These are the plants that seem to most appreciate what I'm able to provide:
Pothos is generally considered one of the easiest. I have several, including the mother plant that came from my great aunt's house by way of my mother. There are care tips at HealthyHouseplants.com, BalconyContainerGardening.com, OurHouseplants.com, and WikiHow.
The Peace Lily is another plant universally acclaimed as being easy as pie. I'm telling you, I just don't mess with delicate flowers that languish. Like with pothos, I have several of these, as I separate them and plant them in smaller pots. Large pots are just too difficult for me to manage as I move them onto my patio during the warmer weather. Southern Living Magazine calls it the perfect house plant. See care instructions at HealthyHouseplants.com, BalconyContainerGardening.com, OurHouseplants.com, and WikiHow.
Sansevieria (mother-in-law tongue or snake plant):
The start of this plant came in a dish garden that was sent to my daddy's funeral. One by one, all the other plants died, but my mother kept re-potting this into bigger pots as it grew and grew. She eventually divided it, and my sister and I each got a huge plant. I have several of these, too. It will bloom, which surprises people who keep them in dark corners. These websites (and many others, of course) provide information on caring for these plants: HealthyHouseplants.com, OurHouseplants.com, and WikiHow.
Rubber Tree:
My rubber tree is entirely too big, multi-branched and in a pot that's awkward and takes up too much space inside. Every year I take cuttings and pot them in small pots and vow to get rid of the big plant. Every year it somehow ends up back inside for the winter. Maybe this year.... Care instructions can be found at OurHousePlants.com and WikiHow, among other places.
Dracaena Marginata:
Here's another one I have several of. When my original plant got too tall, I cut off the top and stuck it down in the pot. The one end sprouted new growth, and the other rooted. I was amazed. You can find care instructions online, including at OurHousePlants.com and WikiHow
There are several other kinds of houseplants I have, but I haven't had them long enough to know if they'll thrive where I am. I'm pretty sure my one attempt at an orchid is a failure, as it was in bloom when I got it but now -3 years later- it hasn't bloomed again. The verdict's still out on my asparagus fern and my parlor palm, though I have high hopes for them. Succulents don't do well for me, and neither do Norfolk Island Pines. Both of these have been popular at various times, and I've tried to grow them but failed each time.
I'm always looking for suggestions for easy-to-grow houseplants that would be happy on the patio during the warmer weather.
Posts
I have most of the plants on your list as I don't take as good of care of my indoor plants as I do my outdoor gardens. There was a time when I did and I had over 200 house plants. I was much younger and lived in a Victorian house with massive windows. I also find Spider Plants easy to care for and I love the look of them and the babies are easy to root. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI've tried spider plants because I like how they look and they're supposed to help indoor air quality, but they die every time. The leaves always turn brown -not dry, just limp and brown. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong.
DeleteAt one time, I had every one of these plants, but a freak late April freeze put an end to all of mine, since they were all outside and froze in an instant death.
ReplyDeleteI now have a tiny piece of aloe vera, but nothing to write home about. Like you, I have trouble with succulents, because I tend to overwater them, or forget about them entirely and they shrivel and die. Now the only plants I'm able to overwinter inside are a few herbs, and some still don't survive, like my lavender. They seem to suffer from lack of humidity, so last year, I started misting them in the winter.
Good luck with yours. I think you would like a schefflera, too. Some call it an umbrella plant. It is also easy to grow.
I'll try a schefflera next spring! I had one long ago that didn't survive one of our moves. Thx for reminding me of those :)
DeleteI came back to ask how close you are to the fires that are destroying your state. I just caught the last of a news bulletin last night and was worried about how close you might be to the fires.
ReplyDeleteThen I saw Carol's comment. I also have trouble with airplane plants. Someone told me I was watering them too much because they needed to dry out between watering. Still didn't help.
Thx for checking on me :) I'm in the southwest corner of the state right on the river, and the fires are in the eastern part of the state in the mountains. It's almost a 7 hour drive and over 400 miles from here. I don't know anybody in that area, but I know people in middle Tennessee who are having trouble with their breathing issues because of the smoke. It's going to affect a lot of the area. There've even been some deaths due to the fires and one arrest for arson that I've heard of. Tragic :(
DeleteI'm sorry I didn't respond sooner but your blog is fun and loving what you write. I am the kiss of death when it comes to plants but my hubby has a natural green thumb. He adds used coffee grounds and unused old coffee to the plants plus egg shells. It's seems to be working plus he has forbidden me to touch them.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you came :) Your post got so many comments I imagine you can't possibly respond to every visit. I've never tried coffee grounds or egg shells, but I've heard of doing that. "forbidden me to touch them" lol Plants sometimes get too much attention ;)
DeleteI love ferns and ivy but I always kill them. In fact, the only plants I have continuously kept alive over the years are philodendrons. My last one grew so huge that I gave it to Dagan and Leah because they had more room and kept a cutting--"Baby Phil". It has grown to a decent sized plant over the last year. Just had a shot of Baby Phil on my blog today--LOL! :)
ReplyDelete