How to Care for Your Plants During a Hot Summer
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Introduction
Are you looking for tips on caring for your plants during the upcoming summer weather? Stick around and find out more on how to protect your plants during the summer heat. As the temperatures rise across the US, it is time to get your plants ready to take on the summer heat. There are many sun-loving plants that are quite admirably adapted to the elevated temperatures and low water levels, such as succulent and cacti. However, if these plants are used to being inside, they will not be able to manage the elevated temperatures of being outside. Leafy tropical plants are very prone to heat damage and may not recover from the heat. Although your first reaction to elevated summer temperatures is to panic and run for the water hose, slow down as it might not be the best thing for your plants. Stay tuned to learn more on how to keep your plants healthy during the summer heat.
Signs of Heat Stress in Plants
In this section, we will discuss the most common signs of heat stress in your plants. Most of the stress for plants are either from too much heat or too little water. Therefore, you want to learn to recognize the signs of heat stress, which include the following:
- Wilting
- Brown or translucent leaves
- Dry soil
- Bright green foliage looking pale
- Leaves and flowers will drop off or turn yellow
- Sunburns show brown or yellow patches on the leaves and stems.
Thinking ahead of time can help you catch stress problems before they arise on your indoor plants. Following are more signs of heat stress and how you can combat them:
- Overwatering: Some plants wilt regardless of the amount of water in the soil. However, you do not want to overwater plants. Using too much water can lead to fungal diseases. Make sure you provide enough water to maintain the best soil moisture level. If you use mulch in your flower beds, make sure you have a 3-inch layer over the root zones, which insulates them from the heat.
- Leaf Drop: Many times, plants and flowers drop flowers when they are heat stressed. When this happens, be sure to check the water situation. Water the plants if needed and wait for the heat to abate.
- Flowers and Heat: There are a few plants that stop flowering during extreme heat such as peppers and tomatoes. They will simply lose their leaves, or they may not flower at all until the temperature comes down.
- Bolting: Bolting occurs when a plant prematurely grows flower stalks and produces seeds, preventing the plant from bearing a robust harvest. This is also called "running to seed" or "going to seed”.
- Blossom End Rot: During extreme heat tomatoes, peppers, squash, and cucumbers may present black spots on their bottoms. This is usually caused by a calcium deficiency by inconsistent soil moisture. So, the best thing to do for this problem is to water deeply and mulch well.
How to Protect Plants From Heat Stress
- Use a shade cloth
- Water in the mornings before hot days
- Water deeply
- Bring portable plants into shade
- Do not overwater
- Avoid pruning/removing damaged foliage
- Do not use fertilizer
- Mist indoor plants
- Promote high humidity
- Keep your plants cool
- Do not repot your plants during a heat wave
- Measure soil dryness
- Sprinkle your plants sparingly
- Potted plants dry out quicker
- Make sure to water your plants in the morning
Water is a vital requirement of all a plant’s biology. Since they are mostly water, keeping the cells hydrated is crucial to maintaining the health and growth of plants. When you water deeply, you encourage the plant to grow sturdier, larger, live longer, and deliver greater yields.