If you’re a great plant parent, you won’t need this. But if you’re like me and guilty of killing a house plant or two, you might find this little tip could help you go from overwatering or neglecting to water your plants to watering them the exact right amount.

Having plants inside has changed the mood in our home. They bring a bit of nature inside and brighten up our spaces. They also help purify the air and create oxygen. When we visited Vienna in 2018, we learned about renowned artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser’s concept of a tree tenant, which has inspired us to incorporate plants into our living environment.

Mark gave me my first house plant and I was surprised how difficult I found it was to keep it happy. It was a beautiful Maidenhair Fern that needed just the right amount of water and hated to be moved. It wilted quickly if it was under watered. In fact, it got moved permanently to our automated watering tables in our greenhouse after we came back from a week away to find it just barely clinging to life.

With actual human babies to mother, I willingly abdicated the role of plant parent to Mark. He added more plants but that added the complexity of different watering requirements. Mark found the perfect solution while browsing the Gubba online catalogue. This nifty little “water checker” has been a game changer for our house plants.

It's elegantly simple in design and incredibly effective in function. We just insert the little Sustee Watering Checker into the soil in each pot and it monitors the moisture level at the root level, which is where accurate measurements are crucial. When our plants need water, the indicator turns white, signaling it's time to water. Once the plant has enough moisture, the indicator reverts to blue.

This little device has taken the guesswork out of watering, ensuring our plants receive the ideal amount of hydration. It’s a bit pricey, but we think it’s worth it. Our collection of indoor plants has grown thanks to the confidence this little device has given us that we can keep them alive.