Clean Outdoor Plants Before Bringing Indoors – No Bugs Allowed!

Did you know that you should clean and debug outdoor potted plants before bringing indoors to overwinter?  For years (pre-internet learning!) I would just pick up my potted plants up from their outdoor locations and bring them inside the house.  Well no wonder I had spiders and bugs in my house! In just a few steps I will show you how to wash outdoor plants before bringing inside​.

Supplies:

Large plastic tubs (the more tubs you have the faster this chore will be over!)

Mild liquid soap (I love to use Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day Multi-Surface, Lavender!)

Neem Oil

Garden Hose and sprayer

Gardening shears and/or scissors

Rag or brush for cleaning the outside surface of the pots

Towels to absorb water draining from cleaned pots (if bringing inside the same day as cleaning)

Instructions:

Set up outdoor work area with tubs and garden hose

Fill tub(s) with soapy water

Trim any dead leaves or foliage from plant

Clean out any debris from the surface of the potting soil inside the pot

Submerge whole plant (pot, soil, stem and leaves) into soapy water

Let soak for 15-30 minutes (using multiple tubs will make the work go faster)

Remove potted plant from tub and hose the pot and plant with water

Wipe the outside of the pot with a cloth, or scrub with a brush as needed; rinse

Mist any part of the plant that is too tall to submerge in water with Neem Oil to rid of insects

Drain outdoors overnight if time allows

Bring inside to drain on towels as needed

Position throughout home when fully drained

Cleaning Outdoor Plants is not Fun

I’m not going to sugarcoat this… it is not a fun job.  I mean, you’ve got dirt, dead leaves, and bugs floating in the water!  Eeew!

Depending on the size (ergo, weight) of your pots and how many you have, it can really be a back-breaking job!  If you have numerous potted plants to bring inside, you may want to consider doing it in phases on different days!

However, if you’re like me, freezing weather sneaks up on you, and you end up taking the afternoon off from work (on the same day the weather is forecasted to be a low of 33 degrees) and have to get the whole job done in an afternoon!

Cleaned and Debugged! Bring ’em Indoors!

I bring my plants into a bathroom where there is a big bathtub under a skylight.  I position wire closet shelves across the rim of the tub to create a permeable surface, and set the plants on them.  This way watering is easy throughout the winter!  I don’t have to catch and discard the drained water; it just goes into the bathtub!  If you don’t have a skylight or windows in your bathroom then there may not be enough light for the plants.

Each year I grumble as I anticipate and prepare for this task.  But using the Meyer’s lavender cleanser makes it almost pleasurable!  Oh my, it smells heavenly and keeps my cortisol from going up while I am working!  However, it is unclear as to whether this product is Triclosan free, and therefore may contribute to antimicrobial resistance and endocrine disruption.  Further research may be warranted for next year’s cleaning.

The other super great part of the task is that when all the plants are pruned, cleaned, de-bugged and dried they are gorgeous!  It is a pleasure to lay eyes on them in the house! 

See the plants on the porch and in the house!

Here is a link to more information on bringing your outdoor plants inside for the winter!