Making the plant roster means a spot inside for the winter

The travel team is about to be named.

I’m not referring to the Milwaukee Brewers roster for the California portion of the National League Championship Series. My travel team is made up of the tender plants deemed worthy of a spot in the house for winter, and this year I’m going to be pickier than ever. At least that’s what I’ve told myself.

Without a large house and a shortage of windows with good light, there’s no way to save as many plants as I’d like to. And to be fair, my enthusiasm for house plants is far greater in October than it is in February.

The first to land a coveted space indoors are sentimental favorites. There will always be a spot for my grandmother’s (increasingly enormous) ficus (Ficus benjamina) tree, a decade-old staghorn fern (Platycerium bifurcatum) and my coveted Oval Office ivy (Plectranthus verticillatus).

The next priority is cool plants that are difficult to find or slow growing. This includes the Agave that I practically begged off a garden friend, who delivered it from Ohio, and a selection of tender ferns that are excellent in outdoor shade containers in summer.

A leopard plant (Farfugium japonica) that I dragged home from a Florida botanical garden gift shop is high up on the list, despite the fact that its need for consistent moisture is a nearly impossible feat inside a dry house.

I’ll also bring in a small ‘Purple Bridal Veil’ Tradescantia that I’ll take cuttings from in winter. It’s very easy to produce more plants from and much more economical than buying several new plants in spring.

Any plants that are deemed worthy of the travel team get the same pre-move treatment, which starts with at least one thorough shower with the hose to remove the majority of bugs a week or two before the anticipated move. The leaves are also sprayed with neem oil and allowed to dry outside to further reduce the risk of bringing in a pest.

Plants that have summered in the same pot typically get a top dressing of fresh soil after scraping off the top inch or so, and others get fresh potting soil in a clean pot.

The system is not foolproof — the ficus in particularly is prone to scale insects that typically have to be treated with a systemic insecticide — but it definitely cuts down on the creepy crawlies that can hitch a ride on plants.

Fortunately there are other plants that I’ve discovered easier ways of overwintering. After a 95% success rate in storing annual geraniums (Pelargonium) by simply knocking the soil off and hanging them in a cool, dark storage area last winter, I’ll never bother with another method. They woke up quickly when I potted and pruned them and have been growing like gangbusters ever since.

Making the travel team isn’t exactly winning the plant lottery in my house — survive, not thrive, is my houseplant motto — but the few that do have earned their spot in the crowded window.