Autumn Plant Care: Slowing Down for Winter

October in Denmark means the light is dropping fast. By now the sun is low in the sky even at midday, the days feel short, and most of my plants have visibly slowed down their growth. This is the time of year that trips up a lot of plant owners — and I say that as someone who has killed multiple plants in autumn by continuing to care for them like it was still spring.

Stop Fertilizing

As I wrote in my fertilizing guide, the feeding season is over. I made my last liquid fertilizer application in September. Pushing nutrients into a plant that is slowing down for dormancy just causes salt buildup in the soil without any benefit. The plants will get their spring feed when they start showing new growth again.

Stretch the Watering Intervals

This is the one that gets people. In summer, you might have been watering a Monstera every 7–10 days. In a dark October apartment, that same plant might only need water every 3–4 weeks. The soil simply doesn't dry out as fast when the plant isn't photosynthesising much and when temperatures are lower.

My rule: before I water anything between now and March, I stick my finger into the soil at least 3–4 cm deep. If there's any moisture at all, I leave it. I only water when it's genuinely dry. It feels like neglect, but it's exactly the right thing to do.

The Grow Lights Go Back On

My pink grow lights are back in action for the winter season. Even with them running, the days are short enough that I'm keeping them on for about 14–16 hours a day to compensate. The living room looks like a nightclub again. I've fully accepted this as the price of having nice plants in Scandinavia.

The Allotment Wind-Down

At the allotment, I cleared out the last of the tomato plants last weekend. The Black Krims produced until almost the end — I pulled a few still-green ones to ripen on the windowsill at home. The beds have been cleared, and I've added a thick layer of compost to break down over winter. The garden is going to sleep for a few months, and that's fine.