When designing a garden, or purchasing a plant for a balcony, patio or floor, it is very important to find out if the climate we have is the most suitable for that specific species. Although the climate is not everything in gardening, it is one of the factors that must be taken into account the most so that the plants can live without too many complications.
If you choose well, you will not only save money, but you will enjoy it much more. Here are some tips so you can have a carefree garden or patio.
Those of us who have bought some plants that may have difficulties to live in our climate, they ask us for care that in the event that they were native plants they would not need. For example: spraying daily to increase environmental humidity and thus prevent the wind from burning the tips of the leaves, use a specific substrate, add iron sulfate to prevent or combat iron chlorosis, etc. In short, by recommendation it will always be better to acquire native plants, or if we do not like any, look at those that live in climates similar to ours.
Even if they are from other continents, if the climate is similar they do not usually have too many problems when adapting. In most cases they will only need attention for the first year, but once they settle in they will be acclimatized and their maintenance will be lower.
The most common problems that we can find when we buy exotic plants are the following:
- Yellow leaves, with very marked nerves: lack of nutrients due to a substrate with a high pH (calcareous)
- The tips of the dry or brown leaves, fallen leaves in summer: dry and warm wind, or sea wind
- Little or no growth in certain seasons of the year, or plant death: either too cold or too hot
We all like exotic plants, but it is important to know that not all of them can live in our climate.