Welcome to Root Life Plants Nursery

Transplanting ( Repotting)

Lets talk roots and transplanting for a second! Contrary to popular belief, the main purpose of repotting your plants is to give your roots room and/ or fresh soil. The best time to transplant your plants is the spring BUT in some cases you just gotta do what you gotta do! So I wanted to share a few tips on transplanting in case you think your ready!

First thing is to use containers with proper drainage . I personally like to use thin (cheap) nursery pots. If I have decorative pots, I simply place the nursery pots inside of my decorative pots because..

Nursery pots tend to have great drainage holes.
Nursery pots are usually thin which allows oxygen to flow (Plants do require oxygen for respiration which in return gives out carbon dioxide but we'll get to that later!)
Being able to water my plants and allowing them to drain before placing them back into my decorative pots helps preserve my decorative pots since they don't get wet! However, if you have a decorative pot with no drainage holes is actually not a bad thing because some plants like to be bottom watered (Click on the "Watering" tab for more info on bottom watering/butt chugging... and yes that's actually what some people call it!)

When repotting your plants into larger containers, you want to be sure to go up to at lease 1 inch (preferably 2in) in size. You also want to make sure you're using the correct soil for your plant (for more info about soil click on our "Soil and Amendments" Tab)

For some plants adding a few pieces of gravel can help with drainage and slowing the process of roots becoming bound. The most important thing to remember is to loosen up your roots! Taking a plant that's bound and placing it into another container without loosening the roots can defeat the the purpose of transplanting of transplanting! A tip when loosening roots is to water them before you start. That'll help both the roots and soil loosen and will be easier to untangle......BUT be mindful of how moist your soil is, you don't want to leave your plant soggy! You may have to trim your roots a bit, this will help promote new growth of fresh healthy roots but again be careful not to trim too much!

Now that we got that out the way, Lets get to transplanting!!

Get supplies together
Take your plant out of it's container, if the plant is root bound it maybe helpful to a day or two in advance to help loosen it's roots
Once out the pot, gently loosen the roots.
Remove as much soil as possible.
If you see any damaged and/or discolored roots, use sterile scissors, shears, or a knife to remove them.
If you are onlt transplanting to add fresh soil, then trim your roots about 15%-20%
Now you want to take your fresh soil mix and add a layer to the bottom of your container. If your container does not have drainage holes, then I recommend adding a layer of pebbles or charcoal first and then soil.
Take your plant and place it in the center of your container.
Fill in the sides and any other areas in the pot with soil.
Gentle pack the soil into the pot to make sure your plant is secured. Be careful not to damage the roots in the process.
Once you're done, water your plant and pat yourself on the back for a job well done!

now that you've successfully transplanted your plant, don't be alarmed if your plant baby goes into shock. This is totally normal. Signs of shock includes leaf discoloration, wilting, and even loss of leaves. If this occurs don't be alarmed. It's just your plant adjusting to it's new home. Give it a few weeks and it should start to grow and thrive!!