Hi
When weather permits I would like to bring my jade plants outside for the summer. I have had them since last summer and have always been indoors. Can someone advise as to how I should transition them outdoors? Will this make them grow faster? Also, as per pic do they look healthy ? Thanks

They look very healthy. Move them outside when the night temps are reliably 45F. Give them part shade for a week and gradually into full sun over the next 2 weeks. They will definitely grow much faster outside and even faster with fertilizer.

Thx for the response . Can you specify what you mean by part shade? Not sure what that means .. thx

Light shade, like the back porch or under a tree.

If you take them out for the summer, they will pout when you take them back inside because they won't get the quality of light they got outside. I don't think its worth moving a thriving healthy plant in and out. If your Jades were suffering indoors, my answer would be different.

Thanks for the input daisyl. Not sure what pout means but that does not seem healthy for the plant? Are you suggesting they are best to stay indoors?

I would either leave them indoors or move them to outside shade or dappled shade and not transition to full sun at all.

It depends on your goal for these plants. If you just want to keep them as typical houseplants, it's probably better to not 'fix' what isn't broken, and leave the plants where they are currently happy. On the other hand, if you want to to maximize the plants' yearly growth (as e.g. bonsai practitioners may want to do, to hasten the development of a nice thick trunk) then an outdoor summer growing season may be worth the trouble and / or risk.

@daisyl
Thanks, it's Interesting that you mentioned this sulking after transition. I put my two jades outside as much as I could last summer and when I brought them in they did go through a period of throwing leaves , it seems to have settled down now . As @ignova points out I got significant growth and colour from putting them outside . Here they are now having just gone through the winter. I will find a pic of the Hummels when I put it out last summer
Steve

OK i found it . I would never get this much colour indoors


here is the jade in feb 2020

Steve

Yes, direct sunlight brings out the awesome red highlights on the leaves.

It promotes more compact growth (shorter successive distance between leaves along the stem) and in extreme cases outdoor plants will actually grow less vertical stem than indoor plants because of this effect.

It massively improves flowering. Usually indoor jades do not flower much if at all (Steve's flowering plant above is a testament that it's possible) because strong light is required to trigger flowering.

So this is the look of a plant allowed to be in full sun during winter.



Given that's not possible in Canada (obviously) you can settle for just the red highlights while your plant is outside.

Thanks everyone. I have actually decided to leave them where they have been since day 1. However , I am making a change . They are currently on a table under grow lights in a room with a small west facing window. I will leave them where they are but I will put them in front of the window (direct sun indoors) for a few hours in the afternoon. So I will alternate between grow lights and direct indoor sun daily. Should that combination be ok? This is done in the same room.. literally few feet apart .. see pics. 1st pic is jades under grow lights to the right of that small west facing window( no direct sun light) and 2nd pic are the jades moved 2 feet in front
Of the west window when sun is direct in afternoon