Caring for plants while on vacation

for vacationing. Families with school-aged children are getting in the last few weeks before school resumes in August. This summer is especially challenging because of our sustained hot temperatures. Here are some ideas to use to keep containers alive while away. Since containers dry out more quickly than plants in the ground, they need special care.

The good aspect of leaving container plants for a few days or up to a week is that they are movable.

For patio plants:

• Move pots so that they are shielded from the hot afternoon sun. Plants that are exposed to the hot, bright sun quickly lose water from both the soil and the leaves. Move them under dense shade of a tree or next to a house or building that does not get the afternoon sun.

• Group plants of like water needs offers some protection from rapid water loss.

• Try making a DIY drip system from a recyclable container. Collect liter-sized soda bottles or milk cartons. The plastic bottles will become the water reservoir for your pot. Punch tiny, very tiny, holes in the caps. Large holes will drain within a few days, so tiny holes are a must. Place the cap end down and push it into the pot. Each container will need it’s own water reservoir. The tiny holes will act like a drip emitter, letting a slow drip seep from the bottle and into the pot.

• Water pots deeply and thoroughly before inserting the DIY drip bottle.

• Clay pots dry out rapidly. Wrap pots with plastic saved from grocery bags, potting media, or other heavy plastic that otherwise would be discarded.

For indoor plants:

• Relocate plants away from windows with bright sunlight and hot afternoon sun.

• Place pots in a bathtub, sink, or large tubs that hold water. Place several inches of water in the bathtub or sink. Then place bricks in the water. Place the potted plants on the bricks so that pots are not immersed in the water. Letting the pots sit in water would cause water-logged soil and lead to the death of potted plants. The several inches of water raises the humidity around the potted plants.

Ellen Peffley Harp, a retired professor of horticulture at Texas Tech University, writes about gardening for several Texas newspapers.