Summers in India are generally harsh on low light plants. The months of April, May and June, in particular when the Sun is in its full glory, these low-light plants face a tough time.
While every living organism, flora and fauna, depends directly or indirectly on sunlight as its food source, in certain cases, too much of light may prove fatal. Many of the plants kept in small indoor plant pots prefer low light conditions in order to survive and thrive.
While it is a fact that in most cases, plants use the sunlight or for that matter light from any source for photosynthesis, i.e. to manufacture their food, beyond a particular threshold, this light may be detrimental to the plant growth. But first let us understand why too much sunlight is bad for the survival of certain varieties of plants:
- Generally speaking, light and especially sunlight comes accompanied by heat. Too much heat can sap the plant leaves of their moisture and as a consequence, they may lose their ability to produce food.
- Excessive heat and light may cause the leaves to die and turn brown. This also stops food production, eventually killing the plant.
- Also, the soil loses moisture faster due to evaporation, thus leaving lesser quantum of water in the soil to carry on its food production activity.
These conditions become more pronounced in the summer months, hence you need to look after your plants, more carefully.
Therefore, if you are having a collection of such low light plants kept in decorative indoor flower pots or plant pots and want to makes sure that your collection not only survives, but thrives in these three months of harsh summer, be mindful of the following:
Shade them
This is the first precaution that you need to take in the month of March itself. Shift the light-sensitive plants to a shaded area, where direct sunlight can be avoided.
Manage the light source:
For indoor plants, the biggest source of sunlight is the window. Try and shift the position of such light- sensitive plants to a place away from the window to avoid overexposure to light.
Choose the right planter
By choosing the right planter, you can prevent excessive evaporation. Such planters are narrow at the neck thus reducing the rate of evaporation. Manufacturer like Bonasila has an extensive collection of such summer special pots. Also, one can order such plant pots online to get them delivered to your address.
Replace the source of light
Summer present a Catch-22 situation. While light is important, the accompanying heat is not. So, instead of using the sunlight as a source of light, you may want to replace the source with some other artificial source, sans the heat. LED light is one such option. Additionally, you have the option of exposing your plants to a LED source for the required period every day and them moving the plant away.
Prevent evaporation
During summers, the rate of evaporation from soil happens is very fast. The lack of moisture is one of the biggest reasons why plants find it difficult to survive through summer. By watering the plant a couple more times than usual, you can keep the soil moist.
Manage humidity
Most plants need high humidity levels in the range of 80% to thrive. During summers, the moisture level in the atmosphere drops drastically, making the weather dry. Hence, in such conditions it is advisable to group all such light-sensitive plants together or mist them a couple of time in a day. To group them together, you may want to use slimmer planters which occupy smaller space. You can order such slim plant pots online and get them delivered to your place.
Choose the right fertilizer
Less moisture during summers makes it difficult for the plant to absorb nutrients from the dry soil. Hence, you may want to supplement the soil with organic fertilisers. Such fertilizers provide the necessary nutrients whenever water is added thereby enabling the plant to absorb those before the soil turns dry.
Just like we human beings need heat protections, plants too need protection from harsh weather conditions. The way we tend to keep away from direct sunlight and adequately hydrated, preventing the loss of moisture through sweating and taking special supplements like juices and other liquids, plants too need the same regimen to survive the summers.
While wild plants are hardy and strong enough to survive on their own; your indoor and household friends need a little extra care to tide over the situation.