If your Polka Dot works is count leggy , you might be wondering how to get it back to its tiny , compendious best . Do n’t vex ! It ’s quite simple-minded to puzzle out legginess in Polka Dot plants .
In this clause , I ’m go to search the reasons why your Polka Dot plant might be getting long-legged and give you some tips on how you’re able to correct the issue .
To solve legginess in your Polka Dot flora , you may take a number of steps :
Contents
What Do We Mean by Leggy?
If your flora is ‘ leggy ’ , it means that the stems of your plant are long than they should be , which causes a straggly , ‘ elongate - out appearance .
Some plants , such as the Polka Dot plant , naturally become leggy as they age . This is not necessarily a augury that your plant is unhappy , but it does reduce the aesthetic appeal of the plant .
Legginess can also be a sign of several issues with the way you are caring for your plant .
Causes of Legginess in Polka Dot Plants
There are several reasons why your Polka Dot works might be originate leggy . Let ’s have a spirit at each of these causal agency :
Lack of Light
The primary cause that plants become tall-growing is a want of light . If your Polka Dot plant is not getting enough sunlight , it will put on rapid development in ordination to seek to extend to the nearest scant source .
This leggy growth is often weaker than healthy growth and contains fewer leaves .
This is because your plant is not receiving enough light to photosynthesize and tries to save energy and reach the nearest light rootage by quickly producing ‘ emergency ’ maturation .
If you notice that the leggy increment on your Polka Dot plant is a lighter light-green than the healthy growth and is growing towards the nearest clear author , this is an indication that the legginess of your Polka Dot plant life is down to deficiency of sunlight .
Too much Fertilizer
If you give your Polka Dot flora too much fertiliser , it could produce limp , fast - growing but weak increase , which will have a yellowy - fleeceable color .
This will probably be company by the lower leaves of yourplant yellowing , turning brown , and dying off .
Although your Polka Dot plant does need feed to keep its leafage bright and luscious , too much plant food , specially if it has a high nitrogen contentedness , can stimulate a miscellanea of growth problems , such as weak , leggy growth .
Nitrogen help your plant to produce new cell growth , particularly leaf and radical growing .
It is vital for your plant ’s selection , but too much will make your works to put on too much growing too quickly – make a leggy appearing .
Temperature
Like most houseplants that originate from tropical areas , Polka Dot plant life favor a ardent surroundings . They are fast agriculturist and will put on a lot of ontogeny quickly return the proper circumstance .
This is n’t necessarily what you want from your Polka Dot plant , as the emergence is potential to be leggy – this is the plant ’s natural shape but is not the compact shape that plant owners usually look for in their Polka Dot works .
Pot Size
If you keep your Polka Dot plant in a large corporation , you may well terminate up with a leggy plant .
Your plant will acquire quickly to fill the space that it has available , so the more room it has , the bigger and leggier it will get !
you may keep the compact chassis that most people look for in a Polka Dot plant by keeping it in a clean little pot and pruning it on a regular basis as it grows .
Age
The Hellenic look that most people want from a Polka Dot industrial plant is cute and summary . However , your Polka Dot flora will get grandiloquent and tall-growing as it mature .
Eventually , if leave alone to grow course , your plant will create flower spikes .
While flower might vocalise exciting , it is not a good idea to appropriate your Polka Dot plant life to flower as it will die off once it has finished .
to boot , the flush of the Polka Dot plant are much less interesting than the foliation .
Do n’t concern ! Although your plant maturing is a natural process , you may hold the process at bay laurel almost indefinitely with even pruning .
How to Reduce Legginess in Your Polka Dot Plant?
If your Polka Dot industrial plant has grown leggy , do n’t worry . Your flora is unbelievable to be in any straightaway risk , and it is relatively uncomplicated to solve this problem .
The first whole tone is to operate out what is causing the legginess in your plant . Then , you could make the necessary changes in how you are worry for your works to ensure it originate in a less leggy way in the time to come .
Pruning
If your Polka Dot plant life is leggier than you would like , rationalize it is the best way to make it look better immediately .
Pruning will also boost your industrial plant to grow in a more bushy way , out from the base , rather than directly upwards . veritable pruning will also prevent your Polka Dot industrial plant from flower and pass away back .
you’re able to clip your Polka Dot plant life at any time of year if your plant really needs it .
Be aware that if you prune your plant during the autumn or wintertime , it wo n’t develop back very tight , so it ’s best not to clip it too intemperately or too often during this prison term .
In the spring and summertime , your industrial plant will grow much more quickly and will profit from light pruning once a month or so . Pruning your Polka Dot industrial plant is easy .
You ’ll call for a dyad of uncontaminating , shrewd scissors ; while using your fingers is often recommended as it is easy , ‘ pinching ’ with your fingers upshot in a ragged cutting which greatly increase the risk of infection for your plant .
Lighting
Improving the lighting conditions for your Polka Dot plant , compound with steady pruning , is the good way to keep it from growing leggy in the long term .
If you think that the legginess of your Polka Dot works is due to a lack of light , sample moving it to a bright berth .
Your flora will be glad in a position with bright but indirect light ; around two groundwork away from the south or east - facing windowpane would be complete .
ensure not to keep your Polka Dot plant in a position where sun falls directly on its leave , as this will burn your industrial plant ’s leave of absence and harm its ability to photosynthesize .
If you move your plant to a spot with very unlike conditions , it is best to do so bit by bit over a few day , so that it has the opportunity to get used to its new home without receiving a electric shock .
Shocking your plant by moving it too quickly can leave in slack development , foliage drop , or even end .
Feeding
Polka Dot plant need a beneficial feed now and again to keep their beautiful foliage souse and vivacious .
utilise a good quality general role houseplant plant food , and feed your Polka Dot plant once every two hebdomad to once a month during the get season ( spring and summertime ) .
abbreviate this to once a month in autumn and stop feeding your industrial plant completely in the winter as it wo n’t produce much new ontogenesis during this clock time .
You could also use a spray - on foliar fertiliser which is put on straight to the folio of your plant .
This provide an immediate hike of color and sonorousness to the leaf of your Polka Dot Plant , but again it is important not to overfeed !
For a small to medium - sized plant , a pot of 4 - 6 in in diam should be fine . Make certain to use a great deal with adequate drain holes so that body of water can flow easy from the bottom of the hatful .
Do not re - pot your Polka Dot flora until you see lots of roots poking out from the drain holes in the bottom of its pot .
If you call back that your Polka Dot flora is in a pot that is too prominent for it , re - pot it into a littler slew . This will do your plant no harm and will help to keep its size small and compact .
Potting Mix
Your Polka Dot works will fare comfortably in a plenteous , well - drain potting mix that allows water to flow freely .
If your Polka Dot plant life is living in hard , compacted grime or some other kind of incompatible potting mixture , you should re - pot it using a mixture that accommodate your plant better .
A base of world-wide - purpose potting compost , enhance with one - third perlite or vermiculite to improve drainage , is ideal .
Polka Dot plants are aboriginal to tropic areas and need a fairly tender , moist environs to prosper .
Your Polka Dot plant will be at its happiest if you keep it at a temperature of 65 – 80 ° F ( 18 – 26 ° C ) , with a humidity level of at least 50 % .
If you discover that your Polka Dot plant is growing too cursorily and becoming leggy , you could sample moving it to a cooler situation . This will slow the growth of your plant .
verify that your plant ’s unexampled home is n’t too cold and does n’t on a regular basis dribble below 65 ° F ( 18 ° C ) , as this will harm your plant .
If you move your Polka Dot industrial plant , it is best to do this over a few days to avoid scandalise it .
Polka Dot flora and houseplants , in general , do n’t like sudden change in temperature , and although move your Polka Dot plant from one place to another is unlikely to down it , it could induce it to drop off its leaves or lay off growing altogether .
Move your industrial plant to its Modern perspective during the daytime , then back to its original position at night . Do this for a few days so that your works gets the hazard to acclimate to its new situation .
Using Polka Dot Plant Cuttings for Propagation
If you sleep with Polka Dot industrial plant and need more of them in your life , use the leggy function that you prune away to produce more industrial plant ! Propagating Polka Dot industrial plant is childlike :
Final Words
I hope that you now infer what causes legginess in Polka Dot plants and what you could do about it .
Whether your plant has mature leggy because it involve more low-cal , or whether leggy growing is just a natural part of yourplant ’s life bicycle , there is a way to solve the trouble !
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