I’ve been hurriedly bringing all of my frost-sensitive houseplants indoors for the winter in a mad rush to beat the season. As always I am doing it at the last minute rather than drawing it out slowly. Many of you are in a similar boat so I thought I’d compile a checklist of things that I do in the process.

• Check all plants thoroughly for critters. Check underneath mulch, leaves, in the crevices between stems…
• Slugs, snails, sowbugs, and earwigs can cram themselves into the tiniest spots. Check all around containers, especially plastic pots and hanging baskets that have a crevice underneath the lip.
• To flush pests out of the soil: Add a few inches of water to a deep sink or bucket and mix in a few drops of natural dish soap (no chemicals or scents added). The unscented Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap works well for this. Set pots in the liquid for a couple of hours. I am often lazy and don’t bother doing this with all pots — just the ones that I know are problematic.
• To flush pests out of the soil: A few drops of neem oil can be added to the water as an alternative to soap.
• Scrub any outside dirt from the side of the pots while they have their turn in the soapy water.
• Lightly shower particularly dirty or pest-infested plants with a hose before bringing them inside.
• Scrub down empty pots with a scrub brush and lightly soapy warm water. Set aside to dry thoroughly before putting them away.
• Place a small piece of newspaper between stacked terracotta pots to keep them from sticking to one another.
• Prune off any dead or diseased leaves and stems and cut back hard any plants that will be going dormant through the winter months.