What to Do if Your Plants Hate Your New Apartment

Like many New Yorkers who left during the pandemic, I returned in part because I wanted to snag a great apartment while rental prices were still low. (In 2020, according to StreetEasy, rents dropped 15.5 percent in Manhattan and 8.6 percent in Brooklyn and Queens.) I was successful in finding a place in my ideal location at an ideal price.  

When I toured the apartment, I had a feeling that the lack of natural light might be an issue, but I brushed it off, assuring myself that I was making the right choice because all of the other factors were in my favor.

Right choice or not, my plants have a lot to say about the new place. They hate it. They want my old apartment with my huge south-facing windows back. They want my old patio where they could soak up the sun during the summer months. They don’t understand why I would want to live in a place that’s convenient to my work and my friends when they were living in a place that was perfect for them.

The old place was perfect for them because, like many plant parents, I purchased (or stooped) plants that I knew would thrive in the environment that my previous space offered.

So now that I’m in a new space that’s not ideal for them, what can I do? Watch them slowly die while I debate whether I made the right choice?

Jarema Osofsky, a Brooklyn-based landscape/interior plant designer and owner of the studio and secret plant shop Dirt Queen NYC, walked me through what to do now that my plants are in a new space and not loving it.

“Plants can go through a period of both transplant and transport shock,” says Osofsky. “Some plants, like fiddle-leaf fig trees, are more sensitive to relocation than, say, snake plants.”

It took me some time to adjust to being in a new place, and it took my dog some time to realize this is her new home, so it makes sense that my plants need a minute to adjust too.

While every plant is different, Osofsky says to give your plants one to two weeks to adjust to their new environment.  

This not only applies to moving apartments but any time you move your plant (or bring it home from a plant shop). It will go through an adjustment process. Allow it this time before you start jumping to conclusions about why it’s so unhappy.

“Try to replicate the kind of light and conditions it had grown accustomed to at your old place if it was happy there,” says Osofsky. “Even better, aim to replicate the kind of light and conditions it would get in its native habitat.”

For instance, she says ferns love shady areas with moisture and humidity, so don’t place them near working radiators or in direct sunlight, as that would be the opposite of what they crave.

This kind of guidance will differ with each plant, so if you don’t know your plant’s natural habitat and needs, check out the Apartment Therapy Houseplant Encyclopedia to see if your plants are covered.

If you’re moving from a place with low light to high light, you’ll want to slowly adjust your plants to a higher light (if they are bright-light-loving plants) while being careful not to put them in a position that would sunscald them. (Yes, your houseplants can get sunburned too!)

But if you’re moving to a place from high light to low light, what can you do?

“Start with grouping plants by the window,” says Osofsky. “But realistically, you may not have enough space for all your sun-loving plants near your window, or the radiator/AC unit might also be near the window, in which case you’d want to avoid placing most plants there.”

This is exactly the case in my current space. The radiator is right by the window that offers the best light. So what can I do?

“Installing grow lights is a surefire way to keep your plants happy in an otherwise low light environment. You can even set them on a timer so they get a consistent eight hours a day,” says Osofsky.

I did a deep dive into the world of grow lights a few months ago. While it might seem intimidating, you can make a grow light super cute — and it definitely beats watching your plant slowly show you how much it hates your new space.

“Grow lights work wonders!” says Osofsky. “They give your plant sustained sunlight that helps boost your plant’s immunity, which in turn helps with its recovery.”

So, it’s not too late! I’ve allowed my plants a long enough adjustment period to know they are not going to change their minds; they need grow lights. This is the option I’m ultimately going with for my own space.

Osofsky adds that it’s also important to transport your plants with care if you’re moving in extreme weather conditions (such as this winter). She says that just as plants can get sunburned, they can also suffer damage from the cold if they aren’t wrapped properly with all leaves covered. You can use large brown sheets of paper or even garbage bags to keep them properly covered while moving to your new space — and cross your fingers that they don’t hate it.