Winter Care For House Plants in India

Taking care of Indoor Plants during the winter is harder than it is during the summer. Chill dry air, lack of sunlight and cool temperature make it much harder to take care of indoor plants. No doubt it is a season to rejoice the cold weather.Like humans, plants also need extra care during winters. As winter has already started I would like to provide you with some tips for how to keep houseplants alive in winter, without all the fuss mainly in India.

Here are some tips:-

1) Watering

As the air is more dry during the winter indoor plants will need lesser water than summer. Almost all house plants go into hibernation mode over the winter, which means they don’t need as much water. And if you keep watering them at summer rates, they could develop rot or diseases.

2) Temperature

Fluctuations in temperature can be just as damaging as prolonged periods of heat or cold. Therefore it is necessary to maintain a constant optimum temperature. Use of heaters can serve as a good option.\

3) Humidity

The biggest problem to overcome during winter is low humidity. Plants prefer a humidity level closer to 50%. Placing a humidifier in the room where our plants are kept can add a little more moisture in dry season and may help keep delicate plants from browning or simply we can keep a bowl of water near our plants.

4) Sunlight

As the day becomes shorter in winter, the amount of sunlight decreases. Hence it is essential to relocate the houseplants to a brighter spot or even add supplemental light to ensure all sides of the plants get some sun.

7)  Say NO To Fertilizers

Similar to water, you need not over fertilize your house plants in the winter. And if your plants are healthy, skip fertilizing altogether. Feeding them now will just upset their natural cycle, so hold off until early spring. Then resume fertilizing, to give them a boost for the growing season. If you think they need some fertilizer, dilute it by at least 50 percent before applying.

8) Re-Potting

Its a big no for re-potting plants in the winter time. Its goes very tough on plants and they will need all their strength during this season. So wait till the spring or the summer to repot the plants.

9) Clean The Foliage

In the winter, more dust often spread through the air in closed rooms. Dusty Foliage might increase disease and prevent the house plants from absorbing sunlight during winter season. We can either brush the leaves with a soft makeup brush( i use old makeup brush for dusting leaves as they are very soft) or wipe leaves with a wet cloth.

10) Watch For Pests

During the winter months the increased heat from the heaters, lack of sunlight, and increased humidity from humidifiers all can lead to pests like spider mites, fungus gnats, mealybugs and other bugs. And if  one plant get affected they can easily spread throughout the house and spread to other plants. Isolate the affected plant and treat it immediately.