The Marvelous Spathiphyllum

    

The Marvelous Spathiphyllum

I bet you thought  I would never get around to talking about specific plants.   Well, here is the first.

The spathiphyllum also know as the "Peace Lily" is one of my favorite beginner plant.  It needs little care, will do well in low light, and will even tell you when it is thirsty.

To begin, the spathiphyllum comes in a multitude of sizes.  The one pictured in this blog is a small plant but it will also come in a petite that will only grow to a heigth of six to nine inches.  It is a great table plant and does very well under a lamp.  In contrast, you can also find a full size spathiphyllum that will grow to almost four feet and needs a very large pot.  The larger example can have leaves that can measure up to twelve inches across and have blooms the size of a woman's hand.  These spathiphyllum's are a favorite office plant because they will do well in the low artificial light found there.

Now that you know what it looks like, let's talk about the care of this beauty.  The spathiphyllum is considered a low light plant because it will live quite well in this environment.  But, if you really like the beautifully simple flowers it will bloom better in a medium light.  The smaller varieties may want even a little more.  Low light is measured by candle watt.  The easiest rule of thumb is that in a south window you can say that high light is within two feet of the window.  Medium light is within four feet and low light is within six feet of the window.  Subtract two feet from these measurements for an eastern or western window and four feet from a northern window.  If you are not placing a plant in the correct light then you will need to add artificial light. 

It takes a lot of work for a plant to create flowers so make sure you fertilize it at least once a month during the summer which is when it would naturally bloom.  You can cut back in the winter unless you are actually growing your plant in artificial light and it does not know when to go into a dormant period.  I would advise that you do skip at least one to two months to force dormancy just for the health of the plant.

Remember me telling you that the spathiphyllum will tell you when it is thirsty.  Well, it will.  The spathiphyllum is one of the few plants that will actually lay down almost flat when you have allowed it to dry out too much.  Water it and it will stand back up like nothing happened.  Not that you should allow this to happen too often.  The strain on the plant will hold it back and may eventually be its demise. 

That's it for today.  Hope this blog was helpful.  Remember to write me if you have any questions on the spathiphyllum or any other of your problem plants.

When to Feed

When to Feed

Well, it is Sunday so it must be posting day.  Today,  I thought we should talk about the cycle of feeding your plant friends. 

Even for a plant that spends all it's time in the house, there are seasons.  The sunny window is less sunny in the winter than the summer.  The heat of the furnace is different than the heat of the summer.  Or the chill of the winter different than the air conditioned house.  So you need to know how your plant feels about this.

The Ficus Benjamina (Weeping Fig) is the easiest plant to demonstrate this.  I always say that is is called a Weeping Fig because it is always loosing leaves for one reason or another.  You move it and it will loose leaves. When the furnace goes on in the fall it will loose leaves.  When the summer comes and you open the windows it will loose leaves.  This is nothing to worry about.  Just find the place that is best for it and don't move it.  More important, when it starts to loose leaves do not feed it.  The plant is going through an adjustment and has placed itself into dormancy. You have to wait for it to start showing signs of new leaves before you begin to feed it again.

All plants will go dormant at sometime during the year.  Flowering plants will usually do thisthis is just after the blooms have fadded.  For plants that are grown for their foliage, this is usually in the fall.  The plant growth will slow down and does not need as much water and fertilizer as it did in the warmer months which is when you will notice the most growth.  Another dormant period may happen in the heat of the summer.  It is too hard for the plant to continue to grow and if you feed it to promote new growth, it will probably be week and spindlely.  The summer dormancy may not happen if you have your plants in an air conditioned house.  Just know that it could happen and watch for it.

How do you know if your plant is dormant?  Things to note are the amount of water it is drinking and the new growth.  If the plant is not drying out as quickly as it usually does then it is slowing down.  At this point there will be little sign of new leaves.  This is when to take your que and slow down also.  You can also trick a plant.  If you want a bloom at a time of year that it normally does not bloom then you need to create the same conditions that it will encounter during its usual blooming time.

The Florist Mum is a good example of this trick.  You may have noticed that you will see Florist Mums long before you see Hardy Mums in the Nursery.  That is because the Florist Mum is grown in greenhouse where shades are covering the windows for a longer night which is what a mum needs to bloom.  Plants are fertilized, the length of day is shortened, and behold the humble Mum. 

That could be a little hard to do for the beginner, so just know that it is possible.  The important thing to remember is that it is good to feed your plants an appropriate fertilizer.  But sometimes your plant needs a rest and does not want anything to eat when it is sleeping.

This summer appears to be expecially hot so watch and enjoy while you sip on your ice cold drink.  If you have any problems I can help you solve,  just ask.  'Til next time ....

Houseplants Outside

Houseplants 

I thought it would be a good idea to talk about the practice of moving houseplants outside for the season. The first chapter of my book starts with lighting and this blog is going to start there too.

What does moving a houseplant outside have to do with lighting, you ask? Well to put is simply, the shade outside is sunnier that the sunniest window of your house. So, if you have a plant in a sunny window and you take it outside, placing it in the sun, the leaves will burn. The leaves are not use to the strong sunlight and the tissue will dry out quickly along with any tender new growth.

It is fun to use a tropical in a garden to add that special touch to a landscape but you need to do it in steps. For those of you who know landscape gardening, you know how important it is to "harden off" annuals that were grown in a greenhouse before you plant them in the garden. This is not only because they are not use to the shift in temperature that will happen in the garden but also because of the light. Moving your houseplants is no different.

First find a protected area in your yard. It needs to be shady and if it is still early in the season, it should be protected from the elements. If you plant is placed near the house, it will be protected from the sun and unexpected frost. The heat of the house will also keep the temperature even. Watering becomes an issue as damp soil will insulate the roots from extreme temperatures. The plant is getting more sun and may dry out quicker than usual. Do not move from this protection for at least one week.

After this you can slowly move you plants out into the yard. For plants that are being moved into a sunny spot this process should take a minimum of two weeks. You can then either plant you houseplant in the garden or keep it in its pot for another pop of color in the garden. A nice use of houseplants is in containers with flowering annuals.

If you decide to keep your plant in the pot, you will have to watch the watering because it will dry out faster than your garden. Taking you plant out of the pot will make it easier to water but harder to bring back into the house in the fall. Roots will have spread and will have to be cut to get it back into the pot. An easier compromise is to put the houseplant into a grow pot and bury it into the garden. This will help to keep the plant from drying out too fast and make it easier to dig in the fall.

Well that is enough for today. Later in the year we will talk about bringing your treasured gems back into the house for the winter. Until next week...enjoy!