How to Care for Your Houseplants in the Winter

The winter can be a hard time, especially for plants that are not accustomed to the cooler weather. This season help your plants survive the cold with these simple tips:

Lighting. Make sure your plant is getting the right amount of sunlight. Each plant is different and some prefer less direct sunlight than others. When buying a plant, read about what kind of care it requires or talk to a specialist who can give you some tips. A general rule of thumb, most blooming plants need more sunlight than non-bloomers.

Porthos plant via GardeningKnowHow.com

Water. Don’t drown your plants in lots of water unless they are bamboo. One of my favorite plants, the Porthos, does not like a lot of water so if you are looking for an easier plant to care for this might be the right one for you.

Dust. Keep your plant’s leaves free of dust to help them breathe better and get their required nutrients. What I've found to be the easiest is to have a spray bottle with water and about once every month go around my house and spray the leaves of my plants. Another tip, if you are battling fruit flies around your plants, add about 10 drops of peppermint essential oil to the water and spray around the base of the plant (where you are seeing the flies). I did that with my plants and have not had any of those annoying flies since.

Humidity. Utah is a dry state and in the winter, with our heaters warming our homes, we get even drier. Add humidity for your plants and for you (keep your skin from drying out) by running a humidifier. If you don’t have one, I strongly suggest you look at investing in one because it really does make a difference.