Bringing houseplants outdoors can save your plants from death! We try to set up a good environment for our plants yet still there may be some issues What’s going on to our extended plant family members?
Plants thrive off of three basic requirements- sun, water and heat. Let’s find out why bringing your plants outside is a huge benefit for them.
- Plant boost
Being exposed to a natural environment offers plants a boost of energy. Depending on the plant that you bring outdoors, most plants love being exposed to the sun. Just like us humans, we love to experience the warm sun on our skin. There’s something warming and invigorating about having the sun in our face especially after we’ve been cooped up in our home for long periods of time. Other positive benefits include a fresh airflow from nice cool breezes which in turn helps with lowering the pest population.
2. Harness power of the sun
Ahh the wonderful sun that provides so much life to us humans and our plants. When humans are exposed to the sun, it’s absorbed by the skin and then converted to Vitamin D3 which is the activated form of Vitamin D. Now plants don’t suck up vitamin D but they do receive lots of nutrients from the sun. Plants also have Light Harvesting Complexes -LHC protein systems. This cool system converts the solar energy into nutrients using pigments found in the plant2. One of these pigments like Chlorophyll is what gives the plant it’s luscious and vibrant green color.
A question to ask yourself is-what type of sunlight does your plant need? Not every plant has the same light requirements. You have full shade, partial shade/sun and full sun. For example the Monstera Deliciosa and Pothos plants can’t stand direct sunlight at all. They will burn to a crisp if you don’t provide some shade from those brutal rays.
The Yucca plant and Philodendrons etc. houseplants can tolerate partial sun/shade and some even full sun. They are more hardier and can withstand a few hours of direct light but remember PARTIAL sun. That means that after a while they must be provided shade. Keep in mind that morning sun is less stronger than afternoon sun. My Monstera Deliciosa as you see in the picture has been terribly burned with placing it in the wrong spot.
3. Watering
Watering your plants can be quite tricky especially when inside your home. Being you have to create the best environment, when it comes to watering it’s quite unforgiving. If you’re like me then you’ve kill a plant or few due to either over or underwatering your plant babies. The beauty of bringing your plants outside is that they can get pure rain water which is just wonderful for growth. A few things to consider though when bringing them outdoors. The more direct sun they get will dry them out a lot faster than indoors. Inside your home the temperature is regulated and it may not be it’s ideal and thriving temperature. Also keep in mind the terrain that you live in. Dry states like Arizona or Nevada will have less humidity and can dry up a lot faster than a humid state like Pennsylvania. Another factor to consider is how much in rains. If it rains more frequently than other areas, chances are you may not need to water as much compared to if you lived in Arizona. This is where mindfulness comes into play as we must be aware of our plants needs and how much water you’re giving them.
4. Hiding plants
You’re probably asking yourself why would you need to hide your houseplants? Let’s say that where you live there is minimal to no shade, that can pose a problem with shade loving plants. Remember we talked about the sun burning our plants from too much sun? Yep that sun as beautiful as it is it can burn sensitive plants so it’s a must to hide them from the rays. It first starts with knowing that plants needs. If you have shrubs or other plants outdoors already, you can literally hide them behind those shrubs. Got trees? Put the plants in the areas that are covered with shade from the tree. Have no greenery around you? Use inanimate objects for shade. Hide them behind your home, shed, car etc. Let’s get creative! You can even use a shade cloth when all else fails. Those shade cloths offer a boatload of shade that can block up the 50% of the sun’s rays which those sensitive plants will appreciate it.
5. Wildlife
Every state has their fair share of wildlife and they are HUNGRY. Your state may vary with the type of animals it has but one thing’s for sure, they can be destructive. In Pennsylvania there is a lot of woodlands and mountains so there is an abundance of deer. You’d be surprised what these deer are will eat. Even if they didn’t like the plant, they would’ve had to have tried the plant before they find out it’s not tasty. When I first moved to Pennsylvania and started working on my front lawn, those deer were out in full effect eating ALL of my sunflowers. You can just imagine what damage can be done in just one night! Hiding the plants out of view could save them. There’s that hiding your plants again, comes in handy right? When in doubt there is always a fence or some other barrier between the animals and plants. Most herbivores will follow the path of least resistance so a barrier even as a simple chicken wire fence can deter animals.
6. Fertilizer
I refer to humans when talking about plants because we both are organic beings and we require the same basic elements. When our houseplants or our gardens are in their element, they’re going to need some added nutrients. We take vitamins for added nutrients right? I’m sure our plants would appreciate and do a lot better if we gave them more fertilizer. Bringing houseplants outside can shoot them into a growth spurt so fertilizing in their prime is important. Remember not every plant is the same so some plants like succulents and cacti would need way less fertilizing than let’s say a vigorous vining plant. Here comes the mindfulness again!
Footnotes
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/light-harvesting-complex#:~:text=Light%2Dharvesting%20complexes%20(LHC),the%20thylakoid%20membranes%20within%20plastids.
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/light-harvesting-complex#:~:text=Light%2Dharvesting%20complexes%20(LHC),the%20thylakoid%20membranes%20within%20plastids.