how to care for a wandering jew plant also called inch plant wondering Jutra discount es e Purina is a creeping evergreen plant grown for its colorful stride leaves which come in shades of purple green and white it grows outdoors in the US Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 8 through 11 or you can grow it as a house plant established wandering to plants require minimal care and will thrive despite neglect most benefit from routine maintenance throughout the year so they look their best soil moisture and humidity both contribute greatly to the long-term health and vitality of wandering jew plants dry conditions often result in yellow discolored leaves while wet soil can contribute to root rot and disease water wandering jew plants regularly from mid spring until the middle of fall allowing the soil to dry out completely on the surface in winter cut back water by 1/2 so the top one inch of soil dries out water potted wandering to plants until the excess water dribbles from the pots drainage holes and garden grown plants to a depth of one inch always choose containers that have drainage holes for this plants low humidity often causes wandering jew plans to develop crisp edges on their leaves but you can spritz them with filtered water every few days year-round to increase humidity despite their vigorous growth wondering gee plants don't need much fertilizer they require no more than one application of fertilizer per month during the growing season and you can get away with one application every two months if they grow in shade dissolve 1/2 TSP of general use 15-15-15 ratio fertilizer in one gallon of clean water replace one watering every four to six weeks with a solution stop feeding in late summer to allow the wandering g plant to enter dormancy then resume applications in spring when new growth begins to emerge fertilizer is rarely necessary for wandering to plants in a gar unless the soil is sandy or porous if the plant appears to have nutrient deficiencies use the same fertilizer solution and frequency as you would for container grown plants wondering gee plants often develop spindly unattractive growth as they age even young plants may have a lanky appearance that is improved with lights pruning snip off scraggly weak stems or those with discolored leaves whenever you see them remove them at the base and discard them wondering gee plants benefit from pinching back to encourage branching prune back the entire plant by 1/4 once the stems reach six to eight inches long the spent flowers should also be removed to redirect the plants energy away from seed production pruning should be done with shears that have been soaked for five minutes in undiluted household disinfectant and thoroughly rinsed pest problems are rare in wandering to plants although they may sometimes be bothered by Athens Athens alone caused virtually no damage but they can transmit potentially damaging viruses so it's important to get rid of them as soon as you discover them treat aphids by spraying them with a phosphate free soap solution to solve one teaspoon of the soap in one gallon of water apply the solution weekly using a spray bottle saturating the area where you see the aphids to prevent damage to the leaves rinse off the soap solution a few hours after each treatment repeat treatments until the aphids are gone in warm subtropical areas wondering gee plants can be grown outdoors year-round in cooler climates they need a little extra help to survive the cold bring potted Wandering Jew plants indoors before the first frost and place them near a window with southern Western or Eastern exposure garden grown wandering G plants benefit from a two to three inch thick layer of lightweight mulch during the coldest part of the year in regular watering on nights when frost is predicted in late winter frost kiss plants may look rough but will soon recover when temperatures rise you