How to Repot a Plant

1. How to Repot a Plant Eric Heber May 11, 2010

2. Table of Contents • Introduction • Purpose............................................................................................................. 1 • Description....................................................................................................... 2 • Materials...........................................................................................................3 • SafetyTips....................................................................................................... 4 • Body • How to………………………………………………………………………. 7 • Conclusion • Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)……………………………………….. 15

3. Purpose • To improve living conditions for a growing plant. • To help a plant thrive and grow larger. • To make household plants visually more appealing.

4. Description • This process will involve carefully extracting the plant from its current pot to a new one. • This how to will explain the steps behind this process in the hopes that anyone will be able to give their favorite plant a new home.

5. Materials • What you will need: • The plant of your choosing • An extra pot • Water • Nutrient rich soil • Gardening gloves (optional)

6. Safety Tips • Handling soil can irritate skin and infect cuts or scrapes. For this reason, it is advised that you wear gardening gloves to protect your hands. • Some plants have thorns! Be careful when handling certain kinds of flowers. • When handling soil, be sure to avoid making contact with your eyes.

7. How to repot a plant – Step 1 • Be sure to water the plant in its current pot a couple of days prior to moving it to the other pot. • This ensures that the soil is moist when you are going to be working on it.

8. Step 2 • Place your hand over the top of the pot and hold the plant’s stem, then turn the pot upside down. • Tap the pot against a hard surface while slowly pulling the pot away from the plant. • If after several tries that does not work, you can use a knife to cut around the edge of the soil or break the pot.

9. Step 3 • Remove about one-third of the soil from the plant. At this point, the soil is probably out of nutrients and should be replaced with the new soil that you have with you.

10. Step 4 • Put a few inches of soil into the new pot and place the plant into it. • For this step, you need to make sure that there is enough soil so that the soil line on the plant’s stem is about one inch below the top of the pot. Adjust the amount of soil put into the pot accordingly.

11. Step 5 • Begin filling around the root ball with soil, making sure to pat down the soil firmly around the edges with your hand or thumb. • This removes any air pockets that could potentially dry out the roots when they are not being watered.

12. Step 6 • Thump the newly potted plant against a hard, firm surface to get the soil to settle. • This encourages the roots to grow out from their original location.

13. Step 7 • Soak the plant with water until it runs out the bottom, then drain it completely. • You now have a newly potted plant! Be sure to take good care of it.

14. Conclusion • Thanks for listening! • The following section will cover Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

15. Frequently Asked Questions • How do I know which kind of plant I should pot? • When purchasing a plant, look at the tag that is usually sticking out of the soil. This provides information on the environmental needs of the plant. For an indoor plant, be sure it only requires little to medium amounts of sunlight; outdoor plants usually require high amounts of sunlight. • How big of a pot should I get for my plant? • At most, the pot you get should be one inch larger in circumference than the old one.

17. The End!

18. Bibliography • “How to Repot a Plant." eHow.com. eHow, 9 May 2010.Web. 9 May. 2010. • Huynh, Christina. Personal interview. 9 May 2010.