The soil won’t be drying out as quickly unless you maintain a sauna-like temperature inside your house. As a result, the roots won’t require as much water now.
I water my houseplants usually every seven days because I reside in Tucson, which is hot and dry for five months out of the year. I reduce the frequency to once every 1021 days throughout the winter.
The sort of plants you have, the size and composition of the pots, the humidity level, and how warm or chilly your home are all factors that will affect how frequently you water yours.
Decrease the amount of water.
I water my indoor plants about 25% less throughout the winter. In the summer, I use a larger watering can, and in the winter, I use a smaller one. This stops me from suffocating the plants.
This keeps the soil from becoming too wet near the bottom of the pot, where the majority of the roots are, where I have quite a few large floor plants with a lot of soil mass.
Don’t let too much water collect in the saucer.
You don’t need to completely submerge the grow pot’s bottom in water; a small amount of trickling out onto the saucer is acceptable. Doing so will eventually cause the roots to decay.
It’s good if it rests on pebble or rock layers; more on that under “Humidity.”
Adjust Your Watering Routine
Although it may seem contradictory, the majority of indoor plants require less water in the winter. Despite the fact that winter air is dryer, plants develop more slowly and some even fall into complete dormancy during the colder months. As a result, plants require less water to maintain their hydration, and overwatering can cause root rot. Remember that different plants require varied amounts of water. Drought-tolerant cacti and other succulents may not require any watering, whilst certain tropical plants may still need more frequent watering.
Winter months can cause surface soil to dry up more quickly, but it isn’t necessarily a sign that the plant needs water. When the soil is dry an inch or two below the surface, test it with your finger; if it is, it’s time to get the watering can out.
Tip
Do not water your houseplants with cold water. To prevent shocking the roots of the plant, use water that is close to room temperature. In some winter climates, tap water can become very chilly; thus, wait several hours before using it to water your plants. This kind of gradual warming also enables dissolved gases, such chlorine, to evaportate from the water.
Alter Humidity Levels
The largest challenge that indoor plants face throughout the winter months is often low humidity levels. Plants like a humidity level that is closer to 50%, which might drop to 10 to 20% in heated homes during the winter. If your home has a humidifier, move your plants there so they can benefit from it. If you don’t have a humidifier, find another way to increase the humidity.
Organize your plants first into groupings. Plants naturally release water through their leaves through transpiration, thus combining them will make good use of that moisture. Because they absorb moisture from showers and cooking, bathrooms and kitchens are the greatest places to keep plants.
The age-old method of putting your plants on or close to a tray of water is another excellent choice. But avoid letting the plants submerge themselves in the water. Put stones or pebbles in the tray to elevate the pots’ bottoms above the water line, then set the pots on top of the stones. By doing this, humidity levels will rise without encouraging root rot.
Instead than helping the plants, misting usually works better at making the gardener feel good about themselves. You might believe that spraying your plants will provide them with some comfort, however misting just provides a brief burst of moisture. Because indoor temperatures allow moisture to evaporate quickly, misting is necessary several times a day to be effective. Try misting if you only have a few plants and believe you will be really diligent about it. An indoor plant may rarely be over-mist. Misting plants in humid summers can result in fungal issues, but this shouldn’t be a concern in the winter.
Pay Attention to Temperature
Like most people, most plants thrive in temperatures above 50 degrees Fahrenheit at night and between 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit during the day. Keep your plants away from heat sources like radiators, ovens, fireplaces, and electronics in order to give them that, as well as from chilly drafts. Houseplants can die from temperature changes just as quickly as from extended exposure to heat or cold.
Follow the Sun
In addition to having fewer daylight hours, wintertime sunlight also comes in at a lower angle. Your houseplants might need to be moved to a brighter location or even given more light. An all-day sunny window with a south or west orientation is an ideal location. Moving plants next to a chilly window, however, should be avoided since they might experience a draft.
Every time you water your plants, rotate the pots by roughly a quarter of a turn. This prevents some branches from reaching for the light, allowing the plant to grow evenly and receive some sun on all sides.
The amount of light that reaches plant leaves can also be diminished by layers of dust. This dust can be removed from leaves with a moist cloth, giving plants more access to light during the winter.
Plants will need to be exposed to the grow lights for extended periods of time in regions where the winter sun is essentially nonexistent and where the majority of their light comes from supplemental lighting. If a plant needs six hours of direct sunshine, it can also require an additional 12 or 14 hours of light to provide the same amount of energy. Grow lights are far less strong than sunlight, thus plants require more time under them to absorb enough energy.
Put Your Houseplants on a Diet
Because they are not growing as quickly in the winter, the majority of houseplants don’t require any fertilizer. Stop feeding them until early spring as continuing to do so would only disrupt their natural cycle. Resuming fertilization will give them a boost for the growing season if you start to notice new growth or the present leaves seem to be turning greener.
Some tropical plants grow rather actively all winter long, especially vining climbers or trailers, and they may still need some feeding, but often at decreased rates.
How should indoor plants be cared for during the winter?
We all require light, but because the days are so brief in the winter, it can be difficult to acquire much of it. Like people, plants require light to survive, even indoor plants. Homes only receive a limited amount of light throughout the winter, and if your home doesn’t face the appropriate direction, you might only receive light via select rooms and windows.
Be ready to relocate your plants over the winter to locations with windows and light. For the most light, make sure the windows are thoroughly cleaned both inside and out. In order for the leaves to properly absorb that light, make sure that any dust that has amassed on them has been removed.
How frequently should indoor house plants be watered?
Although watering houseplants may seem like a straightforward operation, many people either overwater them or neglect them until they get parched. Generally speaking, the potting soil for indoor plants should be kept damp but not soggy. In the spring and summer, they typically need watering once or twice a week; in the fall and winter, they require less watering. However, this isn’t always the case, depending on the kind of houseplant.
- Only give orchids a small bit of water once a week to water them.
- Succulents and cacti need relatively little water. When the potting mix has dried out, only water.
- Water citrus plants more frequently and consistently than you would other houseplants.
The Westland Watering Indicator makes it easier to know when to water. This watering stick is very simple to use and may be used all year round. Just insert the stick into the pot of compost. The indicator will then turn red to let you know when the plant needs extra water. When no additional water is required, the indicator will turn blue. Within two hours of watering the plant, the indicator’s color should shift from red to blue.
Another crucial factor is the type of water used on indoor plants. This is due to the fact that many plants are sensitive to the salts and chemicals found in tap water. So it is advisable to use rainwater to water your plants.
Feeding
To promote lush, robust growth, indoor plants must be fed while they are developing. Only while a houseplant is actively developing, not when it is dormant, should it be fed.
During the growing season (spring and summer), the majority of indoor plants need typically be fed every other watering, or around every 10 to 14 days. In the fall and winter, feed indoor plants after every fourth watering because they will need fewer nutrients.
Using a liquid concentrate feed is a good approach to feed houseplants. These are a fantastic way to feed and water your plant simultaneously. They work best, though, when the mixture isn’t created too powerful or too weak. Given that it is filled with the necessary nutrients, Westland Houseplant Feed is a fantastic plant food for indoor plants. Additionally, it contains a simple measure doser that requires only a squeeze of the bottle to fill the dosing chamber. Any extra plant food will be removed by the doser, leaving you with a 5ml dose to mix with 1 liter of water. This indicates that the combination you use to feed your plants is the proper strength.
The list of specialized feeds for various types of indoor plants that include the precise ratio of nutrients required for their growth is provided below.
- Feed for succulents and cacti offers nutrients that improve flowering.
- Citrus feed: provides nutrients that promote fruit development and set.
Why are my houseplants deteriorating in the winter?
The easiest time of year to kill a houseplant is definitely during the winter. Houseplants are put to the test by harsh growing conditions like low light levels, dry air, shorter days, and frigid temperatures.
Making care routine adjustments to accommodate seasonal growing circumstances is the key to ensuring that plants survive the winter. Review the fundamentals to provide your indoor plants with the best care during winter.
Winter causes the sun to set later in the day, which results in a 50% reduction in light levels near windows. During the winter, indoor plants that thrive near a sunny eastern or northern window during the summer may require a southern or western exposure. Similarly, plants near windows in the west or south that require filtered light in the summer might be able to endure direct sunlight in the winter.
To aid plants in adjusting to shifting light conditions:
- If it’s possible, move plants nearer to the windows.
- Window cleaning will maximize light transmission.
- For the winter, move plants to new areas next to windows with more light.
- Cleanse plants to allow leaves to utilize the light that is available to the fullest.
- Add synthetic lighting. Fluorescent lights are sufficient. They generate less heat and are less expensive than conventional grow lights. For best results, place bulbs 4–12 inches away from plants.
Tropical plants, which make up the majority of indoor plants, like daytime temperatures of 65 to 75 F and nighttime temperatures of around 10 F lower. Low temperatures (below 50F) can be problematic for many plants.
In order to make the thermostats more comfortable for you, keep in mind that your plants also require some thought.
- Keep plants away from heat sources and cold gusts.
- Maintain a few inches of space between plants and external windows.
- Plants should be moved away from windows at nightfall in cold climates if windows freeze over at night. Additionally, you may tuck a thick shade or another insulating item between the plants and the glass.
In the cold, homes might only provide 5–10% relative humidity. Houseplants prefer 40–50%. Brown leaf tips and the presence of pests like Spider Mites are indicators that plants are being stressed by low humidity. Learn how to increase the humidity around plants in simple methods.
Overwatering is the most frequent issue that indoor plants encounter throughout the winter. 95% of indoor plants require the soil to almost totally dry out before watering. How do you determine whether plants need water?
- Don’t only test a small area of the soil’s surface. When the root zone is dry, plants require moisture. Insert your finger up to two inches into the ground. Water the soil if it’s dry.
- Pick up the pot. When soil gets dry, it becomes lighter. Lift pots right away after watering to feel the texture of the moist soil.
- Plants won’t need water as frequently if winterized rooms are humidified. Water must be added to dry air.
- The only exceptions to this rule are citrus and ferns in pots, both of which require continually moist soil. If you are uncertain, always do your research.
Never let plants sit in water that gathers in the drainage saucer overnight when you water.
Fertilize plants all winter long in mild climates. Winter fertilization of indoor plants is not recommended in the coldest climates with little natural light. When springtime outside plants begin to grow, fertilizer can be resumed.
In the spring and summer, when most indoor plants are actively growing, is the ideal time to repot them. Potted woody plants that entirely hibernate in the winter are the exception. Transplant those in the early spring before the buds break.
- Numerous advantages of houseplants include bettering indoor air quality and lowering sickness rates.
How long do indoor plants need to be watered?
Are you arranging a trip but will have to leave your plants at home? Do you frequently neglect to water your plants for a few days? If so, do you need to know how long they can go without water?
Plants can typically go up to seven days without water. How long your plants can survive without water, however, may depend on the type and maturity of your plants. Succulents and cacti can last up to three months without water, while fully developed tropical houseplants can go two to three weeks without it.
In the winter, how frequently should I mist my plants?
Making sure your plants are in excellent health before the cold weather arrives is the first rule of winter maintenance for houseplants. Therefore, fall is the ideal season to get your collection of indoor plants ready for success. Give plants one more fertilizer boost (more on that later), generously mist them a few times per week, and perhaps even play them some Mozart because over the winter, plants enter a fragile dormant phase.
Dropping leaves from your indoor plants over the winter is very normal. It’s how they save energy because fewer resources are needed to maintain the health of all those leaves. Don’t overwater your houseplant to make up for shedding leaves that nevertheless appear healthy. Allow it to happen.
Speaking of overwatering, this is the main reason why indoor plants die in the winter. Yellow foliage, rotten soil, and strange small bugs fluttering around the pot are all symptoms of overwatering. Stop watering for at least a few weeks, if not longer, if you notice this happening. If the dirt starts to separate from the pot, let it dry out completely before resuming sporadic watering.
Avoid allowing dust to collect on your plants’ foliage, especially those with large leaves from tropical plants (such as monstera or elephant ears). Winter is the time when your plants need as much light as possible, and dust prevents them from “breathing” by clogging their pores and preventing them from photosynthesizing. Alternatively, place all the plants in the bathtub and turn on the shower to give them a thorough rinse. Gently wipe away any dust with a moist towel. (Be sure they thoroughly dry out after, though.)
Earlier, we mentioned the necessity of light. Don’t go overboard with that. Many individuals believe that relocating a plant near a window will benefit them during the shorter days. However, during the delicate months, excessive heat and sunlight might potentially harm your plants. Maintain indirect lighting for your plants, and keep the temperature between 57 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. To give your plant a vitamin D boost, you may also think about switching the incandescent bulbs in neighboring lights with a full spectrum light if you reside farther north.
Many plants are vulnerable to cold air, particularly tropical plants. They threw leaves around when there was a draft. Make sure the window is tightly shut if your plant often grows right next to a window, or else move it a bit farther away. You should definitely relocate your entryway plants to a location that will shield them from the brisk air coming in and out.
Allow your plant to enjoy its hibernation. Repotting and fertilizing should wait until spring. When you fertilize again, go slowly. The first time you use the fertilizer, dilute it to 1/4 strength.