GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post - Set rubber plant and schefflera outside for sumer?

19-05-2003, 11:08 PM

wrote in message . ..
Very dumb abt plants.

Having said that Ive bought a nice rubber tree and
schefflera at a garage sale.

Can I set them out during the summer? And will it help
them grow and flourish?

Im in north Missouri

You need to harden them off so that the surfaces develop a waxy
coating called "cutin" which is the plant's natural sunblock. Set out
in the sun without hardening and the UV light will fry them.
Start them in the shade with protection from the wind and gradually
over the course of a week or two increase their exposure to both sun
and wind until they are in the amount of light they require.
Expect to water them more often than you did indoors, or plunge the
pots in the soil to keep them cool and moist.
On the trip back inside come fall you will need to be alert for pests.