Plant Care

Light

Here are some guidelines for commonly recommended light levels for plants:

Full sun – just what it sounds like. These plants can take full sun. But, note that in the heat of summer, hot mid-afternoon sun may wilt even some plants that mostly prefer full sun
Morning sun or partial shade – these plants can take some direct sunlight but like protection from the hottest sun, so either make sure they get sun in the morning and shade in the hotter afternoon, or they get partial shade all day long.
Indirect light – these plants can’t take full sun. They still want some light – plants can’t grow without it! – but make sure it’s in a location like a north window or out of the sun in a bright room.

Also note that when you are moving plants outside from indoors, don’t move them directly into full sun (even if that’s their preferred light level)! They’re used to being inside with less light (just like you after the winter) and moving them into the sun all day will sunburn them. (Even the cleanest glass window reduces light transmission by about 20%, and let’s be honest, your windows aren’t that clean.) This applies to plants you buy from a store or a greenhouse as well. Start by moving them out into a more protected location with sun only part of the day or with partial shade for the first week, then into full sun.

Watering & Humidity

No matter what kind of plant you are watering, the right way to water is almost always to completely drench the soil in the pot until excess water runs out the drainage holes in the bottom. (If the plant is in a saucer, dump the excess water out of the saucer. Most plants don’t like soggy feet.) The difference in types of plants is not how much you water at a time, but when you should water again the next time.

We generally give two different guidelines for how often to water different types of plants:

Let dry completely between waterings – plants like these are usually succulents or cacti and you want to let the soil in the pot completely dry out before watering again. Feel the soil or lift the pot (you can feel the difference between a heavy, wet pot and a light, dry one).
Keep moist but not soggy – these plants like to stay somewhat moist, but they still need the soil to air out in between waterings. The top inch of soil should be dry before you water again – stick your finger in the top of the soil to the first knuckle and it should feel dry. These plants typically also like humidity and if they’re inside for the winter

Some plants fall in between these, so you might see an instruction to let go “almost dry” between waterings – basically like the first option except these are plants that will wilt quickly if they go too long, so pay them more attention and water as soon as the pot is nearly dry.

Remove any excess water from the saucer so the plants aren’t standing in water. There are a few plants that do like to stay wet all the time, but these are the exception. (Venus flytraps and pitcher plants are some examples.)

How long it will take plants to dry out to the point they need to be watered again will depend on the volume and type of soil in the pot, the temperature and humidity, and how vigorously the plant is growing. A succulent outside in the hot summer sun might need to be watered every day, but one near a cool window in the winter might need to be watered only once a month.