I am getting an instruction that it is time to clean my plants. Iām curious about the best way to do that. Way back in the 70s milk was advised as a leaf cleaning solution. Are we still doing that?
I am getting an instruction that it is time to clean my plants. Iām curious about the best way to do that. Way back in the 70s milk was advised as a leaf cleaning solution. Are we still doing that?
I just use a damp (with water) microfiber cloth and wipe all the dust away from the topside and underside of my leaves. Iāve never heard of using milk!
1 gillai usually use a spray bottle with the tiniest amount of dish soap or neem depending on the day mixed with a bunch of water, couple sprits and then i wipe the leaves with a paper towel!
0 gillningarI use milk!
1 gillaIām very interested to know more! What properties does milk have that make it beneficial for this purpose? Do you have residue afterwards? Do you mist and wipe? Or dampen your cloth? What % milk do you use? Or does it not matter?
1 gillaI think itās something about the enzymes in milk that clean the leaves so well. āŗļø Not sure though. But I fill a small spray bottle about 1/3 full of milk (I usually use 1% or 2%) and fill the rest with water, spray liberally on plant leaves and wipe with a damp Swedish dishcloth. Itās a reusable cloth so I will ring out the dirt every so often!
2 gillningar
So I googled using milk as a plant cleaner. It is still a thing. The article I read said to use full fat milk 4/1 water to milk ratio. Wipe with a soft cloth. The fat in the milk cuts the dirt and shines the leaves. I would guess if you are using 2% you would cut the water.
0 gillningar
Huh interesting! I havenāt heard of milk for cleaning plants. Not to make you feel old, but as a young adult during this current tropical plant popularity boom, I kinda have to reminds myself that most of these plants are nothing new š And that people have been keeping cool plants for centuriesāprobably longer! On a similar note, I didnāt get to know my grandpa very well before he passed, but I feel connected to him when I find out he had some of the same hobbies as me. He wasnāt so much of a rare plant guy, but we both had a tropical fish phase āŗļø
3 gillningaraww!! i very much feel similarly on both things!! cool things to think aboutš„²
1 gilla
I feel connected that way when I spin & knit.
1 gilla
BTW, I AM old. I get the senior discount and everything!
1 gilla
Knitting is another good one! My grandma taught me herself š„°
2 gillningar
milk and other food products like mayo and cooking oil will clog the stomata (pores) of your plant. i would recommend using a few drops of castile soap in some tepid water. if you have hard water it may be helpful to follow up with an acid wash (a bit of lemon juice or white vinegar in water) as hard water tends to leave white spots on the leaves.
1 gilla
I have super hard water. Lots of lime. Lots of phosphate, which is good for my plants, not so much my reef tank.
0 gillningar