You see, tap water in all 50 states contains all kinds of chemicals, heavy metals, and toxins that aren't just dangerous to you. They're dangerous to your plants, too! Specific contaminants can cause visible damage, root damage, or soil damage to plants.
Plants are sensitive to harmful chemicals in tap water
But while fluoride may not be harmful to humans (and that's up for debate), certain plants are extremely sensitive to it, especially when doused with excessively fluoridated water.
In side-by-side comparisons, plants watered using distilled water tend to grow faster and stronger than those watered with tap water. We find it the “Best Water for Indoor Plants.” Plants watered with distilled pure water usually produce more leaves and grow more vigorously.
To mitigate this, be sure to use rainwater or distilled water when you mist your plants. Avoid filtered water, as the salts in many water filters can be damaging to plant roots and leaves. It's also important to regularly dust and clean your leaves.
The most common way to treat hard water is with a Water Softener. This is a water filtration system that filters out the hard water minerals in your water. Was the water travels into the filter, it passes through a bed of resin that traps the calcium and magnesium, which are then replaced with sodium ions.
These plants can be extra sensitive to certain types of water, especially if it contains high levels of chemicals like chlorine and fluoride, which are often found in tap water. That's where boiled and cooled water comes in handy: It's free of most pollutants. It's great for both houseplants and garden plants.
Some plants want daily misting; others are OK with two to three times a week.
Examples of some plants that don't appreciate misting are succulents and other drought-resistant plants like Aloe Vera and Jade Plants, as well as any plants that have fuzzy or hairy leaves, as it is easy to cause these kinds of leaves to rot if they get too wet.
Misting is highly recommended at least once a month, and more often with species that enjoy it (see full list below). Be sure to spray the top and underside of your leaves, and if using for cleaning your leaves, wipe the leaves down with a cloth after misting to remove dust.
Plants with long, narrow foliage such as Spider Plant, Peace Lily, Dracaena, and Prayer Plant can be negatively affected by tap water high in fluoride. Plants also prefer their water at a pH level between 5.0 and 7.0.
Con: These can add an extra cost and it isn't necessary as long as you let tap water's chlorine dissipate up to 24 hours.
As the theory goes, soaking banana peels releases nutrients like potassium and calcium into the water, which creates an inexpensive, homemade liquid fertilizer.
Though tap water is considered filtered, high levels of chlorine remain in the water. It is recommended to use a filtration system to provide the purest water for your family and plants. If the budget does not permit, letting water sit out for 24-hours before watering, experts say, can also remove harmful chemicals.
Types of Plants That Like Mist
(Zebra plants, orchids, arrowhead plants, and begonias are just a few others that love mist.) "It's best to mist each of these plants as you see the top inch of the soil become dry to the touch," he says.
A: To a plant, there's no difference in the mist temperature. However, warm misting humidifiers sanitize the water as they heat it to vapor. That means there's a slightly smaller chance that humidity-borne diseases can develop with a warm mist temperature.
"You want to be cautious about how much water may be gathering on your leaves' surface," she notes. "Pooled water can cause fungus to form and damage your foliage." Overly moist areas may also attract pest to your plants—and no one wants that!
As a rule of thumb, all cacti, drought tolerant plants, and the great majority of succulents, should never be misted!
As for misting — for the plants that need to be misted to thrive like air plants and ferns — it's best to mist them in the morning *and* the evening whenever possible. The morning mist helps to prepare them for the day ahead, while the evening misting helps create a little extra humidity.
Distilled water is also a good choice and is easy to find at most grocery stores. Finally, you can also use a reverse osmosis filter to make tap water safe for your plants. This type of filter will remove nearly all contaminants from the water, leaving your plants with clean, safe water that won't harm them.
What's the Most Efficient Way to Water Plants? DO direct water at the base of a plant and avoid wetting foliage, which invites fungus. Also, you'll lose less water to evaporation and, since you're applying water directly to the root zone, the water will be readily available to the plant roots.
Epsom salt has a variety of uses around the home including relief of pain and discomfort and stress reduction, but did you know that you can use Epsom salt to clean unsightly hard water stains and even as a hard water softener to adjust the pH of your water. One of the most effective hard water softeners is Epsom salt.
Add Baking Soda to Water
A temporary fix, but one that works. In a bathtub, add around ½ cup of baking soda. Although baking soda cannot soften the water fully, it, being alkaline, changes the pH of hard water to make it more suitable for skin and hair.
An Epsom salt solution can help restore the original appearance of your faucet, shower, or toilet, regardless of what is discolored on them. Epsom salt also perfumes the water and releases sodium and potassium ions that replace magnesium and calcium ions which cause water hardness.