Overwatering is a common cause of plant mortality, so err on the
dry side. Most office plants need soil that's a little moist but
not soggy. Don't let a plant stand in water or the roots can rot.
Watering twice a week lets the plant dry out a bit before the next
soaking.
Put aside a one- or two-liter bottle of tap water just for your
plant. Letting tap water sit allows it to reach room temperature
and leach off much of its harmful chlorine gas.
If the pot has a drainage hole, use a drainage dish. Water won't
collect at the bottom of the pot, and the dish will keep errant
water from destroying your computer. If the pot doesn't have a
drainage hole, put the plant in a plastic pot that fits inside the
larger non-draining pot so the roots won't suffocate.
Remove dead leaves and withered flowers.
Hands-off feeding: Insert a time-release fertilizer into the
soil. (Miracle-Gro Indoor Plant Food Spikes feed for two months.)
Unlike you, your office plant doesn't need caffeine, so don't
feed it leftover coffee or soda.
Consult Hip House-plants, by Orlando Hamilton,
$20, www.amazon.com, which covers office plants, or How to Grow Fresh Air, by B.
C. Wolverton, $16, www.amazon.com.
