How to re-pot your houseplant into a larger pot

After a while, you might need a bigger pot, or you just wanna re-pot into a funkier looking pot. Please make sure your new pot has a hole in it or pot into a free draining nursery pot and then use your pot as a sleeve. Houseplants don't dig wet feet.

Only upgrade the size slightly - shifting to an enormous pot too soon can cause your houseplant to go into shock.

Step 1.

Water your plant thoroughly a day or two before you plan to re-pot. This will make it easier to get your plant out of its pot and makes sure that it is hydrated beforehand. 

Step 2.

Fold out a box (this will catch the falling bits of soil) recycle & re-use.

Step 3. 

Tap the sides of the pot to loosen the roots and or using two fingers to support the stem of the plant, gently tip the pot upside-down and tap the pot backwards. For highly root bound plants, slide a butter knife around the inside perimeter of your pot to loosen roots.

Shake away excess soil, making sure not to damage the roots. Clip off any brown, black or visibly damaged roots with clean sharp snips.

Step 4. 

Next, add a layer of soil. You should have enough soil in the bottom of the pot to lift the plant to sit approx 1cm below the pot rim or at the same level it was in its current pot - please use a premium potting mix. Gently place the plant on top of this soil and fill in the spaces.

Step 5. 

Water from above for the first few times to help the potting mix settle in. If you're using a self-watering pot, excess water gathers in the water well at the bottom. Only top up when the water has been taken up by the plant and there's none left in the well.

It might take your plant some time to get used to its new pad, so during the next week or so keep it out of bright light & let him settle in

Scared you’ve got no green thumb? Add a Sustee watering checker to your pot to know when its time to water. These little guys are a really handy tool for the beginner plant owners.