Home and Garden

What to Do About Mold in House Plants

House plants bring beauty and a touch of nature into your home. Not only that, they improve air quality by eliminating airborne toxins.

This is great news for allergy sufferers. That is until you notice mold forming on your houseplant’s soil. When this happens, the soil releases mold spores, which can irritate your eyes and sinuses.

So, what can you do about mold in houseplants? You have several options for eliminating mold and enjoying your houseplants again. Read more about how to prevent mold in soil.

What Is Mold in Houseplants?

Many household plants develop a mold called Saprophytic Fungus. This is a mold organism that grows by feeding on carbon. It gets the carbon from the organic material in your potting soil.

This mold considers your damp houseplant soil a feast for helping it grow and develop.

Symptoms of Saprophytic Fungi

When the fungus begins to grow, it’s microscopic. Eventually, it will form a white mold on houseplant soil. If you don’t treat the mold, it will start growing mushrooms and toadstools right in the pot.

Mold can prevent your houseplants from getting the water they need to stay healthy. The water-repellent properties of the mold cause dry patches beneath the surface.

The dry patches cause water to pool on top of the soil instead of reaching the roots.

How to Prevent Mold on Soil

Getting rid of the fungus and mold is the best way to keep your houseplants healthy. With the following maintenance tips, you can get rid of moldy soil once and for all.

Re-pot Your Houseplant

The easiest way to eliminate the mold is to discard the moldy soil. Once you do this, clean out the pot and spray it with a fungicide. This ensures that no mold spores are left behind.

If you’d rather not use a fungicide, soaking the pot in a water and bleach mixture for about 10 minutes will do the trick.

Next, rinse off any mold from your plant’s roots and leaves. You can also spray the plant with a fungicide to prevent recontamination.

Use sterile potting soil to re-pot your plant. Once you’ve finished re-potting, you can prevent future mold growth by avoiding over-watering and by providing good drainage.

Prevent Soggy Soil

Don’t worry if you accidentally over-water your plants. You can dry out the soil before mold starts growing again. Just put your plant in natural sunlight. Mold doesn’t like ultraviolet rays from the sun.

If you notice that mold has started growing, the sunlight will kill it. Allow the soil to dry out. This should eliminate the mold.

Have a Mold Inspection

If you want to make sure the fungus and mold are eliminated from your houseplants or other areas of your home, you can have a professional mold inspector come into your home. When you have a mold inspection, all the hidden mold and moisture conditions in your home are checked.

The inspector can tell you how to prevent mold on soil and everywhere else in your house.

Got Mold? Not Anymore

Whether you decide to get rid of mold in houseplants yourself or have a mold inspector visit, you won’t have to worry about mold growth anymore. With proper watering, drainage and sunlight, you’ll enjoy your houseplants for years.

If you found this article on houseplant mold helpful, check our other informative content on topics like backyard gardening, lifestyle and health.

 

 

 

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