Yes, it is summer, and it is warm as you spend loads of time in the garden. Still, when the outdoor gardening season ends, it does not mean the end of container gardening. 🥰
In contrast, as nighttime temperatures drop, most outdoor plants do not survive the cold temperature. Then it is time to repurpose your outdoor plants indoors.
This means bringing plants indoors, whether they are vacationing houseplants or you want them to come inside for the winter, or you can do this for summer.
With some planning, those tender plants, like tropical plants, can thrive indoors and make it through the cold weather unscathed to join other houseplants inside for the winter.
Or you can repurpose your outdoor plants to add beauty to the home in summer. The strategies provided here will help you achieve this.
What to Do With Plants Outside and Bring Indoors
When it comes to bringing outdoor plants indoors, whether to add beauty or overwintering, it all comes down to choosing the right type of plant.
A fact is that not all cultivars can survive in the growing conditions indoors as potted plants. When you think 🤔 of indoor plant care, you need to consider the limited light, humidity, and warmth.
The chance is you have fewer spots in the home with sun or too much light, and considering the plant’s indoor needs is essential if it can survive indirect light.
Thus, it would be best to make tough choices about what plants you can keep inside a pot. Yes, at plant lovers, we are tempted to move plants into the home (all of them) if we can, but instead, run through this checklist before moving them inside.
How Healthy is Your Plant to Grow as Indoor Plants Inside
The question is essential, as you can only keep healthy plants inside. If a plant struggles in the best growing conditions during spring or summer, it will not make it with indoor lighting.
So, the best option you have is to propagate it and send the rest to a final resting place in the compost bin 🚮 or trash.
First, Debug Plants Before Bringing Indoors
Bringing plants into the home with bugs is a big NO, especially when infested with insects or diseases. These problems spread fast among other houseplants.
So, quarantine troubled plants with health problems as you cannot guarantee it will not spread. But a bit more on that later.
Take Your Space Into Consideration
Prioritize what plants you want inside, especially with limited space. But if you have enough space, bring plants inside to brighten those dull spots.
If you had an expensive splurge with tropical plants outside, they are worth bringing inside.
Can The Plants Handle Lower Light Conditions?
If a plant looks great as a potted plant, bring them indoors. You may find your home has extra humidity and light to the proper temperatures for them to adapt to the new environment.
You might even find you can grow true annuals in a larger container indoors in the available light. Think of the passion flower, geranium, begonia, or fuchsia.
With the right day-to-night temperatures, your plants will flower year-round.
Bringing Plants Inside, Like Vegetables
Moving plants like tomatoes and peppers inside will help produce fruit in summer and winter. Still, it will need the right growing conditions.
So, choose a large pot to provide them with enough space for healthy growth. Examples are cherry tomatoes to your small-fruited peppers like chili.
But remember, there are no beneficial insects to pollinate them, and you must do it manually.
How to Debug a Plant To Bring Indoors
Whether you want to repurpose a plant in the home for the summer or winter, you must debug them. Another important thing is to bring them into the home in small batches when you debug them.
If you have a pot-bound cultivar and want to bring them inside for especially winter, repot them and provide fresh soil.
Also, look out for aphids, spider mites, and mealybugs, which can become a huge problem with indoor plants.
Step-By-Step Guide to Debug Plants To Bring Indoors
Here we have two methods to debug vegetation two weeks before the frost arrives or when brought indoors to liven up your place.
Debugging Plants in Containers With Drainage Holes to Remove Pests
Fill a large utility tub with tepid water and a wash bucket with warm water.
Then add a few squirts of mild liquid soap to fill them. Never use soaps with degreasers or detergents, as they can damage your sensitive plants. The soap works as an insecticidal soap to kill insects.
Then place your plants into the soapy water to give them a good soak and kill bugs. You can soak the whole plant and the pot in the tub for up to 20 minutes.
Then clean the leaves, not submerged, using neem spray or an organic insecticide soap.
A good recipe is one teaspoon of mild liquid soap in 0.26 gallons of water in a spray bottle.
When placing the plants in the water, you will see dead leaves, other debris, and bugs floating to the top. Using a kitchen strainer, you can remove the floating pieces before removing the plant.
Remove your potted plant, clean the pots with a brush, and check all crevices.
Please rinse it with a hose to remove the dirt and soap.
Allow excess water to drain before moving them indoors. Before moving them indoors, remove the dead leaves and debris in the water before soaking another plant.
Still, do not place them with your houseplants and keep them in a separate room under quarantine for a while.
Debugging Plants Too Large to Soak in Your Outdoor Garden
You can wash them with soapy water on the leaves and stem and rinse them using a garden hose.
Once your plant’s foliage is dry, spray the whole plant with neem oil.
Alternatives to Repurposing Plants
Before you bring potted plants into the home, especially for winter, consider that some tender perennials benefit from a dormancy period in the colder months.
You may find that you can bring plants like rosemary or lavender in summer, provided that you give them bright light.
They must be overwintered in a basement or garage. Also, do not allow the pots to dry out and maintain consistent soil moisture.
You can water them when the top few inches of the soil is dry and ensure they have enough drainage holes for excess moisture to drain.
Final Thoughts
Always consider the available space and provide adequate light when bringing plants indoors for the summer or winter.
Still, if you do not want to bring the entire plant into the home, you can always take a cutting from the mother to place in a plant pot to grow indoors.
These seedlings will develop a root system to become established inside your home. Hence, you will have more plants similar to the ones in your outdoor garden.
Also, give any plants you move inside enough time to acclimate and get used to the growing environment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Before taking any species indoors, spray the leaves, trunk, and stems with soapy water or use insecticidal soap to eliminate hitchhiking pests.
One of the easiest solutions is to spray your plants with an insecticidal soapy or wash them with mild soapy water.
Soak your plants in soapy water and rinse them with clean water leaving them to dry, allowing excess moisture to drain. Clean the planter well and take them inside into a different spot away from other plants until you are happy there are no pests.
If you plan to bring plants into the home for winter, check your plants for pests at least two weeks before the first frost.
First, repot your plant with fresh potting soil and then spray them with insecticide for spider mites, aphids, or mealybugs. Do this outside, and once done, place your plant in quarantine for a while away from your houseplants.
If you feel assured that the plant has lived in the right conditions, like full sun, you need not do the following. But if you are unsure, we recommend placing them in indirect bright light, allowing the plant to get used to the new environment and thrive gradually.
Whether you want to buy, sell, or simply reach out to other plant enthusiasts, Plantly is the right place to be!
