530-993-4379
Sierra Booster
  • Home
  • Newspaper
    • Latest News
    • Letters to the Editor >
      • Submit Letter to the Editor
    • Old News Archive
    • Photo Tour
    • Events
    • About Us
    • SUBSCRIBE
  • Advertiser Directory
    • Advertiser Press Releases
    • Website Sponsors
    • Advertiser Area
  • Buy Ads - Services
  • Fishing Report
  • Contact Us
  • Admin Log In

Winter Care for Houseplants

12/22/2020

0 Comments

 
by Melinda Myers
Holidays are filled with new plants and decorations that often find our houseplants relegated to any out of the way available space. Be sure to keep your houseplants looking their best with proper winter care. 
Make sure houseplants receive sufficient light now and throughout the winter. The shorter, often gray days of winter mean less light reaches our plants. Start by moving plants to the sunniest available window. A south-facing window is usually best, but if it is obstructed by trees, awnings or shears it may be no better than an unobstructed window facing another direction.
If brightly lit locations are limited in your home, try rotating plants between high and low light areas. Switching plants every few weeks usually keeps them growing healthy. Give the pots a turn every few weeks to ensure each side of the plant has time facing the light. This encourages even growth and discourages stems stretching toward the light.


Consider supplementing natural light with artificial light when light is limited. Newer styles that clip onto pots, are mounted on the wall, or tucked into furniture grade stands make them attractive and easier to use. And now LED plant lights are more affordable, longer lasting and use less energy.
Humidity is the other winter stress. Many of our houseplants are tropical and require higher humidity than our homes provide. As we turn up the heat, the humidity declines.
Boost the humidity around your plants by displaying them together.  As one plant loses moisture, the others will benefit.  Add a gravel tray for additional humidity.  Fill a tray or saucer with pebbles and water. Then set the plant on the pebbles elevated above the water.  As the water evaporates, it increases humidity around the plant.
Adjust your watering schedule to fit the conditions in your home.  Always water thoroughly but only as needed.  Use your finger to check the soil moisture below the soil surface.  Water moisture-loving plants, like Moon Valley Pilea, when the top few inches are barely moist. Allow the top few inches of soil to dry for cacti and succulents. And always pour off excess water that collects in the saucer. Or use gravel trays to capture the excess water, eliminating this task.
Most houseplants do fine in the same temperatures we prefer. They do not tolerate drafts of hot air from heat vents or cold air from windows and doors. Move plants as needed to avoid drafty locations.
Never trap houseplants between the curtain or blinds and the window.  The temperature can be significantly colder, resulting in injury and even death of some plants. Place plants on a table near the window or windowsill extension, leaving room to close the window coverings at night.
Wait until spring to fertilize. Plants do not need as many nutrients when their growth is limited by less-than-ideal winter conditions. As the outdoor growing conditions improve with longer days and brighter light, so do those indoors.
You will be rewarded with healthier, more attractive plants when giving them the care they need this winter.  And as you tend your indoor garden, you will help fight the winter blues.
Melinda Myers is the author of more than 20 gardening books, including Small Space Gardening. She hosts The Great Courses “How to Grow Anything” DVD series and the nationally-syndicated Melinda’s Garden Moment TV & radio program. Myers is a columnist and contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine and her web site is www.MelindaMyers.com.

Picture
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    April 2014
    September 2009

    Categories

    All
    2015
    Sierra County News

    RSS Feed

    Vie
    ​w Old News

CONTACT US:

Sierra Booster Newspaper
PO Box 8
Loyalton, CA 96118
Phone: 530-993-4379
Fax: 844-272-8583
Email: jbuck@psln.com

Website Privacy Policy​
Picture
Local Weather
©Copyright Sierra Booster - Sierra County News - Editorial
Website by Chamber Nation