5 Tips To Know Before Cleaning Plant Leaves With Olive Oil

Have you been cleaning your plant leaves with olive oil?

Or do you want to clean them with some other oil?

If the answer is yes, you should wait a bit and read the following guide.

In this guide, I have shared some insightful information on whether you should use any oils for cleaning indoor plants.

So, let's dive right in!

How To Clean Plant Leaves With Olive Oil

Olive oil can be used to clean plant leaves, but it has some disadvantages, which are listed in this guide below.

Do read those guidelines before cleaning your plant leaves with Olive oil or any other oil.

But if you still want to give it a try, check out the steps involved in this process.

Steps To Follow:

1. Take two tablespoons of olive oil and mix it with 1 liter of water.
2. Soak a clean cloth or kitchen towel in this mixture.
3. Wipe the leaves of your plant with this cloth.
4. Once all the leaves look clean and shiny, spray the plant with some water.
5. Place the plant near a window or airy place to help it dry quickly.

And you are done!

That's all there is to do if you want to get shiny leaves with the help of olive oil.

If you are keeping the plant near the window, make sure it doesn't receive too much dust from the same window.

And if that is the case, you should move it to some other place so that the plant gets dry easily.

5 Tips To Know Before Cleaning Plant Leaves With Olive Oil

Even though it seems like an interesting ingredient to bring back the shine to your plant's leaves, there are a few things you should consider before applying olive oil to the leaves.

So, let's look at them below.

1. Olive Oil Clogs The Pores On The Leaves

This is the biggest concern for using olive oil on the leaves.

Whether it's olive oil or any general-purpose oil, it does produce a thin layer on the leaf surface.

And that's not what you'd want to have on your plant's leaves.

Once the oily layer forms on the leaf, it automatically blocks the tiny pores.

As you know, these pores are essential in providing oxygen and sunlight to the leaves.

Without these two elements, the plant will not grow efficiently.

2. Leaves Might Burn And Turn Brown 

Another thing that goes against olive oil is its sticky nature.

When you spray olive oil on the leaves, it sticks to the leaf surface for a very long time.

It just doesn't disappear within a day or two.

And that's what creates a problem for the plant.

When sunlight drops on such leaves, the surface turns hot.

Eventually, it starts burning the leaf.

Therefore, you might see brown or yellow leaves after a couple of days of spraying.

3. Leaves Might Shrivel

This is what happens when you apply too much olive oil to the leaves.

Since the oil creates a barrier between the leaf's mechanism and food supply, it can easily shrivel the leaves in a couple of days due to a lack of essential elements.

Once the leaves start wrinkling, the plant will find it difficult to produce enough food for survival.

And as you know, it can permanently damage the plant.

4. Olive Oil Attracts More Sticky Dust On The Leaves

Dust is one of those things that keeps coming back no matter what you do.

Hence, if you clean the leaves with olive oil once, you will see more dust on their surface.

The reason lies in the same sticky property of the oil.

When the surface becomes sticky, it automatically attracts all sorts of elements present in the air.

Therefore, you will always see more sticky dust on such plants.

5. Difficult To Remove Olive Oil From The Leaves

Since oil sticks to the surface for a longer duration, you may have to clean the plant a few more times.

Otherwise, as you know, it will accumulate sticky dust on the surface, which will be difficult to remove after some time.

So, it becomes essential to get rid of the remaining oil from the leaves.

For that, you will have to clean the leaves with plain or soapy water again.

Note: The worst part of all is you can't remove all the oil from the leaves. 

It makes no difference how clean the surface appears; there will always be some oil on it, which attracts more dust and other particles.

5 Natural Ingredients To Make Your Plant Leaves Shiny

Now, let's look at some of the other alternatives to use for this purpose -

1. Water

Water doesn't need any introduction when it comes to cleaning the dust off any surface.

It's a tried and tested medium to serve the purpose.

So, you can definitely use it to clean the leaves and stem of the plant.

However, make sure you don't spray it in the afternoon or in hot & humid conditions.

If you do so, the water will turn warm due to sunlight and instantly burn the leaves.

Also, you shouldn't perform this cleaning process daily or weekly.

You can perform it twice a month or once a month, depending on the weather conditions at your place.

Note: Once you spray the leaves with water, keep the plant in an airy place. 

It will help in drying the plant after a quick shower with water spray.

2. Milk

Milk is another useful ingredient for cleaning your plant's dusty leaves.

Yes, don't be surprised!

If used in moderate quantities, it can do wonders for the plant.

It not only cleans the leaf surface but also provides some beneficial properties to the entire plant.

As for the application, you can add a couple of tablespoons of milk in 1ltr of water and spray it on the plant once a week or twice a month.

Follow this process for a couple of rounds, and I'm sure you will see some positive results for your plant's overall growth.

3. Neem Oil

Neem Oil is one of the most recommended products in the gardening world.

It is effective in combating many existing problems of the plant.

Apart from that, it also cleans the surface of the sprayed part.

So, if you use it on the leaves, it will surely bring a much-desired shine to them.

Having said that, using such ingredients in smaller quantities is always better, as they might burn some of the leaves if used vigorously.

So, be careful when using oils to bring shine to the leaves.

Some gardeners also like to use coconut oil, but the neem oil solution has more benefits than any other oil.

4. Soapy Water 

Soapy water is another useful solution to clean the dust off your indoor plant leaves.

Like oil, it should be used in moderate quantity only.

Soapy water generally contains chemical elements which can easily harm the leaves and stems of the plant.

Therefore, it becomes even more crucial to use it sparingly on your houseplants.

Also, if you observe any soapy water accumulated on the surface of the leaves, you should remove it immediately.

Don't let it sit on the leaves for a long time, as it can burn the surface and turn the leaves brown in a couple of days.

For the removal, you can make use of normal water spray.

5. Vinegar

Vinegar is the most interesting ingredient in this list of cleaning agents.

As we all know, Vinegar is often used as a cleaning agent for kitchen equipment as well as furniture.

Similarly, you can use it for your houseplants too.

The acids in this ingredient help remove tough stains and dust particles from the leaves.

And it also brings back the natural shine to the leaves.

FAQs

Over To You

Well, I hope you understand how to use olive oil and other oils to clean the plant leaves at home.

If you have any more questions, you can ask them in the comments below.

Also, don't forget to share this guide with your friends and family.

I am sure they will also learn the right way to use oils for this purpose.