Right about now is a good time to appreciate your house plants. They help satisfy your green thumb throughout the fall and winter months, they break up the hard spaces in our homes, and they remind us to care for something other than ourselves. With fall solidly here, it’s time to give our houseplants the love and care they need to really thrive this winter, instead of merely surviving.
How to pick the best location for indoor plants
Every summer, your plants move outside to bask in the real sunlight and warm temps like people flocking to Florida beaches. Sadly, once those temps dip below 55 degrees, it’s time to ship those puppies back to where they came from—inside. Find the right sun situation for them by a window for full, direct sunlight, or a bit away for indirect sun for those plants that can get sunburn.
You should also think about the drafts created by windows and whether your plants can tolerate that cold. You want them someplace with a temperature between 65 and 85 degrees. Also consider where they are in relation to your heaters, as you don’t want them to dry out. If you don’t have an appropriate window, you’ll want to get yourself a plant light to give the plant the UV rays it needs.
Make sure the plants are pest-free
But before those plants head inside, let’s make sure there aren’t spare passengers along for the ride. Check plants for any signs of pests, and consider using the dunk method to rid yourself of any unwanted guests: Dunk your plant upside down in a bath of water with neem oil and castile soap, so all the leaves get coated; then, put your entire plant—pot and all—in the same bath, and hold it down until no more bubbles appear. This gives the plant a nice, needed soak, and the neem oil and castile soap should take care of most pests.
Upgrade them to a larger pot, if needed
Your plants might have experienced some growth over the summer, what with all that vitamin D, so now might be the time to move them into a bigger planter. Check the roots to see if they’re root-bound, a sure sign it’s time to bump up. Consider that if you’d rather keep your plant petite, you can trim back roots or divide your plant, but you don’t want to keep an oversize plant in a too-small space.
Clean them up and cut back on their food and water
If your plant has dead leaves or diseased leaves, it’s time to cut them off, using freshly cleaned scissors. It’s OK to cut off leaves that aren’t making the grade, but you can also cut away parts of leaves, like on a monstera, that are unsightly.
Even if your plant looks fine now, the diminished light they’re now experiencing can lead to dropped leaves, which is perfectly fine. You may feel the urge to feed your plants, but the lower light and temps mean that your plant is slowing down growth, so fertilizer isn’t necessary until spring—and neither is overwatering, so cut back on the water you’ve been giving them. You’ll notice, if you pay attention, that less water still results in moist but not wet soil around your plant roots.