By Markis Hill

The gloomy winter months are a struggle for a plant lover, like me. It may be cold and brown on the outside, but not so inside as my house gets overcrowded with tropicals, cacti and tropical cacti that had spent the growing season on my deck.

With every corner and open space near the window taken up by pots on pots, inside pots, and on top of pots, plant care is pretty tricky. There are a few things to remember to keep your houseplants alive to see the next growing season.

When bringing plants inside, one big idea to remember is that it was, in fact, outside. This means a couple of things. A major point is that outside, there were plenty of insects, bugs, mites, spiders and other wildlife that was also located outside.

These critters often find a way to find their way indoors when your plants come in. This could be resting on the undersides of leaves, hiding on the bottoms of pots or laying eggs in the soil.

One big surprise was when I found tiny grasshopper hatchlings hopping all over my succulents. The point is to check your plants thoroughly and be vigilant when they are already inside.

I don’t know about you, but things get messy when I need to water my indoor plants. No matter how little the amount of water I apply, it seems just to run out the bottom of the pot. Potting soil will become hydrophobic or adverse to soaking up water when the soil stays dry for too long. This can lead to drips on the carpet, water stains on your windowsill and a thirsty plant.

One measure I like to take is placing plants into a watering dish. Old butter lids work very well to collect the water when it runs through the soil profile. Letting it sit in the water for a couple of minutes will be beneficial as it soaks up the water through capillary action.

To be very clear, when water runs out the bottom of the pot, that doesn’t mean you overwatered it. Over watering refers to the frequency of watering events. Overwatering a succulent, for example, means that you watered it too many times in one week or month. Dry downs, or allowing the soil to dry out between watering, are important when dealing with indoor plants. Without drying down, your plant can develop root rot which can kill most plants.

Fungus gnats and shore flies are also the two common pests you will see if soil conditions are too moist. One way to check for these pests is by using sticky cards to scout for the adults that fly around. The larvae of these insects survive in wet soil conditions and feed on fungus, algae and plant roots.

There are a few ways to rid yourself of this plague. One easy way is to allow your plant to dry down completely. When plants are indoors, they receive less light and a constant temperature both day and night. This leads to the soil staying wet for longer than if it were outside.

A hydrometer is a great way to tell if the root zone is dry enough to be watered. Flipping your plant over and checking the roots is the best way to tell if your soil is dry and to examine the health of the roots. There are indoor-safe biological controls you can use to kill the larvae such as Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (B.t.i.) granules.

If there were any other parting words that are important to take care of your indoor jungle, it would be to try to mimic the outside conditions to the best of your ability.

Tropical plants enjoy added humidity, cool mist humidifiers are a great for the dry winter conditions. Not enough window space? Try using supplemental lighting.

During winter, the reduced daylight hours can affect the growth of your plants. Supplemental lighting, such as an under-cabinet kitchen light or shop light on a timer, can provide the additional light your plants need to thrive.

Following these tips will make all the difference for keeping your greenspace healthy and enjoyable.

Markis Hill is the ornamentals and turf horticulture agent at the Johnson County K-State Research and Extension Office.