Move container plants into larger containers of fresh Organic Potting Mixture at regular intervals. Plants can be re-potted most times of the year, although, in winter, the recovery time may be longer due to low temperatures and low light conditions.
Roots protruding from drainage holes are an indication that re-potting is necessary. The only sure way to discover the state of the roots is to remove the plant from its container and examine them carefully. If fresh root tips are showing all over the surface of the root ball, or forming a thick spiral at the base, then re-potting is necessary.
How to use Professional Potting Mixture
1. Assemble your plants to be repotted, along with fresh containers and Potting Mixture.
2. Give each plant a thorough watering an hour or so in advance, and allow to drain.
3. Select a clean container approximately 25 mm wider than the original and partly fill with l Potting Mixture.
4. Turn the plant out of its old container. Loosen root ball gently and remove any rotten or entirely dried out roots.
5. Position the plant in the centre of the new container. Check the level and fill with new mixture. you may want to add some mix to the bottom of the new pot to raise the plant up in the container to it's new height.
6. Shake the container gently by tapping the bottom on the ground to allow mixture to settle. Do not firm or pack down. Normal watering will soon give all the firming needed.
7. Initial soaking after potting is essential.
8. Protect plant from heat and strong sunlight for a few days, and keep moist.
Hints
To save time, re-pot as many plants as possible at the one time. The floor of the garage is usually a bad choice for a place to keep it!
• Before you re-use a clay pot, soak it and clean it up to remove mineral deposits.
• Before placing a plant in a clay pot, soak it in water. A dry pot may suck the moisture right out of the soil.
• Instead of gravel at the bottom of a clay pot for drainage, consider a square of window screen. It does the same thing as the gravel but keeps insects from climbing up the drainage hole.
• Re-pot a plant when you can see that it still gets new growth on top but its bottom leaves are dying. Or, look for roots coming out of the bottom or pull it gently from the pot and see if the roots are compacted at the bottom.
• Before you place a plant in a new pot, loosen its roots gently at the bottom -- just a bit.
• Don't fertilize the plant until you see some signs of new growth.
