Simply pull down on the level and watch the aerosolized water form a soothing cloud of mist over your plant. Misting is highly recommended at least once a month, and more often with species that enjoy it (see full list below).
Some plants want daily misting; others are OK with two to three times a week.
For example, if you're using misting to clean your plants leaves you can do it once a week, but if you're using it to boost the humidity of your plant's environment, you'll want to do it more frequently. “Most [tropical plants] will be happy if you spritz them every few days,” Hull and Cheshire explain.
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.
Letting the leaves get too wet and / or allowing them to stay excessively wet for a prolonged period of time can encourage mold growth on the leaf surface, so it's always important to ensure you don't ever allow puddles of water to form on your plants' leaves - this applies when watering as well as when misting.
Also, don't mist plants that don't require a lot of moisture, like succulents, dragon tree (Draceana marginata), fiddle leaf fig (Ficus lyrata), yucca, pothos, ponytail plant (Beaucarnea recurvata), cissus and spider plant.
As a rule of thumb, all cacti, drought tolerant plants, and the great majority of succulents, should never be misted!
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.
“A lot of people don't understand the importance of misting,” adds Jenkins. “Misting is one of the top things that you can do for your houseplants. I advise my clients to mist their houseplants one to two times per week.”
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.
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.
Set your mister on a timer for 10 to 15 minutes mid-morning," she suggests. "Alternately, set the plants in a tray of pebbles and hand-mist the pebbles and leaves with a mist sprayer. Avoid spraying directly onto the leaves. You want to create moisture in the air around the leaves.
“This ultimately creates a better exchange of oxygen and moisture. Misting one to two times per week can refresh your plants and keep them happy and thriving.” So it's OK to keep that pretty misting bottle near your plants—just don't let that be the only water they get.
Use filtered or rain water that doesn't contain chlorine, fluoride or other chemicals. Always mist your plants in the morning so the leaves can dry out during the day.
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.
Some plant owners mist the base of the plant and the surface of the soil, but this has little benefit. Don't worry about misting the soil because the water won't make it to the roots to be absorbed.
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.
Consider misting your plants once or twice a week during the cooler months because the air is dry, and require less frequent misting in warmer months when humidity levels are higher.
When you mist a plant you're temporarily increasing the humidity around the foliage, but only for a matter of minutes before the water begins to evaporate. Most houseplants grow best in 30% to 60% humidity, although some like it even more humid.
After you have purchased your humidifier of choice, then comes the question: where do you put it? In general, keep the humidifier elevated off the ground and place it about 3-5 feet from your plants.
However, snake plants don't really benefit from misting, as they're native to arid regions and are used to dry conditions. The thick leaves of a snake plant also help to prevent water loss, so misting is usually unnecessary.
At least once a week, mist your spider plant's leaves with water to simulate the humidity of its natural habitat. If you live somewhere in an extremely dry environment, spray more often. Due to low humidity, the tips of the leaves are showing signs of stress by turning brown.