Most class , northerly gardener who lend their houseplants outside for summer would be done moving houseplant indoors by now . But with the warm temperature we ’ve had this fall , there may be a fewhoyas , pothos , citrus treesor other houseplant still hanging out on the patio . The time for move will soon be upon us , though .
Moving houseplants indoors after spend the summertime outside requires some care and observance by the nurseryman to verify the works thrives indoors and does n’t impart with it too many bugs and disease . A few summit for go day :
Before moving houseplants indoors for winter , give them a exhaustive inspection and cleaning . agree the plants for insects , particularly the underside of the leaves , where hemipterous insect run to cling out . It ’s a good idea to wash the exterior of the pot and hose down the folio very thoroughly as well , both for neatness and to cut what else may come into the theater . You may also need to spray the leaves with an insecticidal soap to further reduce the dirt ball pests that may come indoors with the plant . There are several organic choice for this .
This Norfolk Island pine is all cleaned up and ready to go inside for winter.
Your plant credibly grew a act while outdoors — lots of Lord’s Day will do that ! If the leaves are looking ragged , you may want to prune back any leaves that look stagnant , diseased , brown or scraggly . This is also a opportunity to remold the works , if you ’d like .
Fall is NOT the fourth dimension to repot a houseplant into a expectant mint . ( Trust me , I learned this the hard manner . ) However , you may want to dig out the top 2 inches or so of soil in the pot and append back some fresh potting ground . One understanding to interchange soil when moving houseplant indoors is that insects are most probable to have laid eggs in the top of the soil . This may clean out some of that generation . It also afford the plant a light mite of fertilizer . If you really want to put the plant in a newfangled pot for design or esthetic reasons , choose a heap that is about the same size or minuscule than the one the plant life is in now .
Last twelvemonth , I had a terrible problem withfungus gnats , which is the most coarse pest you will see when houseplants issue forth back inside after the summertime . I tried hole , which keep numbers down but did n’t rule out the job , but then read about using backbone as a mulch on problem plant life . I purchase some sand at the hardware store and add about a half column inch level on top of the grime of the gage where the gnat were breeding . This pretty much ended the upshot . The sand create a barrier that the gnat ca n’t penetrate to position their egg . lacrimation disrupt the sand , but you may put it back in position after watering or force some of it aside for soft tearing .
Clean windows give your houseplants the best light.
You probably do it where you ’ll be putting the houseplants after moving them back indoors . ensure the area has the proper light for each works and consider give your windows a serious cleaning after convey the houseplant back . You ’d be amazed how much twinkle can be blocked by stale or grimy window . Plus , you ’ll feel more cheerful with all the extra light , particularly as the day get shorter .
If you find you have more plants than you have space for ( how could that come about ? ) , deliberate gift one to a friend or new gardener . There are manyeasy houseplant for beginnersand plant that are safe forhomes with dogs and Caterpillar .
Mary Lahr Schieris a Minnesota gardener , writer and editor in chief and author of The Northern Gardener , From Apples to Zinnias , 150 Years of Garden Wisdom ( Minnesota Historical Society Press , 2017 ) , winner of the Silver Award of Merit from GardenComm in 2018 . For 18 class , she edited Northern Gardener clip , the publication of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society and the only magazine dedicated to horticulture in USDA Zones 3 , 4 and 5 ..
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