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Sill and Sprout

Light and placement

North-facing versus south-facing windows: recording light through a UK week

EDITORIAL DRAFT — not approved for publication. Brand: Sill and Sprout.

The direction a window faces is a useful clue, not a complete growing plan. A south-facing window shaded by a building can behave very differently from an unobstructed one. A north-facing sill may look bright to your eyes but still provide too little light for a particular plant, especially during short winter days.

Instead of trying to label a room “good” or “bad”, make a short observation record. It will help you choose a sensible plant location and avoid buying equipment to solve the wrong problem.

What direction can tell you

In the UK, south-facing windows commonly receive more direct sun than north-facing ones, but season, local obstructions and window orientation change the pattern. East and west windows bring their own timing differences. Treat a phone compass reading as approximate and note where you took it; indoor metal and other interference can affect readings.

RHS guidance says light varies across the day and year. Strong summer sun through glass can scorch susceptible plants, while weaker winter light may make the same position useful. “Bright indirect light” therefore needs context: bright to whom, at what season, and for which plant?

[NEEDS HUMAN CHECK] Add an original diagram with approximate directions and an explicit “not to scale” caption. Do not present a generic diagram as a measured sun-path simulation for the reader's home.

Keep a seven-day observation sheet

Choose a fixed plant position and check it at roughly the same three times daily when practical. Use morning, middle of the day and late afternoon rather than pretending everyone can inspect at a precise hour. In winter a late-afternoon entry may simply say “dark”.

For each entry, note:

  • Date and approximate time.
  • Weather: clear, broken cloud or overcast.
  • Whether direct sunlight reaches the intended leaf position.
  • Obstructions: curtains, blinds, buildings or trees.
  • Unusual heat or cold, nearby heating and window-opening patterns.

Do not move the plant around repeatedly during this observation just to chase a photograph. If you compare two locations, keep separate records so you know which observation belongs where.

Use photographs carefully

A photo can record a shadow or obstruction, but automatic exposure can make a dark corner look bright. Phone photos taken with different settings are not reliable measurements of light intensity. Likewise, a phone light-meter app may help compare relative conditions on the same device, but it is not automatically a calibrated tool for determining a plant's requirements.

You do not need to turn a simple placement decision into a laboratory project. First identify whether the position gets direct sun, whether that changes during the week and whether the plant's published care guidance fits those observations.

Turn the observations into a decision

If the location receives strong direct summer sun, choose plants suited to those conditions or consider appropriate filtering/location changes. If it receives very little light, choose another position or research suitable species rather than assuming all “low-light” plants will thrive indefinitely in darkness.

If you want to use a grow lamp, first record its installation requirements and the plant's needs. Follow model-specific instructions for placement and operation; this article does not prescribe a universal lamp distance or daily duration. More light is not always the answer to poor growth: watering, roots, temperature and other factors may also matter.

Repeat when the season changes

A week in November does not describe July. Keep the sheet and repeat it after a meaningful seasonal or room change: a tree coming into leaf, new blinds, moved furniture or altered heating. Comparing your own records is more useful than assuming a compass direction guarantees a result.

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Sources and review

https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/houseplants/choosing-the-best https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/houseplants/growing-guide [NEEDS HUMAN CHECK] Horticultural reviewer to approve interpretation of light conditions. Add dated observations and real photographs before presenting any worked home example as tested evidence.