How I love my houseplants. It was only after having lower back surgery that I discovered just how much. My loving husband watered them for me, as I wasn’t permitted to carry so much as a gallon of water.
“Do you know how many plants you have,” my husband exclaimed! I’d not really paid any attention to it; I just watered them as needed, so I said, “How many?” He replied almost in shock, “FORTY-TWO!” Goodness, I thought, really? It really was funny, because he always brags to people on my talent with a wide variety of plants, from the easy to the hardest, and he’d even gone out of his way to pick out one when we’d go to the store and we’d bring it home and of course you have to immediately repot them because they are always root bound. He finds them restful to look at, maybe because since winter causes everything to look dead, the greenery in the house brings with it signs of life.
Whether you purchase them in a store or bring them in from outside for the winter, one of life’s cycles is the pests that live on and in them. One of the tough ones is the fungus gnat, which hatches in the winter from the manure that’s mixed in processed soils you buy in the store or the plant is grown in. Most landscapers have an insecticide specifically for them as the usual insecticides don’t kill them. They must be dealt with as they chew on the roots of the plants, which kill the plant, besides the obvious annoyance of them flying all over the place. There are the usual ants and spiders that make their dwelling in plants taken outside in the spring and summer, and for those, something like Home Defense Max works great and lasts up to a year when you spray the plant and soil before bringing it into the house.
Watering your plants can become a juggling act, as each plant’s needs are different. For people who live in extreme cold areas, where the furnace kicks on more frequently, and so does the evaporation of the moisture in the plant’s soil, I recommend buying the grayish grass at a florist that they use to finish off the top soil as a trimming, because it works to hold the moisture in the soil, or also moss. For a dollar, you can buy a spray bottle (quart size) and spray the fussier plants’ leaves with mist (except plants like African Violet which have fuzzy or hairy type leaves).
Pruning dead leaves off is imperative, as even dead leaves can bleed necessary nutrients from the rest of the plant.
The internet is an invaluable resource for information regarding a specific plant you may have questions about, especially if you get one as a gift that you have never owned before.
It always amazes me the type of plants places like Wal-Mart and KMART sell in the winter months, especially small cactus packages, but if you are careful, you can make quite a display with them and they only need watered once a month in winter and twice a month during the summer months. For those who don’t have “green thumbs,” this is an ideal plant, they live on neglect.
Speaking of cactus, I learned the hard way that the roots have spines on them as well. Now when planting or replanting cactus, I use hotdog tongs to gently transport and hold the cactus in place with one hand, while pouring in the soil with the other.
If you have never tried winter gardening, it’s a wonderful pastime. Consider starting with some of the easier varieties such as a Philodendron, and don’t give up when one doesn’t work for you. I’ve been working with houseplants for over thirty years and I still can’t grow Ivy. You will find your niche.
But above all planting tips have fun.