house plant question (flowers, cacti, plants, indoors)

[Kibbiekat]

I have a small fern and a small aloe vera plant. I live in the Denver area (dry, hot afternoons). When I leave town for a week, would the plants be better off outside where a sprinkler can hit them, or left inside, perhaps in a shallow pan of water. I don't have much luck with plants. Thanks in advance!

[stone-ground]

If you're plants are indoors and then suddenly outside in the hot sun right away for days on end, you stand a good chance of scorching them.

The aloe should be fine with a good watering, providing there's enough soil to keep it somewhat moist.

The fern I'd sit in a container of water .. as long as it's not sitting in the direct sun in front of a window or it will burn also. They like indirect light.

[Dusty Rhodes]

OK, I just measured our Aloe Vera plant, it is 39 inches tip to tip laterally and 28 inches high (not counting the flowering shoot, it will reach a height of about 5 feet and this year will have two branches, one on each side. The flowers resemble a three inch diameter flowered bottle brush, sorta, yellow bell shaped flowers coming from a central stem. The flowering shoot will be no thicker than my little finger and the flowers will cover the last 8 to 10 inches of the stem. Ours is on the front porch, it never grew much until we moved it there. Indirect sunlight only and out of the wind. Of course we move it back inside over winter. It really seems to like the front porch and indirect lighting.

[stone-ground]

I move a couple of big cacti outside during the summer as well. First into some shade for a few days though, as I have burnt them in the past. They thrive outside. and pull them back inside again for the winter also.

[johnny999]

Aloe plants are a succulent. They can tolerate dry soil a lot more than they can wet soil.