Getting Your Tropical Plants Ready To Come Inside For Winter

It's almost Autumn and time to get your beautiful tropical plants ready to come inside for the Winter. A lot of your little beauties will love it inside, you don't have to let them whither away outside through the cold. Try to do it while it is between 60-70 degrees outside as it will allow them to acclimate to your indoor temperatures. Below I will show you a few simple steps to get them ready to join you in your home. 

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One simple great way to get your plants ready to come inside during winter is to submerge them. It may seem strange at first but this is one of the easiest ways to get all of the bugs and little pests off your tropical plants so that you don't have little hitchhikers. Take the entire plant, pot included, and place them in the water and leave it there for 15 minutes. This will drown the pests waiting in the soil, and free any debris or dead foliage to float to the top. Love it! 

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Next, take a damp cloth and clean off the leaves. Be sure to get the top and under side of the leaves in case there are any pests hiding. 

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Take the pot and plant out of the water and place in a shaded area for approximately a week or until the soil is dry. Now is a great time to clean the outside of your pot as well. Try to find an area if you can that is not dirty to set your plant on. That way it will not get dirty as you wait for it to dry out and get acclimated before coming inside. 

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Lastly find a spot in your home that faces a window. Even shade loving plants need a little sunlight. For full sun plants find a south facing window, and for part sun an east or west facing window. Remember to do a lot of the cleaning, soaking, drying out, and acclimating outside so that you don't make a mess in your home. Also, be sure to think of watering needs for your tropical plants because a lot of them will turn to mush inside due to them not getting as much photosynthesis, DO NOT OVERWATER. Try to stay away from drafty windows, open/closing doors, and group them together to keep the humidity higher which they like.

I love bringing my tropical plants indoors during Winter. It makes me happy to enjoy them year round, and as it gets warmer with the seasons I can add them back to my gardens. Just remember to not give them too much water as roots need oxygen to grow. Also, for those of you who don't have a lot of sunny windows...you can buy a grow light bulb from your nearest hardware store. 

Enjoy bringing GardenStyle to your home and indoors and out.