Caring for Houseplants in Summer
Summer is an excellent time to take stock of your houseplants. Any ailing plants can be given special attention to rejuvenate them. It’s also a great time to give them a wash over and a general health check:
- Check your houseplants carefully this month to make sure they are in good condition. If they show signs of stress then try to identify the problem. Common problems include draughts, heat, dry air and a variety of pests.
- In hot weather, or if you are going away, make sure your plants are not in direct sunlight or they may be scorched. Move plants that are outside for the summer into shelter from the sun.
- Dust foliage plants to remove excess dirt, or wash gently with tepid water. Do not use water on cacti and succulent plants, or plants that have hairy leaves.
- Provide support for tall and climbing plants and tie them in carefully.
- When your houseplants are growing strongly and are in good health, it’s the ideal time to take cuttings and propagate them. Many foliage houseplants can be easily and successfully divided by splitting up the rootstock. Divide plants such as Ferns and Sansevieria.
- Take leaf cuttings of Peperomias, African Violets, Gloxinia, Sedum, Crassula, Streptocarpus, Sansevieria and Begonia Rex. Plant healthy leaves into John Innes Seed Sowing Compost to ensure that the compost is well drained and gives good contact with the plant leaves to encourage quick and healthy rooting. New young plants will form at the base of the leaves.
- Take softwood, tip cuttings from plants such as Coleus. Choose plants that are brightly coloured, as the offspring will be identical to the parent plant. Cut 5-10cm (2-4inch) stems and root them in pots filled with John Innes Seed Sowing Compost, on a warm, shaded windowsill.
- Take stem cuttings of most other houseplants. Remove suitable non-flowering stems, and cut below the tip to leave a 12cm section. Remove the leaves from the lower half. Cut the stem at the base of the cutting with a very sharp cuttings knife immediately below a leaf joint. Fill small flowerpots with John Innes Seed Sowing Compost, and push several cuttings into the compost making sure that they are not touching.
- Collect seed from cacti plants that have flowered and sow them in John Innes Seed Sowing Compost. Alternatively store the seed somewhere cool and dry and sow in the spring.
- Keep orchid plants shaded in hot sunny weather.
