Whether you're introducing new houseplants into your home or reintroducing them back inside after they've soaked up the outdoors and sunshine, here are our best tips for keeping pests out and plants thriving year round!
When temps begin dropping and the days grow colder and shorter, it's time to bring your green babies back indoors.
1. Timing
Your tropical types need to come back inside first as they are the most sensitive to cold, followed by your succulents and then cactus varieties. Basically, the reverse order as we suggested in our blog post 3 Tips for Bringing Houseplants Outdoors
*Bringing a new green friend home? Jump to Steps 2-5 for the perfect way to introduce new plants (not pests) to your home!
We suggest bringing tropicals inside when the weather dips into the mid to low 50's (50º fahrenheit/10º celsius) at night. You can bring everyone in at the same time to make things more efficient, but most of your succulents and cactus are a bit hardier and can handle temps into the mid 40's, about 45º/7º is generally a safe bet.
2. Trim and Soil Scrape
Gather up your plants outside and begin removing any dead or leaves, trim or prune anything that isn't contributing to the growth of your plant.
Next, remove the top layer of soil! Why? That's where any uninvited guests may be hanging out or have laid their eggs, like the difficult to detect thrips or those pesky fungus gnats. Trust us, any time you can avoid bringing pests indoors will save yourself hours of plant care in the future!
To remove the soil, simply scrape off the top two inches with a small shovel, large knife or spoon and discard.
What makes our Plant Care Tonics Safe & Effective?
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3. Clean Plant and Pot
Then, enjoy a little aromatherapy while you spray down leaves, stems, and topsoil and don't forget the pot! With Sacred Leaf Tonic, you will be cleaning and nourishing the leaves and treating pests while preventing future infestations, plus, our tonic smells amazing too!
Our tonics work wonders to treat and repel a variety of pests. It's a holistic approach to plant care we offer these beautiful products for your plant care routine to safely and effectively boost the overall immunity of your houseplants and garden.
4. Sacred Soil Drench!
Now that you've scraped off the top few inches of soil, it's time for a plant bubble bath! Mix up a double dose of Sacred Soil Tonic for this step to treat your plants to a saponin rich infusion of phytohormones and minerals.
Mix a double dose for a foamy Sacred Soil Bath (one gallon application)
You will need: Sacred Soil Tonic + 1 Galloon Water + Large container with a lid
1. Pour 20ml (4 teaspoons) of Sacred Soil Tonic into container
2. Add 3/4 of the water, this allows empty space inside for the mixture to have space to be properly agitated and extra foamy!
3. Close lid and shake hard for 30-45 seconds until foamy
4. Add remaining water to fulfill the proper ratio
Pour *slowly* and enjoy the sound of saponin-rich botanicals sinking into your soil nourishing your plants from the inside out!
*Note: We use the higher dosage when dealing with pests and the lower for general nourishment
Using Sacred Soil Tonic not only feeds the soil with rich, immune boosting botanicals, it also rids your plants of any unseen or lingering pests like root aphids, thrips, or fungus gnat larvae that may go undetected.
Be sure to get all sides of the leaves, undersides and bottom of each pot and/or saucer too. Mealybugs love to hide under there!
5. Find a brightly lit location or place under lights
Now that your plants are cleaned, sprayed and enjoyed a bath, find them a good location to continue getting at least 4-6 hours of direct and/or indirect sunlight or place under a grow light.
*Quick reminder, our natural plant care tonics are most effective when used as ongoing treatment to prevent pests and nourish plants. During the winter months, when growing in natural sunlight your plants aren't getting the same intense sun as during the spring and summer seasons (unless you use grow lights). This means they don't need to be fertilized as often. They are not putting as much light energy to work to grow.
Hope that helps to guide you into the best growing journey.
With love,
Karina and Team SE
