an infestation, deal with it immediately; the pests can be exterminated and your plant’s health can be fully restored if you act before the problem spirals out of control.


7) Growing Them In Oversized Containers

When a houseplant is healthy and thriving, it will eventually outgrow its container and need more space, so the grower will need to transplant it into a larger container. That’s not a problem. The problem begins when the pot chosen is much too large. And that’s a ‘big’ problem for the plant. In an oversized container, the roots of the newly-transplanted plant will sit in more soil than needed. That excess soil will not dry out; it will stay damp for a long time and the roots of your houseplant will be forced to soak in that soggy mess. Roots soaking in water are deprived of air and will begin to rot. Once the roots rot, say good-bye to your lovely plant.

What you should do: One size up, maybe two is the way to go. Don’t choose a pot that your plant can eventually ‘grow into’. Your plant will never grow into it; it’ll end up in the big compost in the sky way before that. Bigger is not better, it’s deadly.


8) Fertilizing Them To Death

Just like with over-watering, houseplant growers don’t commit the crime of overfeeding intentionally. The belief amongst these well-meaning souls is that if a little fertilizer is good, a lot is better. Sadly, feeding plants more than necessary can end up killing them. Consistent overfeeding can lead to a buildup of toxic levels of excess salts in the soil that can damage the roots and prove fatal.

What you should do: The frequency of feedings depends on many factors: the type of plant you are growing, its growth rate (slow, medium or fast), its feeding requirements (weekly, biweekly, quarterly or annual feedings), the season of the year, the growing environment, the plant’s health, etc. As a general rule, plants are fed regularly during spring and summer, and very little or not at all during fall and winter. Learn about your plant’s general feeding requirements but feed according to the factors above. And remember: it’s always better to feed less than to feed more, so if in doubt, don’t feed.


9) Killing Them By The Book

Many plants are killed each year by well-meaning growers that refuse to ‘bend the rules’. In other words, if a source of information tells them to water their Aglaonema once a week, that’s what they do, regardless of whether the plant is thirsty or not; it becomes a sacred ritual. Applying rigid rules to indoor gardening causes more plant deaths than people realize.

What you should do: It’s always a great idea to gather knowledge on plant care from different sources. But because the information varies slightly from source to source, as does the environment plants grow in, none of it should be applied rigidly. With houseplants it’s the ‘spirit’ of the law, not the ‘letter’ of the law that will help you succeed with them. Learn to be easygoing, take all advice with a grain of salt and perform plant chores only when necessary. If there are no signs of thirst, put the watering can down and step away from the plant, no matter what the book, a website, your neighbour or your mother says.


10) Throwing Them Out Needlessly

Millions of gift plants are purchased each year for personal use or to be given as gifts. Most of them are tossed out after the blooming period ends because the general belief is that these plants are temporary. And some of them are. But not all of them. For example: the popular ‘Christmas cactus’ is not a temporary plant and should not be discarded after the flowers fade. In fact, a well cared for Christmas cactus can thrive for decades, many times outliving its caretaker.

Other popular gift plants that can be kept for years and encouraged to bloom again include Cyclamen, Amaryllis, Azalea, Kalanchoe and the time-honoured Poinsettia.

What you should do: Learn a little about the gift plants you are growing so you can encourage them to bloom again. Granted, it’s easier to buy new specimens than to rejuvenate old ones, but some growers enjoy the challenge. You may be one of them.



The above is just a small list; there are certainly many other things we do – intentionally or unintentionally - that send plants to the big greenhouse in the sky prematurely. Knowledge is certainly a key to succeeding with houseplants, so I encourage you all to make an effort to learn about the plants you are growing or planning to grow. This will help keep them alive and help you develop a green thumb.

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