Helping Houseplants Transition from Winter to Spring

Houseplants require different care than anything that’s potted and grown outdoors, even those houseplants that you normally grow outdoors during the summer months. Potted houseplants deplete the soil they are grown in with time, so it is important that they are constantly fed and provided with nutrients. The change in seasons, from winter to spring, is an especially important time in the life of a houseplant because it is a natural time of growth and renewal for all plants.

In order to help your houseplants transition from winter to spring with as little trauma as possible, there are a few things you need to do and provide them with.

Tips for helping houseplants transition from Winter to Spring

Repot During Active Growth Periods

Your houseplant is going to go through a growth period with spring on its way, even if you do leave it in the same spot and it receives the same amount of sun as it would at any other time of the year. In general, plants begin to branch out more, and their roots sprout additional root hairs in order to support the growth. Move your plant into a larger, deeper pot to provide it with the room it needs and encourage it to grow more.

Prune Stems to Encourage Buds

If you have a flowering plant, you want to see as many flowers being produced as possible. In order for you to enjoy the best show from your houseplant this spring, it is necessary to prune the old stems back so that new growth has the time to come up and provide you with flowers. Even if you have a non-flowering houseplant, spring is the best time to prune back what already exists of the plant so that you can encourage and maintain a more compact and bushy plant rather than something that gets too leggy.

Increase the Plants Light Exposure

If your plant is near a window already, it’s being exposed to the increase in sunlight in growing increments. If you have your houseplant in a room where sunlight is not reaching it directly, its time to move it closer to a window. In order to encourage the new spring growth and see any blooms from your plant, it needs to be able to get eight hours of sunlight a day, in varying amounts. Rather than stress out your houseplant when summer is finally here, begin leaving it near the window for an extra hour a day, then two and increase from there.

Fertilize in Spring

In order to provide for this latest growth spurt, fertilizer is necessary to get the nutrients into your plant. Winter doesn’t require constant fertilizing because you wanted to encourage dormancy, but in the spring all those new leaves and buds are going to need nutrients that only you can provide. Add slow-releasing fertilizer to your potting soil every two weeks, this way if you forget the slow releasing formula won’t leave your plant without.