Good Earth Plant Company Tips

The horticultural experts at Good Earth Plant Company have years of experience caring for plants and creating exceptional designs to enrich peoples’ lives with plants. Our experts generously share their advice with readers who want to improve their plant care methods to be more successful in helping their plants thrive and stay healthy.

Our website contains an extensive FAQ or Frequently Asked Questions section. The most common questions asked by clients are included in each section.  If you don’t see your question answered, we invite you to contact us.

Easiest Indoor Plants to Grow For Black Thumbs

We know you don't mean to kill your indoor plants. You just need to choose less fussy, bulletproof plants.
By now you’ve gotten the message: adding plants to your indoor environment at home and work provides multiple benefits to your physical and mental health. Study after study confirms plants clean your indoor air of toxins, raising humidity to healthier levels, increase the oxygen levels, buffer noise, calm your nerves and help you focus. And this is just for starters. “But Jim,” you say, “I have a black thumb. I’m a plant killer. I can’t grow ANYTHING. What can I do?” You can always hire a professional and leave it to us (hint). But there are some plants nearly impossible to kill.… Read More

Don’t Bug Me: Control Pests Without Pesticides

Keep your indoor plants healthy and pest free with gentle cleaning. Photo: Madiase/Flickr - Creative Commons License
Summer is coming, we promise. Summer brings so many good things, but it also brings some not-so-good things. Plant pests love the summer weather as much as people do. While bugs can bug your indoor plants any time of year, they get more opportunities to thrive in the late spring and summer months. The weather warms up. You turn off the heater, and open your windows and doors. Pests have more ways to enter your house, and they like the more humid air. You see your indoor plants have a growth period as spring arrives. Bugs see a plant buffet. If your first reaction to finding pests on your plants is to grab the pesticide, please stop!… Read More

When Should I Repot My House Plants?

There is no need to add anything to your plant containers but the proper potting soil. Photo: SweetLouise/CreativeCommons License
So you’ve gotten into the current craze for houseplants. You’ve added a few at home and in your workspace. Hooray and good for you! Literally, plants are good for you and keep you connected to nature, healthier, and happier. Congratulations from your Good Earth Plant Company Eco-Warriors. Maybe you’ve had your plants for a year now, maybe 18 or 24 months. What now? One of the most common questions plant owners ask when moving on to the next stage of plant care expertise is this: when should I repot my houseplants? Great question, and perfect timing. Spring presents the ideal opportunity to repot houseplants that need more room to spread their roots and grow. … Read More

Plant A Weed and Save the Monarchs

The western California monarch is in danger of extinction. Good Earth Plant Company provides critical milkweed habitat and we're thrilled to see it working. Photo: Erin Lindley
Recently a visitor to Good Earth Plant Company asked me “Hey, what’s that tall plant growing on your green roof?” I told her it was milkweed. What I didn’t say is that it might be the most important plant on the entire green roof. The Western monarch butterfly is one of the most recognizable insects in the world. It is called “the ambassador of nature.” In coastal California cities where migrating monarch butterflies have traditionally spent their winters like Pacific Grove, Pismo Beach, and Santa Barbara, there is a whole tourism industry built around the butterflies. Ten million monarch butterflies used to spend the winter in California during the 1980s, according to estimates.… Read More

Five Reasons Plants Improve Your Bottom Line

Humble office plants like this desk terrarium can make you more productive and healthier at work. Photo: Stocksnap/Creative Commons
Plants have never been hotter. The humble indoor plant is suddenly a design trend. We have thousands of people calling themselves “plant parents” who collect and cherish house plants. The trend is creeping its way into more workplaces, too. The benefits of plants in the workplace is something we’re passionate about at Good Earth Plant Company. We’d like more businesses to get passionate about it, too. We know there is one thing ALL businesses are passionate about: making money. Let’s face it, we’re all working hard to earn a good living so we can live well and indulge our interests. So if we told you adding plants is good for your business and will help you make more money, would we get your attention?… Read More

Do These Six Things to Keep Indoor Plants Healthy During Winter

Even indoor plants feel the change of seasons. Photo: Skitterphoto - Creative Commons License
Winter has hit San Diego along with the rest of the U.S. No polar vortex here, thank goodness, but we know it’s winter without needed snow on the ground or freezing daytime temperatures. We feel the change of seasons even if we don’t have to shovel driveways or scrape windshields. Plants feel the change of seasons, too – even your indoor plants. Your container plants at home and in the office grow in the spring and summer and go dormant in the winter just like their outdoor cousins. During these cooler months, conditions change inside where your indoor plants live. Less sun comes through your windows.… Read More

Ten Freshest Plantscaping Trends for 2019

After all the New Year celebrations are over, I still have something to look forward to every year: the annual Tropical Plant Industry Expo in Florida. It’s become a tradition for me to start the year meeting with my Plantscaping industry colleagues from 45 states and 37 different countries, and learning about the latest trends and products I can offer to our clients at Good Earth Plant Company. When you have been in business almost 40 years like we have, you see certain concepts and ideas recycled from time to time. Sometimes we get a new twist on those old ideas.… Read More

Nature Book Gift Recommendations to Inspire You

Still working on your gift list this year? You are far from alone. The National Retail Federation says 53 percent of all Americans say they’ll be shopping for Christmas gifts the Saturday before Christmas. And Procrastination Nation seems to get bigger every year thanks to crazy fast shipping deadlines. If you’re still looking for a gift that will fit anyone and is appropriate for any budget and a recipient of any age or interests, Good Earth Plant Company recommends a little bit of Nature and inspiration. We’d love to recommend gifts of living walls, moss walls, or replica plant walls, but they are pretty hard to wrap.… Read More

Naughty or Nice: The Great Christmas Tree Debate

It’s that time of year. Time to decide whether you want a real Christmas tree, or an artificial Christmas tree. Likes and dislikes aside, to me the more important debate is figuring out which one is better for the environment in the long run. Like a lot of decisions in life, it’s complicated. I recently learned where artificial Christmas trees originated. They have only been in use a few decades. Before that, a real pine or fir tree was the only option available if you wanted a Christmas tree. It changed when American toilet bowl brush manufacturer Addis Brush Company created an artificial tree from brush bristles in the 1930s.… Read More

Revive Your Dying Indoor Plant: 6 Ways Before It’s Too Late

Wet plant
Revive your dying indoor plants before it’s too late! Good Earth Plants is in the business of not only supplying residential, commercial, office & hospitality spaces with plants, but it’s also our job to keep them alive. Houseplants and office plants are enjoying a new surge in popularity. We could not be happier about this. It’s been our mission for more than 40 years to encourage people to incorporate nature into the places they work, live, and play through the addition of plants due to their many benefits to your wellbeing. Despite giving indoor plants love and attention, you’re always going to run into an indoor plant enemy that’s tough to battle.… Read More