Like any piece of decor, your indoor plant can get dusty and dirty too.
Use these tips to help all your plants look their best.
To help your houseplants stay healthy and thrive, you know they need a few basics.
A small paintbrush works well for cleaning the fuzzy leaves of African violets.Credit: Dean Schoeppner
Giving themregular wateringsand the right amount of light is essential, of course.
But did you know that houseplants also benefit from a thorough cleaning once in a while?
Dust on leaves can actually block sunlight, and dead leaves can make your whole plant look messy.
Yellowing or dried out leaves like these on a cyclamen should be removed regularly.Credit: Dean Schoeppner
One of the best ways to clean many tropical houseplants is with a gentle spray of water.
Move smaller or compact houseplants likepothosorpileainto a sink.
Place largerplants in the shower.
Rinse them off with lukewarm water toget rid of pestsand dust.
Keep the water pressure low and don’t use hot or cold water because extreme temperatures can damage leaves.
First, support the plant and its soil with your fingers.
Got fuzzy-leafed plants likeAfrican violetsorpanda plants?
It’s best to avoid getting their leaves wet, but a dust cloth won’t help much.
Instead, try using a soft-bristle paintbrush, soft toothbrush, or pipe cleaner.
Remove Dead Leaves
Clean off any dead oryellowing leavesregularly from your houseplants.
For some plants, these will come away with a gentle tug or slight twist of your wrist.
Shorten or remove any leafless, string-like stems on your ferns, too.
Forblooming houseplants, keep your indoor garden looking tidy bydeadheading any withered blossomsand flower stalks.
Plus, removing old flowers often encourages new blooms to form.
