Fall Houseplant Care Tips
As fall is a time of change and transition for us, it is also for our houseplants. Cooler weather and waning hours of daylight are just some of the fall factors that can affect your houseplant collection. While your plants may live indoors, they are affected by the changing of the season that’s happening outdoors. These changes require some adjustments in the way you care for your plants. Not to worry, as these changes are small, but can make a big difference in keeping your plants happy and healthy during the cooler months of the year.
We’ve put together our most important fall plant care tips and advice - so adjust your care routine accordingly!
Fall Houseplant Care
Time to come inside.
If any of your houseplants enjoyed a summer outdoors, it is time to bring them back in. When early autumn arrives and temperatures begin to dip below 55-60F, this is the time to return indoors. It is important to bring plants inside before there is a risk of frost or freeze damage. Before bringing your plants back inside, make sure to check for any pests that moved in during the summer months and debug accordingly. You may find it helpful to read about these 5 common houseplant pests and how to treat them.
Keep away from drafty areas.
Find a spot in your home that will be comfortable for your plants. You want to make sure to place them away from any drafty doors or windows. Even a quick flash of freezing air can be damaging to your plants. Alternatively, placing your plants too close to a heat vent or heating source can make your plant unhappy as well. Typically houseplants grow best and enjoy temperatures of 60-75F in our homes.
Boost up the humidity.
Heating your home in the fall and winter is a necessity but also makes your houseplants a little uncomfortable. We all know that when the furnace starts running more frequently, the air in your home feels drier. To make your plants happy, invest in a humidifier to place in a room or area where your plants are located. You will benefit from this as well! Another recommendation is to group like plants together, as plants give off their own humidity in a process called transpiration. Placing enough plants together will create their own substantially more humid microclimate. If you are feeling crafty, create your own DIY plant humidifier tray, using pebbles or decorative stones. The evaporation from the tray will naturally humidify the area for your plant.
Slow down on watering.
An important fall plant care point to remember is that as we tend to slow down in the cooler months of the year, so do our plants. During the cooler and darker months of the year, plants will go into a rest period or dormancy, where growth will slow down or stop. During this time you should ease back on the amount or frequency you are watering your plants. If you have a hard time easing back on watering, check for dry soil or use a moisture gauge to give you a head’s up when your plants need watering.
Show them the light.
As fall begins, your plants are coming off of long summer days basking in the sunlight. When the days get shorter and the hours of sunlight diminish, you will want to think about relocating your plants to a spot where they have access to more sunlight. Also, consider rotating your plants weekly so that each side gets to enjoy the sunshine and your plant will not lean.
Wean them off fertilizer.
Because your houseplants are transitioning into a period of rest or dormancy during the fall and winter months, you do not need to fertilize them. Instead of stopping cold turkey, begin lowering your fertilizer doses towards the end of summer until your houseplants are completely weaned off by fall. You can gear back up your fertilizing routine in the spring, the beginning of the growth season.
For more fall plant care tips and advice on when to transition plants indoors and out, check out our post on outdoor care tips for houseplants.
Now is the time for you and your houseplants to slow down, start to cozy up inside and hunker down for the winter months to come.