Hello, Thanks for joining us here at Plant Vitamins

The goal of Plant Vitamins has always been to provide products and support so that anyone can feel comfortable adding plants into their home. We will be posting care guides and tips for taking care of different house plants every week. 

To start we wanted to talk about snake plants, a beautiful and easy to care for plant that makes a great first house plant! Snake plants or in technical terms, Sansevieria, are one of the best house plants as they filter your air, they can survive in less than optimal light, and can tolerate over or under watering better than most other house plants. Snake plants come in many different forms but their care instructions remain very similar.

Things to Look for When Buying a Snake Plant 

• Check the leaves for soft or mushy spots as well as cracks and dry brown spots (you can always cut these leaves away if the rest of the plant looks very healthy) 
• Check for new growth, this is a sign of overall plant health, the more new growth the healthier the rhizomes. Rhizomes are the heart of the plant and where all new growth originates from.
• Buy from a trusted greenhouse or plant store. Most stores that are confident in the health of their plants will provide a limited-time warranty.
• Find the plant that speaks to you, snake plants come in many different forms so choose the one that catches your eye. 

Re-Potting your Snake Plant

• Pick a pot slightly larger than the grow pot that it came in, this allows you to add fresh soil and gives your plants room to grow. A pot with drainage is a good idea as this will allow you to make sure you are soaking the soil right through as well as not retaining any extra water at the bottom of your pot.
• Use light soil that has good drainage, you can add in wood chips, perlite, or vermiculite to increase the drainage.
• Lightly pull apart the root ball before placing it in the new pot. This allows the roots to grow into the new soil and establish a healthy root system. 
• Place the plant low enough that you completely cover the rhizomes then fill in the rest of the pot with soil, do not pack the soil down this will affect drainage. 
• Water with 1 litre of water with 3ml of Plant Vitamins, the nutrients in the fertilizer will condition the soil and reduce the stress on the plant from repotting

Watering, Light Conditions and Regular Care 

• Although snake plants can live in low light conditions they thrive and grow much faster when placed in bright sunlight.
• Water when the soil is no longer moist. Use your finger and insert it into the soil, if the soil feels dry then it's time to water again.
• When regularly watering add 1ml of Plant Vitamins to every 1 litre of water. Soak the soil right through, this is where a pot with drainage is very handy as you can see when the water starts to run out the bottom and you know that the soil is fully saturated.
• Depending on how much light your snake plant gets will greatly affect the frequency in which you need to water it so make sure to always check your soil regularly to avoid over or under-watering.
• Snake plants are very hardy so do not be afraid to add one into your house, they are also animal friendly and can live for many years making this the perfect plant for the new plant owner or a seasoned veteran.

If you take the information above and apply it to your current snake plant or your future snake plant we guarantee your plant will be happier and so will you! So what are you waiting for go out there and get your 1st, 2nd, or 20th snake plant.