A Little Houseplant Fertilizer Goes a Long Way

With houseplants, a little fertilizer goes a long way. After all, unless you’re growing yours in a greenhouse or under high intensity lights, they’re not getting growing conditions anywhere close to those they would receive outdoors in the tropical climates where they originate. Yet the amount of fertilizer recommended on the product label is based on what the plant would need under ideal conditions. That’s why you’re more likely to find your indoor plants suffering from too much fertilizer than too little.

You can use almost any fertilizer on houseplants, but just do so at a much reduced rate while they are indoors: usually about ¼ of the amount recommended. And only feed them when they are in active growth. Most indoor plants slow down or stop growing when days are short, so unless you’re supplying them with artificially lengthened days, most won’t need any fertilizer from the end of October to the end of February or early March.