Quick Tip: Create a Watering Schedule to Avoid Neglecting Your Plants

By Jennifer Poindexter

If you’re someone who is known for killing plants, this tip is for you. Chances are, you aren’t a horrible gardener.

The problem is you forget about the plants’ care. I’m going to share my tips on how you can avoid this habit moving forward.

One of the main ways to kill plants is by not watering them. Here are my tips on how you can always remember to water your plants whether indoors or outdoors:

Quick Tip: Create a Watering Schedule to Avoid Neglecting Your Plants

I’m a routine person. As long as I have a habit formed, I can stick with almost anything. If my schedule is off, everything goes sideways until I get back to my routine.

The main way I remember to provide water to plants is by incorporating it into my regular routine. With my houseplants, I care for them when I clean my house.

My routine consists of cleaning my house every Saturday. As I clean a room, I check to see if there’s a houseplant in the area.

If so, I stop cleaning and water the plant deeply. Then I’ll set the plant outdoors, in a sink, or in the shower to finish draining before putting it back in its place.

Watering my houseplants one time per week seems to do the trick in keeping them healthy. However, you should check the soil before watering. If you have plants that need more consistent watering, then create a routine for when they should be watered.

It could be as simple as watering your plants two determined days per week while you wait for your coffee to brew in the morning.

If you have plants which require less watering, think of a bi-weekly routine you do. Then add watering your plants to this routine.

When it comes to my outdoor plants, I have different routines for different plants. I grow a lot of container plants in my greenhouse.

Therefore, they usually require watering on a daily basis. I work from home, so every day on my lunch break, I water my outdoor container plants.

When it comes to my raised bed gardens or my traditional garden plots, I have specific days I know to water them as part of a nightly routine.

 It isn’t difficult to sit down, examine your schedule, and figure out where to fit in watering your plants. Once you have this information, begin developing the habit, and your plants should receive the water they need.

It’s also helpful to set a reminder on your phone until this new habit becomes an established part of your routine. I’m also a huge advocate of sticky notes, so I leave myself notes on my desk to ensure I don’t forget to water as well.

If you struggle with remembering to water your plants, you don’t have to. Make it part of your daily or weekly routine.

Before you know it, caring for your plants becomes a habit. Then you’ll have beautiful plants to show for a simple change in your schedule.

More About Watering Your Plants

https://wayne.ces.ncsu.edu/2022/06/smart-watering-in-the-garden/

https://extension.umd.edu/resource/watering-indoor-plants

https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden-news/watering-houseplants