One Instagrammer just revealed how you can get way more bang for your buck at the plant nursery with just one extra step.
The scoop
Nicole Johnsey Burke (@gardenaryco) is the owner of Gardenary — a garden-tech company that provides tips and gardening inspiration on their social media, blog, and through their books.
In the video, Burke explains that nurseries will often cram multiple plants into one package to make it look aesthetically pleasing and healthy. In reality, these plants are crowded and won't have a good chance to grow.
Burke advises that you can figure out just how many plants there are by looking at how many stems are sticking out of the soil — "when you see more than one stem, it generally means there's more than one plant," she explained.
If this is the case, you can take everything out of the pot, and gently separate the stems from one another. You'll want to replant them into the garden and water them very soon after.
In her example, Burke uses marigolds, and she manages to turn what was originally six plants into 24 with this method. She mentions that she had great success with the hack — her marigolds stayed alive for months!
"This video was taken in September of last year when I had just bought a ton of marigolds. After I did this, I planted them all out and had the most beautiful display of marigolds until December!" she explained in the caption.
How it's helping
This hack means you'll be spending way less money on your garden — Burke got four times the number of plants.
Plus, you'll be facilitating healthier plants by allowing them to grow with the proper amount of space, so you'll get more abundant, longer-lasting flowers, or more produce.
Your plants will also attract pollinators, and according to the National Park Service, pollinators are essential to plant reproduction, which makes them "fundamental" to your local ecosystem.
What everyone's saying
Commenters were thrilled to hear of the money-saving hack, "Sooo glad I saw this!" said one user.
Others could attest to how well it worked. "[My] Grandma taught me this years ago and now I look for opportunities at nurseries to expand my gardens just like this!" commented one user.
Another mentioned specifically how well it worked for marigolds, they said that after trying this hack, "I got so many more flowers than I've ever gotten."
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