Watering Guidelines for Hanging Baskets

Is tap water OK?

Generally yes, though water from the cold tap may be too cold for the plants. It is best to use water at room temperature; that is, above 60°F, for indoor plants. Either add a little warm water (don’t cook the plants!) or leave it to stand overnight so the water warms to room temperature.

Fluorides can be harmful to some plants grown in hanging baskets, specifically Dracaena, Cordyline and Chlorophytum, in the range of foliage house plants; and similar damage has been noted on Maranta (Prayer Plant) and Agave. Over a period of time, added fluorides cause brown spots and/or leaf tip burn on the sensitive plants .

The quantity of fluoride normally added to municipal water supplies is sufficient to harm these plants. Perlite, a soil additive often used to help soil aeration, also contains potentially harmful amounts of fluoride.

To overcome or avoid fluoride damage:

1. Avoid the use of fluorinated water. Other sources are snow, rain, well- or spring-water (this can be checked by your local or state testing center for mineral content), and dehumidifier-water.
2. Raise the pH (acidity) of your potting soil to 6.0-6.5; in this range the fluorides are relatively unavailable to plants. Repot in soil containing dolomitic limestone, replacing as much soil as possible in the plant’s root ball.
3. Avoid the use of superphosphate in your potting mix; superphosphate contains a high level of fluoride.

Chlorine in tap water does not usually harm plants, and if you allow the water to stand in an open container for 12 to 24 hours, most of the chlorine will escape. However, the one exception to the relative harmlessness of chlorine is in misting or spraying fern fronds; as this water evaporates, any chlorine in it will cause browning of the delicate fronds.

Water-softener water will not harm your plants, provided the softening equipment is functioning correctly. This water still contains chemicals, though the lime has been replaced with more soluble compounds.

Soluble Salts-’Leaching Hanging Plants

When you fertilize your plants, you add chemicals to the soil; water contains chemicals too, so even when you water them, you are adding to the soluble salt content of the soil. The growing plant does not, nor does it need to, absorb all of these soluble chemicals. They accumulate in the soil. High concentrations will damage the plant, causing loss of roots and subsequent foliage loss, reduced size of new growth, wilting even while the soil is moist, and collapse of the whole plant.

Good watering practices help to keep the soluble salt build-up to a mini­mum, if the excess water (really a solution) is discarded every time you water. But with regular fertilization and watering, the accumulated soluble salts should be washed out of the soil by leaching at intervals of 2-3 months.

TO LEACH: immerse the container in a bowl of water to saturate the root ball and all the soil; after about 30 minutes, or when bubbles stop rising, remove and allow it to drain. Containers with no drainage holes should be tilted to permit the drainage solution to run out over the edge. Repeat this procedure one or more times with clean water.

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