Anthurium is a lovely tropical plant with glossy foliage and heart-shaped blossoms. Anthurium plant care is relatively simple. It would be best if you did repotting anthuriumplants only when necessary. 

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Anthuriums don’t grow as quickly as some other tropical plants, but given the appropriate conditions, they’ll grow steadily until they’re almost climbing out of their containers. When this occurs, it is time to repot! You can help your Anthurium make the transfer to its new home as painlessly as possible by following a few simple rules. Continue reading to learn when and how to repot anthuriums.

Why Go For Repotting Anthurium?

Rootbound Anthurium 

It is a condition when their roots do not have enough space to spread out. A root system crammed into too little space will suffocate and stop taking up enough water and nutrients. The result is a less robust plant that can’t put out much new foliage.

• Roots circling the surface of the potting mix 
• Roots growing through the drainage hole 
• Wilting foliage, even after watering 
• Water runs straight through the drainage hole 
• Bent or cracked container

When your Anthurium has grown to 20 inches tall in a pot with a five-inch diameter, it’s time to graduate it to a new pot.

Mineral Salt Deposition And Under Supplement Of Fertilizer

Mineral salts from fertilizer or tap water can also accumulate in the soil and limit plant growth. On the other hand, if you don’t fertilize your Anthurium, it will gradually deplete the available supply in the pot and begin to suffer from a lack of nutrition.

You can resolve these issues by providing your Anthurium with a new container filled with fresh potting mix. To avoid problems like this, practice repotting Anthurium every two or three years.

Diseases And Infection

Repotting Anthurium can also help with a chronic pest infestation or a case of root rot. In the first case, spider mites or fungus gnats can hide in the potting mix; in the second, bacterial or fungal contamination is the issue. After treating the plant, repot it in clean soil to limit the danger of reinfection.

When Is The Best Time To Repot Anthuriums? 

Anthuriums are tropical plants that lack a natural seasonal cycle. They can thrive and flower all year in a climate-controlled setting with enough light. However, most Anthuriums will slow or stop growing during the winter in places where the amount of light and heat varies throughout the year. 

Repotting your Anthurium will be most successful between early spring and midsummer. The optimal period is towards the start of the growing season when the plant is emerging from its semi-dormant winter state and anxious to produce new growth.

That energy will offer your Anthurium an advantage as it attempts to develop its roots in the new container. When the first new leaves sprout on your Anthurium in the spring, you’ll know it’s warmed up and ready to be repotted. 

Of course, if you believe your plant is severely roots bound, infested with fungus, gnats, or has another problem that necessitates quick repotting, you can transplant it now rather than waiting until spring.

Image by Klaus Dieter vom Wangenheim from Pixabay 

Potting Mix For Repotting Anthurium

Choosing the proper pot and growing media for your Flamingo Flower is as important as moving it. The most common way Anthurium owners harm their plants is by using the wrong potting mix. 

Drainage is critical. Anthurium roots prefer a moist but well-aerated environment, like a tropical rainforest canopy. Combining spongy, absorbent materials with coarser ones that space out the mix and produce air spaces works best. 

Avoid buying ordinary potting mixtures at the shop. For Anthurium roots, they’ll likely be overly dense. Instead, seek an orchid-specific blend, such as this one, which is epiphytic like Anthuriums and has similar growing requirements. 

Making your potting mix is easy to create a personalized blend for your Anthuriums. Use roughly equal amounts of three ingredients: 

• Elements resembling bark or charcoal. 
• Porous minerals such as Perlite.
• Ingredients like peat moss or ground coconut husks.

Container For Repotting Anthurium

When repotting Anthurium, use a container that is 20% larger than the existing one. If you’re unsure, look at choosing a pot 2 to 4 inches larger in diameter than your current pot. 

It’s not wise to scale up beyond that. Although Anthuriums dislike being root bound, they may struggle to adapt to a large pot. A lot of room may encourage the plant to focus on root and leaf growth rather than flowering. 

The pot for your Anthurium can be made of any material as long as it has one or two large drainage holes at the bottom. Terracotta (unglazed clay) containers tend to dry up faster than other options, so adapt your watering practices accordingly.

Things You Need

Repotting Anthurium doesn’t require any specialist tools, but a few things will help. When moving your Anthurium, use this basic checklist: 

• New Container– Probably obvious, but everyone needs a reminder! 
• Potting mix– Pre-made or mixed at home. 
• Pruners– Your Anthurium’s roots and foliage may need trimming before repotting. 
• Antiseptic solution– When pruning, sanitize the blades between cuts with a disinfectant-soaked rag. It helps to prevent disease-causing bacteria from spreading. Options include Lysol, isopropyl alcohol, and 10% bleach. 
• Gloves– Anthuriums emit an itching sap when cut or torn; therefore, use gloves. 
•  An old towel– Put something down first to avoid soiling your floors if you’re repotting indoors.

Before Repotting Anthurium

You should prepare your Anthurium for the transfer by filling it with water along with acquiring your supplies. The roots won’t be able to take in as much water while they’re recovering from the stress of being uprooted and moved. Pre-watering helps prevent dehydration. 

The day before your transplant, poke your finger into the growing media to around your second knuckle’s depth. If your Anthurium is dry, water it until you observe seepage from the drainage hole in the pot.

How To Do- Repotting Anthurium

Step 1: Fill the new container with potting mix to a depth of 13 to 12. Wet it with lukewarm water. 

Step 2: Prune any fading leaves or blossoms. It will be easier for your Anthurium to recover from transplant shock if it doesn’t have to waste energy on dying foliage. The plant created them to protect its budding leaves, but they’re no longer needed.

Step 3: Grip the pot’s borders, cradling the stem’s base. Invert the pot and slide the plant out. To get the root mass out of the pot, give the pot a good whack on the bottom. If it doesn’t work, use a butter knife to loosen the roots’ grasp on the pot. 

Step 4: Remove as much soil as you can. Your Anthurium is probably pot bound, so carefully work your fingers into the roots to free them. Spread them out to resemble an upside-down tree rather than a clumped-up cylinder. At this point, go slowly to avoid breaking big roots too close to the stem. 

Step 5 It’s possible that the roots will be too long or too numerous to fit inside the new container you’ve chosen. If so, start with the ones closest to the ground. Taking a third of the root mass will not harm your Anthurium and encourage it to grow new roots.

Photo by Sasha Kim from Pexels

Step 6: Wash off any large clumps of potting mix from the plant’s roots with lukewarm water. 

Step 7: Set your Anthurium in its new pot and fill the rest with a potting mix. Spread it around and work it into the roots with your fingertips. If the plant has a lot of exposed stem, bury it up to the petioles. The aerial roots growing on the stem will help your Anthurium establish in its new location. 

Step 8: Soak the soil until the water runs out the bottom. This will help the potting mix settle around the roots and encourage the plant to spread.

Image by _Alicja_ from Pixabay 

After Care

• After the large move, your Anthurium will need some time to adjust. It will be more prone to sunburn due to its inability to release water to cool itself. Keep the plant in a shady spot for 4-7 days. 
• Maintain a humid climate for your Anthurium. If you don’t want to buy a humidifier, sprinkle the foliage with lukewarm water every day. Place your Anthurium pot on a tray with pebbles and water to keep it moist. 
• If the plant wilts quickly after repotting, don’t panic. It’s usual for Anthuriums to go through a downturn following transplanting. 
• If you normally fertilize your plant, wait a few months after repotting. Fertilizer burns new root development, so wait until your Anthurium is established.

Conclusion

Anthuriums, sometimes known as “flamingo flowers” because of their brilliant, vibrant colors, are the world’s longest-blooming plant and will constantly bloom under the ideal conditions all year. Repotting Anthurium will provide the room it requires to grow and generate healthy new flowers.

Don’t worry about hurting the plant. Anthuriums are tougher than you think. With gentle handling, loose potting mix, and shade, it should quickly thrive in its new pot.