On Vacation? Plants Do Just Fine Without You

“What can I do about my plants when I go on vacation?” is a question frequently asked by plant lovers.

An important question, indeed, because when we go away on vacation, we want to leave our worries behind and almost everybody worries about their plants. And I don’t blame them.

Depending upon the season of your departure, you might be basking in the tropical sun while your plants are burning to a crisp on your windowsill.

Or you could be slaloming down a snow-covered slope while your plants shiver in your unheated, unhumidified home.

Perhaps you’ll be sipping an exotic cooler in some faraway paradise while your house plants are wilting, perhaps literally dying of thirst.

Worry not. You can leave your plant cares behind, if you follow a few of these simple vacation care tips:

A great deal depends on how long you plan to be gone.

Remove From Sunlight

If, for instance, you’re only going away for a week or less, you shouldn’t have any worries at all. Simply water each and every one of your plants thoroughly so that water comes out of the drainage hole at the bottom, remove all the plants from the windowsills and group them nearby where they’re not directly exposed to the sun.

On your return they’ll be barely the worse for wear. A brown tip there, a drooping leaf, perhaps, there--but all in all, your plants should perk right up with a welcome-home drink and invigorating spray.

If you’re going to be gone for more than a week, however, you’ll have to take more elaborate steps.

Since there’s no such thing (yet) as a kennel for boarding house plants, the ideal solution is to find a friend or neighbor with whom you can trust your key and your plants, and ask that person to drop in at least once a week for each week you’ll be away. (Twice a week would be better yet, especially now, during the summer when the plants may overheat and suffer from lack of proper ventilation.)

Label each plant and give your friend a list explaining any particular idiosyncrasies: Which plants need more water, which need less; which need to be fertilized; which need an extra spray for humidity; how to check for pests.

Basic Ground Rules

If this procedure seems too elaborate, simply set up a basic ground rule: Ask your plant sitter to feel the soil of each plant on each visit and if it’s dry to the touch, water it. If not, simply spray the leaves.

Of course, you’ll have to leave out all the necessary equipment: A watering pail, a spray bottle, some plant food and a bottle of insecticidal soap, just in case there’s an invasion of critters such as mealybugs, mites or aphids.

If you can’t find a friend or neighbor who will help you out, your next move should be to your local Yellow Pages where you’re sure to find a licensed and bonded professional plant maintenance service that will contract with you to care for your plants once, twice, even three times a week while you’re gone.

The charge for these services is usually at least $25 a visit, depending upon the number of specimens in your plantation. There are several companies in the Los Angeles area that will care for your plants while you’re on vacation.

If you’re going to be away for more than a week and can’t find a friend and can’t afford a professional plant service, there are still ways to protect your plants and ensure they’ll be in reasonably good shape upon your return.

Shared Humidity

First, remove all the plants from windowsills, shelves and table tops and group them together, preferably in the center of a room. Plants in groups offer each other humidity.

In the late spring or summer, a screened-in porch would be ideal. Otherwise, a relatively airy room with enough windows to provide some indirect light is fine.

Water all plants thoroughly and, to ensure that your plants receive enough humidity, place each plant on a saucer or tray filled with pebbles and then fill the tray with water.

Here’s an additional tip if you’re going on an extended vacation:

Miniature Greenhouse

Place as many thoroughly watered plants as you can into a large, plastic bag obtainable from any dry cleaner. Use as many bags as necessary to accommodate all your plants. This creates a miniature greenhouse and should keep the plants thriving for up to a month.

To create an even more elaborate greenhouse, you can use your bathtub, some empty pots and several of those large plastic bags from the dry cleaner.

First, close the drain and put about 6 inches of water into the tub. Then, take an empty pot for each plant you intend to put into your bathtub greenhouse and set the pot upside down in the water. Now, take the plants and set one atop each of the inverted pots. Tape the plastic bags together and then tape one end to the bathroom wall and the other end to the side of the tub.

What you’ve got now is a plastic canopy covering the tub containing the inverted pots, the water and the plants. Leave a light on in the bathroom and this homemade greenhouse will keep those plants fresh for at least six weeks, maybe longer.

If some of your plants are real water lovers, such as ferns, spathiphyllums or any of the flowering plants like African violets, cyclamens or gloxinias, there are ways to ensure they get enough water while you’re gone.

First, there are several rather sophisticated self-watering planters on the market. These can be found in some nurseries and plant catalogues, but they are very special and often too expensive to be used for every plant in your home.

Using a Wick

A much easier method is to construct a watering device using nothing more than a container with water and some sort of wick, such as a heavy shoelace or a thick piece of rope.

Fill a container with water and then immerse half the wick in the water. Set the container next to the plant, and place the top half of the wick onto the top of the soil.

Through a process called capillary action, water will crawl up or down the wick as long as there is water in the container. As long as the wick stays wet, the topsoil will receive constant new moisture. Three or four wicks can be used in one container to water three or four plants at once. It is best if you can cover the top of your container and thread the wicks through holes punched or cut in the top. This prevents evaporation.

Don’t worry about feeding your plants while you’re gone. No plant will starve to death in a month or two. Even the flowering plants such as African violets will not suffer from a couple of months without fertilizer, although blooming will undoubtedly cease while you’re gone. The only result of lack of food during your absence is inhibition of the growth rate of the plants, which makes it easier for them to survive the makeshift conditions.