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Caring for house plants after bringing them indoors Date published: 11/27/2009
WITH COLDER weather coming soon, it's time to bring in your tender tropical plants. You'll need to make some cultural adjustments for the care of your indoor plants once you bring them indoors. Light, temperature, water, nutrition and soil are the main factors affecting plant growth. LIGHT Light is necessary to grow healthy plants. Light intensity is measured in foot-candles (fc), and indoor plants are often classified by the amount of light they require: Low (minimum 25-75 fc, 75-200 preferred for good growth) Medium (minimum 75-150 fc, 150-500 preferred) High (minimum 150-1,000 fc, 500-1,000 preferred) Very high (minimum 1,000 fc, 1,000-plus preferred)
A sunny day will register about 10,000 fc outdoors, while the interior of even well-lighted homes often has less than 100 fc So plants that require very high light will generally not do well inside. Plants that require high intensity should be placed near a window with a southern or western exposure. Medium light plants can be grown up to several feet away from these light sources or in eastern exposures, while low light plants can be grown several feet away from eastern exposures or in northern exposures. Artificial light can be used to supplement natural light, but the correct light source must be used. Fluorescent or special incandescent light works best. Standard incandescent bulbs do not provide adequate light. Plants grown under incandescent light tend to get leggy. TEMPERATURE Most house plants grow best when daytime temperatures are between 70 and 80 degrees, and 60 to 65 degrees at night. Though many homes fall within this range, remember to not turn your thermostat down too far when you leave for a few days. Most house plants are tropical in origin and can be damaged when temperatures reach 50 degrees. WATERING Improper watering can be the most detrimental factor to indoor plant health. How often you should water has no simple answer. Factors such as plant size, container size, soil type, temperature and humidity as well as plant species all apply.
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