Hints From Heloise

Dear Heloise: I remember your answering a letter on how to repot a houseplant. While your instructions were correct, here is a trick I use to make it easier and less messy.

After preparing the new pot with pebbles or pottery chips, I add some soil to the bottom. Then I remove the plant from the pot and I put the empty pot that the plant was in into the new, larger pot. I fill the new pot with soil (around but not in the old pot) and press it down.

I then remove the empty old pot, leaving a hole (like a sandcastle in reverse), which the plant fits into perfectly.

I don’t break off foliage or get soil on the leaves, especially when it comes to African violets. The soil is also firmed down with a minimum of work and spilled soil. - Art Austin, Indian Lake, N.Y.

There’s always room for improvement and I’m delighted to pass along an easier way to do anything! I love your blooming good hint. - Heloise