7 essential tools to have

If you live in an apartment, there is no need to purchase all the gardener’s toolset! However, you still need a few basic tools to pamper your favorite plants. Watering can, vapotist, shovel, bonsai or secateurs chisel, or even oyas and water reservoir pots … 7 powerful accessories in which to invest to finally have a green thumb.

The watering can

It is obviously the essential tool to take care of your plants. Choose it with a long and thin spout to be able to moisten the soil without wetting the leaves and without moving your pots. And above all, choose a model of watering can that will find its place in your living room to remind you regularly of your duties as an indoor gardener!

The fogger or sprayer

Many plants grown indoors have tropical origins, and therefore enjoy humid environments. However, the atmosphere in your apartment is often too dry. Just like drenching, spraying water on the foliage helps humidify the surrounding air. In addition to a watering can, you therefore need a sprayer to regularly mist your plants.

Short-bladed scissors

Some houseplants do not grow spectacularly enough to be pruned. For others, however, size is beneficial. This is particularly the case for plants with a bushy habit and rapid growth (colerus, fittonia, pilea, etc.), and climbing or hanging plants (pothos, ivy, etc.). Houseplants are pruned in early spring. For this you will need a pair of scissors or pruning shears for more woody stems. Bonsai scissors are particularly practical and effective.

The transplanter

This shovel-like tool is a gardening essential to have. It is used to take the potting soil in the bags, pull up faded plants, plant flowers and small plants, mix potting soil and fertilizer but also perform repotting and transplanting. Most have a hole in the end for easy storage of the tool. Lightweight and handy, they are approximately 25 to 30 cm long. The iron, depending on the model, is designed for a working depth of 10 to 15 cm.

The claw

Over time, houseplants tend to deplete the substrate in which they thrive. When it is preferable to avoid repotting, for example if the plant is too large, you will still bring a little vigor to your plants by resurfacing them. The objective is then to provide new nutrients. To do this, scrape the surface with a claw and remove about 5 centimeters of soil. The claw can be replaced with a sturdy fork, if you only have small pots. Then add a layer of potting soil mixed with compost that you will tamp.

The terracotta oya

Going for a long weekend or on vacation? Oya is ideal for watering your favorite plants in your absence. It is quite simply an ancestral terracotta irrigation system. Very easy to use, you just have to bury the round part directly in the ground, in a vegetable patch or a geotextile pot. This jar filled with water then diffuses the water by capillary action, a phenomenon where the earth draws water from the pot as it goes and generates a humid zone for the plants. You will find different sizes, from 0.5L to 12L, depending on the size of your pots.

The tank pot

If watering is definitely not your thing, consider transplanting your plants into pots with water tanks. A miraculous solution for all heads in the air … As their names indicate, the water reserve pots are equipped with a double bottom which allows a certain quantity of water to be stored below the level of the water. Earth. In most cases, a gauge shows how much is left in the reserve. We recommend the Lechuza brand pots which, thanks to an intelligent hydration system, allow the plant to receive the exact amount of water it needs.

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Video by Virginie Incerto

Marion Dos Santos Clara

Lifestyle journalist, Marion writes on topics related to psychology, love and sexuality, from a societal perspective. From female pleasure to new methods of personal development, …