are my plants in too big of a pot?

[dav318]

Hello, I'm a new plant enthusiast and have had these plants for about 3 months now and they just don't seem to be taking off. I was curious if they were in too big of pots? I water once a week, soil is never too wet or soggy. They are right next to a window getting hours of indirect light everyday. The croton and spider plant look so blah. They dracaena hasn't changed since I bought it. Any advice?[

[imafan26]

The crotons don't grow very fast. I don't recognize the other plant, it doesn't look like the spider plant I know, but it might be the angle I am looking at it. To know how much light your plants are getting, it would be good to get a light meter reading. Good cameras have light meters. Spider plants and any variegated plant that has any color other than green like the the croton, needs a lot more light than plants that are all green. Both crotons and spider plants are fairly tolerant of shade but need good light. I think the wall probably blocks part of the light. Artificial light should help. I don't think the pots are too big. I would not put so many crotons in one pot myself, but my potted croton is about 3 ft tall and unhappy in its' pot because it is too small and I let it dry out too often.

[rainbowgardener]

I agree with imafan. I don't think your pots are too big, but your plants might benefit from either having supplemental light or being up closer to the window. I use plant stands like these:



to get my plants up closer to windows instead of being at floor level. If you look around, you can get them pretty cheap in a variety of sizes and heights.

Also I wonder about your soil. It doesn't exactly look like potting soil, or if it was, maybe it's gotten kind of compacted?
Soil for pots has to be different from garden soil.

[catgrass]

What you are calling a spider plant looks like a type of Dracena (corn plant) to me. I agree about the light situation. Also, time of year plays a part. All of my houseplants are in a "holding" stage, and some are just now starting to show new growth. As for watering, I would soak deeply -put the whole plant in a large container of water about halfway up the pot, and then pour water onto your plant-when the soil quits bubbling, take the plant out, let drain, and do again in 2 weeks or so.