4 Things You Need to Know about Winter and Houseplants

Growing Joy with Plants - Wellness Rooted in Nature, Houseplants, Gardening and Plant Care

Maria Failla- Happy Plant Lady and Author of Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness

Education, How To, Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Home & Garden, Leisure

4.8 • 883 Ratings

🗓️ 12 December 2023

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The winter can be challenging for indoor tropical houseplants that thrive in hot, humid environments. While our houseplants do not experience the true dormancy of outdoor deciduous plants (plants that drop all their leaves at some point in the year), they can enter a period of slowed growth known as “quiescence.” During this time, they require adjusted care to stay happy and healthy. After keeping houseplants for many winters and making my share of mistakes, I want to share the knowledge I’ve gained about their winter care needs in this episode.

In this episode, we learn:

[04:05] Dormancy vs quiescence
[05:47] Why winter is a great time to explore your inner quiescence
[06:25] #1 The light levels are going to change
[07:14] Why some plants might have more light availability during winter (exception to the rule)
[08:29] Few things to do to help your plants survive the winter when there is less light available
[10:13] #2 Your houseplants are going to hate your heaters
[12:18] Tips for dealing with dry heat
[15:05] Where can you find quality products for your indoor and outdoor planting needs?
[16:43] Looking for unique and soothing chimes as a holiday gift?
[18:48] #3 Winter is the time that pests like to show up
[19:51] How to deal with plant pests
[21:41] #4 Fertilize if you see new growth
[23:28] I just got a Monstera Thai constellation!
[24:26] Bonus Tip #1: Don't freak out that much about dropping leaves
[25:36] Bonus Tip #2: If you’re dying, force bulbs inside!
[27:14] Key insights you can learn to experience quiescence in your life!

Mentioned in our conversation:

For additional tips on winter plant care,

check out the full show notes and blog here!

Thank you to our episode sponsors:

Espoma Organic

Make sure your plants are all set for the new season! Espoma Organic is dedicated to making safe indoor and outdoor gardening products for people, pets, and the planet. They have an amazing variety of high-quality, organic potting mixes, garden soil, fertilizers, and pest control products that are organic and eco-friendly. To top it all off, they have a huge sustainability commitment with a 100% solar-powered plant, zero waste manufacturing and eco-friendly packaging.

Visit espoma.com to find your local Espoma dealer or check my Amazon storefront.

Wind River Chimes

This holiday season, bring more peace, serenity, and magic into your home with chimes. Wind River is a Virginia-based company creating premium handcrafted and hand-tuned wind chimes for over 35 years. If you are looking for a new way to grow joy in your life and find a moment of peace, a Wind River chime is the perfect addition to your home or garden. Plus, it's a perfect personalized gift for your loved ones this holiday season!

Visit windriverchimes.com and use code GROWINGJOY to receive free engraving on all Corinthian Bells wind chimes.

Follow Maria and Growing Joy:

Order my book: Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness (and Plants) by Maria Failla, Illustrated by Samantha Leung

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* Check out Outdoor Electronics: www.google.com

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Did you know that our houseplants, which we keep indoors, actually can experience the seasonal changes that
0:07.0	if you live in an area that experiences winter that goes through the four seasons,
0:11.9	although it might be counterintuitive because our houseplants
0:14.4	were kept inside, they are going to go through the four seasons alongside you, not to the same extent
0:21.2	as the nature outdoors will obviously, but they will feel the changes.
0:25.9	Whether these tropical plants like it or not, winter can be a real struggle for house plants
0:31.7	because you're dealing with a drop in temperature, lower
0:34.7	light, forced heat that is going to dry your air out and make your plants miserable
0:40.1	because our house plants are tropical, they like humidity, right?
0:43.0	But never fear my plant, friends, because I have lived with houseplants for seven winters.
0:47.6	I have survived seven winters with thriving houseplants.
0:51.0	And yes, I've made some mistakes along the way way but I've learned from them and I'm here
0:54.7	to give you five tips that are going to transform your relationship with your plans and
0:59.2	your plants happiness in the winter.
1:01.7	Welcome to the Growing Joy Podcast, where we not only learn how to care for plants successfully,
1:07.0	but how to simply and affordably use our plant babies to cultivate more joy in our lives. I'm Maria, author of Growing Joy,
1:14.6	the Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness,
1:17.0	speaker, podcaster, and most importantly,
1:19.6	an epic plant killer turned happy plant lady. On Growing Joy joy you'll find conversations about plant care, plant community, and
1:26.8	wellness through the lens of plants. Plant care is self-care on Growing Joy, the Podcast.
1:34.3	Hi Plant Friends, welcome!
1:36.3	If you're new here, welcome.
	...

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