How often to water your plants

"Once a week" is the most repeated advice and the one that kills the most plants. Watering doesn't depend on the calendar: it depends on light, temperature, the pot, the potting mix, the season and the species. All of those things change, and the calendar doesn't.

The method that actually works

Push your finger two or three centimeters (about an inch) into the soil. If it comes out dry, water. If it comes out damp, wait and check again in two days. It's free, takes five seconds and works for almost every houseplant.

Useful variations:

• Weight. Lift the pot right after watering and again a few days later. You quickly learn to tell "full" from "dry" by weight.
• The stick. Push a wooden skewer all the way to the bottom, pull it out and see whether it comes out with damp soil stuck to it.
• A moisture meter. It's inexpensive and works for large pots where your finger can't reach.

How to water properly

It's not just when, it's how. Water generously, until water runs out of the holes at the bottom, and then empty the saucer. A generous, infrequent watering soaks the whole root mass; a daily splash only wets the surface and makes the roots grow upward, where they're more exposed.

Rough frequencies

Type of plant	Summer	Winter
Cacti and succulents	Every 10–15 days	Almost never
Snake plant, ZZ plant	Every 15–20 days	Every 30–40 days
Pothos, monstera, ficus	Every 7–10 days	Every 15–20 days
Peace lily, calathea	Every 5–7 days	Every 10–15 days
Ferns	Every 3–5 days	Every 7–10 days
Phalaenopsis orchid	Once a week	Every 10–15 days

These are starting points to adjust with your finger, not rules.

What speeds up or slows down water use

• More light, more heat, more wind → more water.
• Terracotta pot (it breathes) → dries out faster than plastic.
• Small pot → dries out faster.
• Heating or air conditioning → dries things out far more than you'd think.
• Winter → the plant slows its growth and uses much less. Watering in winter the same as in summer is the most common seasonal mistake.

How to tell if you overdid it

Yellow, soft leaves, soil that smells bad, little gnats around the pot: too much water. Drooping but firm leaves, soil pulling away from the edge of the pot, dry and crispy tips: too little. The full guide is in why leaves turn yellow.