It is possible to overmist? As they say, too much of anything is still too much. Repeatedly dousing your plants with moisture is no exception, so Resta says be careful not to overdo it. "You want to be cautious about how much water may be gathering on your leaves' surface," she notes.
Some plants want daily misting; others are OK with two to three times a week.
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.
Generally, you want to avoid misting so much that water is dripping off the leaves. You're going for a light coating on the tops and undersides of the leaves without a lot of large droplets. The leaves should look like they have morning dew settled on them, not like they've been in a rainstorm.
Types of Plants That Like Mist
Tropical houseplants and plants that love high-humidity—such as the Chinese Evergreen, Boston Fern, and Majesty Palm—will benefit most from misting, says Plunkett. (Zebra plants, orchids, arrowhead plants, and begonias are just a few others that love mist.)
As a rule of thumb, all cacti, drought tolerant plants, and the great majority of succulents, should never be misted! In addition to these plants, there are some plants that actually enjoy decent levels of humidity but, should not be misted because of their fuzzy foliage texture.
It is possible to overmist? As they say, too much of anything is still too much. Repeatedly dousing your plants with moisture is no exception, so Resta says be careful not to overdo it. "You want to be cautious about how much water may be gathering on your leaves' surface," she notes.
Misting creates humidity, and some tropical plants appreciate it (though there are more effective methods for increasing humidity around your plants), but it should supplement watering. To water properly, pour water directly on the soil until it runs out the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot.
“Spritzing your plants is not the correct way to water your plants. In fact, it doesn't water them at all,” she says. While spritzing can provide some moisture, unless the plant really thrives in humidity (ferns, orchids, or bromeliads, for example), Hovis says spritzing can do more harm than good.
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.
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.
Too much of anything is not always a good thing. We think that it is appropriate to mist in doses of 1-2 times per week depending on the plant's temperament and environment. Over-misting plants can attract pests. Make sure to spray the undersides of leaves, lightly.
Your Spider Plant will do well in normal household humidity but will thrive with a bit more humidity. Brown leaf tips may indicate the air is too dry, so mist your Spider Plant regularly using a Mister.
Rather than misting your plants at night, a morning mist is the perfect way to start your plant's day. Misting in the morning allows plants time to dry off throughout the day. This is important to prevent mildew and other diseases.
By regularly spraying your houseplants with water, you raise the humidity around their leaves, keeping delicate species from the tropical regions of the world happy in distinctly untropical homes.
Ice-Cube Method. Just put two ice cubes on the soil in the plant, as they melt, your plant will get water without any mess.
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.
“Some plants thrive in humidity,” explains Hank Jenkins of the Plant Provocateur in Silver Lake. “If you don't give them moisture, their leaves will dry out. If you want new foliage and growth, you need to mist them.”
2. Misting. This method of watering is not recommended for succulents at all. Instead, you should only mist your succulents when propagating cuttings, as mature succulents store water in their leaves.
They normally need watering once or twice a week in the spring and summer, but less in the autumn and winter. However, depending on the type of houseplant, this is not always the case.
Run your sink into a watering can, cup, or bucket, and let it sit for a good 24 hours. This will allow chemicals like chlorine and fluoride the time to evaporate from the water. We like to have a full watering can ready to go with still water so that if our soil seems dry, we can water our plant without waiting a day.
Never be tempted to over-water. Over-watering is equally as harmful as under-watering. Letting a plant sit in water can cause it to rot. One of the reasons we recommend that you keep your plant in its nursery pot (the brown or black pot it arrives in) is that nursery pots have holes in the bottom, for drainage.
Other house plants such as a spider plant, philodendron, peace lily and crassula also prefer to be always watered from the bottom. Seedlings are vulnerable to damage from watering from above so should always be placed in a tray of water to soak up the moisture they require.