Learn & Grow with GROW!

Houseplants are our passion and education is our identity. We strive to help you be the most successful plant parent you can be. Whether that's helping you find the perfect plant for the lighting in your home, the perfect gift for someone in your life or helping you realize which plants are in your comfort zone and will love you back, we are here for you for all of your planty needs.

We hope you enjoy this every changing collection of tips. As, always follow us on instagram for daily planty content.

GROW Golden Rules

#1 Drainage

Plants need proper drainage to survive and no, rocks don't count. Your plant collection needs to be able to dry out a fair amount of the way between waterings and in a pot with no drainage hole, that will never happen. Make sure you have the proper sized planter with proper drainage or leave the plant in the plastic nursery pot as the first step towards plant parent success.

#2 Don't Rush

Let your plant be. There's no need to rush into anything once you get your new plant friend home. One of the biggest mistakes we see people make is repotting too soon and repotting too big.

There is no need to repot 95% of the plants you purchase from GROW or other small, local plant boutiques. Most of them are in the perfect size pot for their root system and planted in good quality soil.

We have one or two exceptions in the shop and usually you can tell right away. Our other exception is Big Box Plants. There is a reason they are cheap. The soil is cheap. We recommend getting rid of that soil immediately.

#3 Looks can be Deceiving

Don't let the plant fool you. Many of your houseplants will be very showy on top way, way before they are ready to be repotted. Repotting is all based on the root system. When the plant is growing beautifully above the soil, that is an indicator that it is very happy. Let it be.

#4 Be Flexible

When you purchase at GROW, we write you a care card with name, lighting and watering suggestions. Please understand that these are flexible suggestions. We can't follow you home and make sure you putting the plant in the most perfect conditions. That would be creepy! All we can do is help set you up for success by giving you guidelines to look for. There is no plant that thrives on a perfectly set schedule. You need to be flexible with your watering schedule. Environment factors within and ourside the home can change daily and that will alter the needs of your plant collection. Just like us, they are living things that need care and flexibility.

Heard Around the Shop

"I'm terrible with plants. Even my succulents die!"

We will never tell you that you are terrible at plants because you can't keep succulents alive. Let's face it, succulents hate it here in Northern Illinois.

Succulent want a really bright space, like right-in-a-south-facing-window kind of bright. Most of our houses don't have the lighting that these lovely little things need.

Our suggestions:

1.Try the Haworthia variety or cacti. They are slower growers so they are more tolerant to our darker winters.

2. Choose a plant within your "lighting bubble". If you don't have any bright windows, that's ok! There are so many families that can tolerate bright indirect-moderate light.

Our Favorites:

Sansevieria, ZZ, Some Philodendrons, Pothos, Scindapsus, peperomia and Aglaonema

"Air plants are awesome! You don't need to do anything to them."

Air plants, like succulents, have falsely gotten the reputation of being very easy care. While they aren't difficult, they do require actual care at least weekly if not more often. Air plants need light and water but don't need soil.

For lighting, we recommend a bright indirect space. Some place where you feel comfortable reading during the day without needing a light on.

For Watering: We recommend a weekly soak or a frequent drench. Regardless of how you water, make sure to allow them to dry upside down to avoid rot.

Air Plant Fun Fact:

Air plants are epiphytes, meaning they naturally grow on other plants or objects without taking nutrients from them. They are not parasitic and coexist harmlessly with their hosts.

"I'll put this in a larger pot so it grows bigger"

Please don't. Repotting your plant into a pot that is too big is one of the biggest mistakes people make.

Here's the thought process:

The roots are the foundation of your plant. A good foundation encourages growth. Upset the foundation and the plant will spend its energy trying to repair the foundation instead of growing new leaves. All of that extra soil just holds water that can suffocate the rootball. Our plants don't grow quickly enough in our area to spread their roots and fill up the pot before it becomes overwatered.

We repot hundreds of plants for our customers every year and we have never seen a plant "suffering" from being too root bound in a pot. However, we do plants struggling weekly for being in a pot too big or the wrong kind of pot.

General Rules of Thumb
for Midwest Houseplant Parents

Repotting:

It happens a lot less often than you think. Plant should be almost fully root bound before repotting. When repotting is necessary, its best to go just one to two inches larger. Excess soil can suffocate the plants roots quickly. Keep the proper root-to-soil ratio.

Type of Pot:

Regardless of the type of pot, proper drainage is key. You can have almost any type of vessel if you keep the plant in it's plastic nursery pot. These plastic nursery pots have excellent drainage and are light weigh so you have start to feel the weight of the moisture in the soil. Drop the nursery pot into a fancy pot and call it a day! Just don't forget to take it out of the fancy pot to water it.

When repotting, never pot into a cache pot, a pot without a drainage hole. We also avoid planters with attached saucers. We find the hole gets clogged very easily.

Watering:

We always recommend bottom watering. At our homes and at the shop, we fill trays or bowls with water and set the plants in the tray/bowl and allow them to soak it up. This is another great reason to keep your plants in the nursery pots. It makes this process easier and less messy. The lengthy of time each plant needs depends on it's type and size. However, as long as you never leave it in the water for longer than a few hours, you should be fine. Just remember to allow the plant the appropriate amount of time between waterings before you bottom water again.

Lighting:

Lighting is the most important of the plants needs. We can get everything else right but if we don't get lighting right, it doesn't matter.

One way to think about lighting: the plant's view of the sky:

The plant can see the full unobstructed sky: Bright to Bright Indirect

The plant can see most of the sky: Bright indirect to Moderate

The plant can only see a small piece of the sky: Low

Right in a window can be bright to moderate depending on the window and the obstructions.

The middle of a room can never be more than moderate.

When in doubt, go one step lower than you think. If you aren't sure if the lighting is moderate or bright indirect, make sure you purchase a moderate light friendly plant.

No Window: No Plant