Think your indoor plants aren't affected by what's going on outside during the change of season? Well, I regret to inform you that's not how plants work 😬
I want to share some of my must-know tips to keep your indoor plants happy during the Summer season and I've created a video version in case you'd rather watch too:
Tip 1: Sunlight in Summer is more aggresive than it is in other seasons.
We all know this when it comes to practicing sun safety for ourselves (Slip, slop, slap, slide, seek!) but don't often think about it for our indoor plants as we assume the glass is fully shielding our plants but it doesn't.
You may have some of your plants in positions in your home that get direct sun in the cooler months but during the warmer months that light becomes a bit harder (I'd say the peak period is 10am-3pm/4pm). You may have a plant that sits fairly close to a window in the cooler months but that plant might need a slight relocation during rhe warmer months to avoid the harder sun.
Tip 2: Your watering freqeuncy is going to increase!
How often you water your plants is determined by quite a few variables (air circulation, temperature, amount of light, pot size, root system size, how much water you give your plant, and many more) but in Summer I'd say the two biggest things in a controlled environment like inside would be light and air circulation.
If you're having all your windows and sliding doors open or the aircon on the air circulation in your home is on overdrive which will dry out the soil of your plant much faster. Additionally, more light = more photosynthesis, so your plant is going to use up the water in the soil faster to support this process.
Be prepared to check on your plants more often and if you haven't made the switch over to Clear Pots, now is the perfect time so checking becomes even easier!
Tip 3. Consider the direction of your windows in your home.
This ties into the first tip, but the direction of the sunlight coming into your home will dictate the harshness of the light coming in your home. Eastern light (morning sun) is typically more gentle than Western light (afternoon to early evening light).
Southern light in our hemisphere is also quite gentle where depending on the time of the day your northern light might be a bit aggresive (Think back to the time of the day noting that late morning to late afternoon is going to be the hardest).
The wrong light can burn plants - anything with thinner foliage is likely not the ideal plant to get harder sun (Think your begonias, ferns, etc) but I'd recommend leaning into the most sun tolerant plants like cacti, succulents, Bird of Paradise and if you're really concerned I'd avoid letting direct light on your plants during this period.
Summer is a key time to let your plants thrive as they're prone to growing the most right now but these tips will ensure they're growing not being hurt by what's happening outside 👍