All plant lovers, getting worried about plant’s growth and care? Nothing to worry about….. Here is the answer to all your questions. Have a look towards the list of plants which can be grown with minimum amount of care and attention and keep you happy with your wish fulfilled.

Another thing is such low maintenance plants are really very good options to invest which gives the guaranteed returns that too with minimum premium!! :)

 

Aloe Vera

 

The name Aloe Vera is derived from an Arabic word Alloeh which means a bitter substance with glossy shining on it. Aloe Vera known as a succulent is extremely well known for its medicinal use. The gel present inside its leaf contains nutrients like Vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B12, Folic Acid, and Niacin, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Health Benefits of Aloe Vera

 

Aloe for Skin:                         Being an excellent antioxidant and antibacterial Aloe Vera medicines are beneficial for multiple kinds of skin irritations like Sunburn,
                                                  acne, Psoriasis, Eczema, etc. It also helps to treat burn wounds.

 

Aloe on dry skin:                  A mixture of Aloe Vera extract, a pinch of turmeric, a teaspoon of honey and milk and a small amount of rose water can be applied on

                                                  your skin for 20 minutes.

 

Aloe on Acne:                       A mixture of Aloe Vera Gel, blended walnut with honey rescues the skin from acne and leaves it smooth and clear.

 

Aloe for Sensitive Skin:      A mixture of Aloe Vera gel, rose oil, yogurt and cucumber extract is beneficial for sensitive skin.

 

Aloe as a natural scrub:   A mixture of Aloe Vera gel, sugar and lemon juice can be used on the skin to remove dead skin, scars, and tan.

 

Aloe Vera for Hair:               Aloe Vera contains an enzyme called Proteolytic which repairs dead scalp. It can be used as a natural conditioner for shiny and 
                                                  smooth hair. Aloe Vera improves hair growth and reduces dandruff.

 

                                                  Apply a mixture of Aloe Vera Juice and Coconut Oil in an equal amount on your hair and leave it for 6 to 8 hours for the best results.

 

                                                  (Source: NDTV Food)

 

                                                  It reduces the sugar level in your blood. Aloe Vera is helpful to reduce Constipation and maintain your oral health.

                                                  Just place your plant in a warm place where it will get adequate sunlight, no need to water it frequently.

 

Sunlight 

 

Direct sunlight for at least 6 hours (It can tolerate some amount of lighter shade in between). So accordingly choose the right place for your plant.

Watering for Aloe Vera: Aloe is filled with 99% water inside its inner layer that is the reason why it can survive less amount of water.

 

Don’t overwater your Aloe Vera. It is fine if you water it deeply once in 3 weeks to keep the soil moist. Let it dry well (At least 2 inches below the surface). 

 

Pests and Cure

 

Observe your Aloe Vera plant, if any insects are wandering over it tries to make use of natural pesticide instead of toxic to save your plant from

insects without harming them.

 

Harvesting of Aloe Vera

 

Once the Aloe Vera is mature enough choose a thick, large and smooth the leaf and cut it much near the trunk without harming other leaves. 

 

Cut off the edges and start peeling the skin as if you peel off the skin of the fish. Remove the skin on all the sides until the white, translucent, and gel-like flesh is

Visible. Check this video to know more about how to harvest Aloe Vera.

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Repotting of Aloe Vera

 

Aloe Vera loves spreading. So if you want to repot your plant take 3 times bigger pot than the base of the Aloe (Base is a mixture of roots got fixed into the soil). But remember, When you fill the soil to cover your plant base in the new pot, only and only the plant base should get covered and not part of its leaves.

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Aloe Vera care
 

• Do not water your plant frequently in the Winter season.

• If you have just repotted it, stay away at least for 2-3 days. Let it be familiar with its new home.

• Never, never overwater it. Overwatering will spoil your efforts by rotting the roots (Rainwater can be the best option) Make less use of fertilizers when the plant itself can grow well especially in winter season.

 

Snake Plant

                                             

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Watering the Snake Plant

 

Don’t overwater it. No need to water your Snake Plant every day. Allow the soil to dry out enough (You can check it by touching soil surface) before watering next time. Do not sprinkle water on the leaves.

 

Fertilizers

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Balanced NPK 10-10-10 (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium in 10-10-10 percentage respectively) liquid fertilizers during the Spring and half diluted mixtures in the late summer are preferred for growing the Snake Plant.

 

Pests and Cure

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Snake Plants are pest-resistant but they attract slugs and snails towards it. Observe your plant if they chew off the plant leaves. You can make use of eggshells, copper tape or beer trap to protect your plants from these slow monsters.

 

Repotting of a Snake Plant

 

While repotting the Snake Plant place it at the same depth in the new pot where it was in a previous post, So accordingly choose the pot. There should be 1-2 inches between the root ball and the edge/rim of the pot.

 

Add or remove soil in the pot to set the plant properly inside it. 

 

Cover the roots properly with the soil and shower little amount of water to settle down the soil at the roots and keep it moist.

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Snake Plant Care

 

• Rest the plant for two weeks in a shaded corner/indirect sunlight to recover it from any damage happening during repotting.

• Wait for at least one month after repotting for adding any fertilizer otherwise Fertilizers might burn the roots of the plant

• Do not overwater the plant (before as well as after repotting), overwatering will rot the roots of the plant or might invite any fungal issues on the roots
   

Rubber Plant

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Sunlight

 

Bright but not too hot, so basically it prefers indirect sunlight plus some shadow in between. You can choose a corner of your house

where you find soothing sunlight which does not give a burning experience.
 

Watering the Rubber Plant

 

At Least once a week, to keep the soil moist which can help the plant growth. You can spray some showers of water if you feel it dried but remember, too much water will cause your rubber plant to fall sick.

 

Pests and Cure

 

• Rubber Plants are a point of attraction for the pests with their thick, soft and fleshy leaves. Spider mites, fungus, pests like aphids and insects are

       common for Rubber Plants.

 

• Observe your Rubber Plant leaves for holes on them, sticky residue or small drop-like structure which can be insect’s eggs or yellowing.

 

• If you see such crisis wandering around your Rubber Plant then just keep it away from other plants then wash it gently from top to bottom.

 

• Last and most important, You can use horticulture oils to make your Rubber Plant get rid of pests but make sure they are good to use on your delicate plants.

 

• Neem oil can be one of the options. Do not forget to dilute Neem oil into the water  and spray it over the Rubber plant. Keep it aside for 2-3 days and wash it gently. This process can be repeated twice or thrice until you see the pests have moved away from your plant.

 

• In between you can simply take a wet cloth and wipe out the dirt and dust from the Rubber plan’s leaves.

 

• DO NOT put the Rubber plant in direct sunlight with Neem oil on it, it will just burn off your plant. 

 

Repotting a Rubber Plant

 

Observe the growth of your Rubber Plant. Even if it is low maintenance plant, repotting is must every one or two year. If you see the roots 

peeping out of the drainage hole or coming out through the top of the soil or just stuck to the sides of the pot, it is the time to repot your Rubber Plant.

 

Choose a pot which is 1 or 2 inches larger in diameter compared to its current pot the plant is potted in.
 

Rubber Plant care 
 

• If you see that the leaves of your Rubber Plant are drooping down or changing color to dark brown/yellowish brown it indicates that the plant is either overwatered or underwatered, The top layer of the soil will help you know the root cause to take further precaution while watering the plant.
  
  (Remember:      Dark brown leaves: Overwatered         Yellowish Brown leaves: underwatered)
   

• Trim out some of the leaves from the top of the tree near their internode (Joint where the leaf is connected to the stem), it will help to grow that upward and outward.

• You may see some yellow leaves at the bottom of the plant. It is because the top-layered leaves form a canopy and the bottom-layered leaves do not get adequate sunlight. Just cut down the leaves which are prominently yellow.
   

Spider Plant

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Health Benefits of Spider Plant
 

• Spider Plant produces a huge amount of oxygen compared to any other variegated houseplant. 

 

• Study says that it not just increases the level of oxygen in air but also removes about 95 percent of pollutants like formaldehyde and xylene which causes eye irritation, allergies, breathing problems etc. , carbon monoxide which causes irritation, fatigue, lack of coordination and concentration and toluene causing neurological disorder.

 

• Spider Plant shows everlasting high transpiration rate which boost up the humidity in the air.

 

• It is pet friendly so even your pets can breathe healthy air around it.

 

• Sunlight for Spider Plant: Spider Plant actually does not care much about the sunlight it gets but it is advised that it should be kept at a place where it will get

        indirect but bright sunlight.
 

Watering for Spider Plant

 

Overwatering or underwatering, simply doesn’t matter for the Spider plant but it is preferable to water moderately it once in every two

weeks, overwatering might cause root rot. 

 

Before watering the Spider Plant next time make sure its soil is well-drained.
 

Pests and Cure

 

• Generally in case of Spider Plant fungus can be more annoying for the leaves and the roots. Overwatering might cause this problem.

 

• Another issue can be seen on leaf tips. If you see the leaf tips are browning or drying it means that the plant has been exposed to excessive fertilizers or it has been underwatered.

 

• Sometimes even the soil can cause the trouble, so make sure you are using well-drained, clean and good to use potting soil for your Spider Plant.

 

• Repotting of a Spider Plant: Reporting process is quite easier for Spider Plant. Choose a larger pot which has big enough drainage hole at the bottom to repot the plant. Wash its roots and trim them a bit, and then you can put it in a new pot.

 

Spider Plant care 
 

• Trimming or pruning the Spider Plant at regular intervals will be beneficial.

• While repotting please make sure if you are using healthy and sterile soil

• Though the Spider Plant shows tolerance towards the amount of water it cannot hold plenty of for long, so do water the plant wisely.

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Last but not least let's have one flowering plant to break monotonous look of your plants area and that is Passion Flower.

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Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower

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Sunlight

 

Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower can not bear too hot climate. So keep your plant where it can get at least 4-5 hours of sunlight with adequate shade from the direct sun.

Here is a catch, if the leaves of the plant are not opening for a long time then it indicates that the plant is not getting enough sunlight.

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Watering Krishna Kamal

 

• DO NOT overwater your plant, it will boost fungus growth on the roots of the plant. 

 

• The water requirement depends on 2 weather conditions; one is when weather is warm and second when weather is cool. 

 

• During warm weather a glass of water everyday will fulfil its water needs. Blooming stage is the crucial period for the plant when its water requirement is high.

 

• During cold or rainy weather you can water it twice a week to avoid drying of the plant.

 

Tips:                                       1.   You can use your finger or a stick to check the moisture in the soil and water your plant accordingly.

                                                  2.  Avoid watering on the leaves and the flowers which may call fungus to grow on.

 

Pruning

 

During the blooming each of the branches will give you a flower so more branches means more flowers you will have.

 

Late winter is the best time for pruning. Firstly,  remove dead or broken stems if you see any. Make sure you are not ruining its fullness but it should not look too crowded which will restrict overall plant growth and blooming of the buds.

 

Tips:                                      January to June is the blooming season for Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower so avoid pruning in this season.
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Pests and Cure

 

• To prevent the fungal infection occurring on roots you can add neem powder in the soil.

• To get rid of insect attack a mixture of neem oil and liquid detergent can be helpful

• Intruders like spider mites, aphids, white flies can be removed by just washing the plant with water. 
  
  Note: Please follow the watering instructions given above whenever you are going to wash the plant.

 

Propagation of Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower

 

Generally, it is advised to bring the plant from the nursery but there are 3 ways of propagating Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower viz. Seeding, Cutting and Air Layering.

 

If you ask me I would suggest going for Seeding. Where you can simply take some mature seeds and soak them in the water for a few days. Then sow them in the potting mixture dictated as above.

Tip: Spring season is best to sow the seed and get best results.

 

If you go for cutting or layering, it will take around 50 days to get a new plant.

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Krishna Kamal/Passion Flower care 
 

• Check the moisture present in the soil by using a stick or your finger.

• If you feel it is dried add 2 to 3 cups of water.

• Give it some artificial light to wake up. :)

• When you bring the plant from the nursery, wait for 15 days before repotting it in a new pot.