How to Care for House Plants While on Vacation

Overview

Planning for your vacation should be a time of fun and anticipation, not worrying whether your houseplants will be OK while you're gone. If you take certain precautions before you leave on a one- or two-week vacation, your plants should do well. If you will be gone longer than two weeks, have a friend, neighbor or family member check on your plants and water them for you. Better still, ask someone to plant-sit them at their house while you're away.

Step 1

Remove all dead flowers and leaves from your houseplants. Dispose of them in your compost heap or trash.

Step 2

Water your houseplants deeply, so that water comes out the drainage holes.

Step 3

Place aquarium gravel in a shallow tray, then fill tray with water. Place the potted houseplants on top of the gravel in the gray.

Step 4

Tie a clear plastic bag over the top of each houseplant. Use twist ties to secure the bag so that it comes down over the lip of each pot. Do not bring the bag down so that it covers the bottom of the pot.

Step 5

Adjust the potted houseplants and the gravel so that no water is entering the holes at the bottom of each houseplant. Make sure the roots of your houseplants are not submerged.