CLEAN YOUR PLANT LEAVES

By Rhiannon TaylorAugust 10, 2020

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR PLANT LEAVES

A step by step guide on how to clean + shine your houseplant leaves using all natural ingredients available in your home.

Time

Prep Time: 5 min

Cleaning Time: approximately 10-15 mins per 6" plant

Frequency: At least once per month

Materials

DIRTY PLANT - We are cleaning our RUBBER TREE in our Large PLANT POT
DIY MIXTURE:

WATER - base for your cleaning mixture
JUICE FROM 1 LEMON - The acidity helps remove water spots (mineral deposits)!
1 TSP CASTILLE SOAP (We like Dr. Bronner's) - pest prevention!

WATERING CAN (OPTIONAL) - to mix Water + Lemon Juice and make it easier to pour into the Spray Bottle
SPRAY BOTTLE - to mix and apply cleaning mixture
REUSABLE CLOTH - to apply mixture to plant. We are using our FUROSHIKI cloth.
SCISSORS - to trim yellow or dead leaves. We are using our GARDEN SCISSORS

Benefits

Why should you clean your plant leaves?

1. PHOTOSYNTHESIS: the process by which plants use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water.

Dust, hard water spots, and build up on the leaves block the sunlight. Your plants will be able to breathe and grow faster if their leaves are clean.

2. PEST PREVENTION: Cleaning and checking your plant leaves allows you to check the current health of your plants. Adding a mild soap to your cleaning solution will help deter or eliminate existing pests.

Instructions

1. Select DIRTY PLANT of choice - We are using a Rubber Tree that has been under a vent on a top shelf accumulating dust and spider webs.

2. Create DIY MIXTURE using:

Water
Juice of 1 Lemon
1 TSP Mild Dish Soap (We like Dr. Bronner's)

and put in SPRAY BOTTLE.

NOTE: If you've never used this mixture on your plant - we recommend to TEST the mixture on 1 leaf and see how it reacts after a day or 2. If it's fine, it should be safe to apply all over.

3. Shake mixture and Spray DIY MIXTURE on leaves and stems on the DIRTY PLANT.

4. Spray mixture onto CLOTH and rub front and back of every leaf and stem on the plant! I like to use a cloth so that you can more easily wipe the front and back of the leaves at the same time. Don't forget to clean the stems too!

5. You may need to spray and rub the leaves several times if they are really dirty.

6. Trim or remove any dead or yellowing leaves from your plant. Please use SCISSORS and do not pull leaves off if they do not come off easily on their own.

7. After you've cleaned all the leaves and stems - allow the leaves to completely dry off away from direct sunlight to prevent the leaves from burning in the sun.

Now your CLEAN PLANT leaves should be brighter and have a natural shine.

Further Steps

Try to do this once a month for each of your plants!

NOTE: Avoid leaf shining products or adding oils to your plant leaves. Your plant breathes through its leaves and oils, wax, and other applications could clog it's pores!

Step by step video guide is also available on our YouTube