Bring Your Outdoor Plants Indoors in 4 Easy Steps
Seasons change and in Chicago that means it‘s time to bring your plant babies back indoors for the winter. Curious about how to do it? Follow along with Shudio‘s owner and plant expert Merl Kinzie on how to bring your tropical plants indoors!
What you‘ll need
- Fresh Soil
- White vinegar
- Water
- Spray bottle
- Castile soap
- Neem Oil
- Insect Control Granules
- Clean towels
- Step #1 | PREP & REFRESH
- Even if the plant hasn’t outgrown its current pot, still refresh the soil to remove any bug hitchhikers.
- Once the old soil has been removed, use a simple mix of 1 part vinegar to 1 part water in a spray bottle to clean the pot, inside and out.
- Repot your plant with fresh soil adding some at the bottom of the pot, then the plant, and top with more fresh soil.
- If your plant has outgrown its pot, then this is the perfect time to swap it out for a bigger pot.
- Step #2 | CLEAN
- After cleaning the pot & adding fresh soil, clean the foliage with 1 part castile soap to 4 parts water in a Spray bottle. Spray the plant thoroughly, allow it to sit for a few minutes, then rinse the plant with clean water.
- To make sure all dirt, debris & pests are removed from the plant, pat dry the plant with a clean towel...yes, that means top AND bottom of every leaf.
- Step #3 | NOURISH
- Shine and protect the leaves from pests with diluted Neem Oil. Great for cleaning leaves & bug prevention. Add Neem Oil to a clean towel and lightly wipe the leaves again top and bottom. Don’t forget to wipe down the stems too!
- Your best friend when it comes to pest prevention is Insect Control Systemic Granules, these little granules will protect your plants against fungus gnats, mealybug, whitefly, termite, aphids, and more.
- Just Sprinkle lightly around the topsoil, mix into soil, then water the plant as normal.
- Step #4 | FINISH & ADMIRE
- If you had any previous pest infestations on your plant as prior to bringing them indoors, we recommend isolating them for a couple weeks to ensure they do not spread to your other plants.
- You did it! Admire, praise, and whisper sweet nothings to your shiny, happy, PEST-FREE plants, and help each other get through the winter months ahead.
