The wonders of fertilizer/new plants.

Rhipsalis mesembryanthemoides. I bought this about a month ago and it's been fertilized lightly at every watering.

Almost every tip has new growth. The tips do fall off rather easily, though. (The plants have to come down for watering.)

Rhipsalis rhombea. It's been slower growing, but is showing many new tips.

Adorable.

Both plants have been watered about once a week with diluted fertilizer. Most of my plants respond positively to the amount of fertilizer and light. These two have only been here about a month, so these are good examples of fertilizers' perks. Yes, it's growing season and they probably would still have grown just fine without it. I, however, would like to think I'm doing something right.

Sempervivum 'Kalinda'. I was out buying my mom some plants for her garden, and I was in love with the color of the plant. I think it will lose its tint but I still love semps.

Euphorbia x Iomi. I'm hoping that this one lives...

That's it. I'm very tired. Next up: my mini greenhouse.

I will save your life.

This post should be titled:

Meet the windowsill gang/the wonders of fertilizer/new plants.

Though that wouldn't be as concise as I'd like. So, this will be a Deftones lyric title.

Let's start with the bedside windowsill gang. The plants don't really rotate here, as they're pest free and prefer high light.

This is Chaka not long after I bought her. February 2012. 3.5" pot.

This is her weedy behind self today. 5" pot, with roots coming out of the bottom.

Her leaves have really evolved. They used to pop out bright pink. Now they're darker.

The flowers are small, and only last about a day. They're not especially showy, either.

This is Baby. See why I call her this? She towers over her 2" pot.

I don't really know what this growth is. I was thinking new leaves until it got elongated like this. Maybe a stem for the flowers?

I don't really talk about my Crassula ovata, mostly because I feel like everyone has one. However, I had to have one when I first started my foray into houseplants. I'm Asian, so obviously I was drawn to a Jade plant.

It's just so easy to grow. I drench and then ignore it. It seems overjoyed with this.

I bought the Crassula ovata and this Portulacaria afra together, thinking they were the same plant but with different leaves. (Forgive my beginner's ignorance in February.) However, this is different but so much more impressive to me. It started sprouting leaves and hasn't stopped.

And the leaves almost shimmer in the light.

This is Russell, the Ficus. I know I should have done a profile on him by now. Things get crazy. Anyway, he's one of the first plants to live in my apartment (along with Diva, who sits on the dressers). He was moved to this windowsill a few days ago since I know Ficus don't like drastic changes in light.

This is his good angle. I wish he was that bushy all over!

My only problem with Russell is that his new leaves are growing in green-yellow. You know, as opposed to green-white. I've seen other Ficus benjamina in big box stores that are doing the same things. I don't know if this is normal or not.

The happy family, sans Baby, who hangs out with Amelia and Queen Anne on the nightstand. More on them in another post.

 This took entirely too long to post. My computer is older and I had to restart several times because I left the cord unplugged accidentally. So, I'll do the new plants/fertilizer is awesome post later on this week. Probably tomorrow.

Goodnight.

Plant panic (or, silver linings)

I just spent about an hour and a half this morning moving plants. My apartment is about 85*F right now with both windows open. Shades are down and plants are moved to less bright spots. Everything that needs to be watered is watered.

Why am I still so nervous something is going to die?

I totally forgot to mention that Baby, the dwarf Euphorbia milii, is still kicking. She gets unfertilized water about once a week and she is sprouting new leaves. She had to be isolated for a bit because of wigglies in the bracts. They were snipped off and she stayed isolated for about a month. It must have been so lonely for her.

Anyway, she is back with the pack and wiggly free. She took everything like a champ. I stopped fertilizing her because she is in such a small pot. I also probably killed Trent due to over-fertilizing AND underwatering. Shame, really. Baby is doing well and I totally forgot that she was around. I keep looking for a new Crown of Thorns, but I forget she's right there...silently growing.

I'm hoping for a white one this time around. When Baby blooms, she's red all over. I'd like something different. Trent was a beautiful yellow bloomer, but I like to switch it up. Maybe it'll be Trent 2.0.

Tonight, tonight.

After today, my brain can stop being complete and total mush and go back to being (usually) quite sharp. It's audit day at our workplace and we're hoping nothing bad happens.

Anyway, tomorrow I will be leaving the state to visit family. I will be gone 4 days. Eep! What will I do with my plants? Some are very fussy...

I'm probably going to bunch them in my living room and on my bed. Pull the sheers down and hope for the best. Some of my plants will be just fine - more than just fine - upon return. Some of my plants are fussy about water and...may not be fine. I will find a way.

H. mindorensis and H. obscura made their way outside today. I just don't have enough light for them in my apartment while they're in mandatory isolation. Coral is going back outside too.

Most of my plants are doing fine. I wish I had the time (or brains) to actually stop and take picture. They haven't had a proper bug check in about two weeks. I'm sorry, plants. This will only happen about twice a year.

I'm fighting the urge to buy more plants. I try to limit it to one plant order a pay. Luckily, I have a supportive boyfriend that tolerates this. When we move into a house, at least they can be outside or in one specific room.

That's it. Brain fried.

Eulogy.

I had to throw away Trent this morning. I was very...bothered.

He just wasn't doing well. His trunk was pliable. Very pliable. I just checked them a few weeks ago and they didn't move. I think the re-pot really did him in. Usually, my plants respond positively...or at least neutrally. For some reason, my aloes and euphorbias do not like my mix. Okay, hint taken.

I also think it's not completely my mixes' fault. I bare rooted them and their roots probably were shocked on top of having a ton of dirt on top of them. I'll have to remember to keep a semblance of a rootball intact for them next time.

Trent, you were a good plant. I'm sad that I couldn't keep you thriving. I'm going to try again ASAP.

In other plant news, the aloe I re-potted hasn't died. It lost a few "leaves" but it seems to be doing fine. I'm ignoring it for the time being. None of its babies survived, supporting my theory that my mix simply stays too wet for them. I'm going to have to work on less vermiculite, or no vermiculite, for my succulents and more sensitive plants. Lessons learned.

It was surprisingly irritating to throw Trent out. He had a sunny spot and good ventilation. Throwing him away bothered me in another way I didn't realize. I'm a big fan of nature and I see it as sacred. I have plants inside as a way of keeping the divine close at all times. I know that sounds totally out there, but seeing them thrive gives me several levels of satisfaction. I'm keeping pieces of the Earth happy, yay!

So, when one plant dies...I wonder. What did I do wrong? Why couldn't I keep this piece of Earth happy? So not only do I have gardeners' pride to contend with, I have a spiritual and moral pride to deal with as well. Phew.

-------

Coral was saved last night. I grabbed her, took her out of her pot, took out whatever wasn't clearly part of the rootball, and brought her inside. The soil I took off was sopping wet. She has not yet rotted, and so I gave her fresh soil. Her rootball was still moist, so I'm not watering her in yet. Her foliage looks good - I think her staying outside for now is a good idea. No signs of mealies. When I picked her up to put her back in the pot, I marveled at how much she has grown. When the Philadelphia Flower Show comes back in February, I will take a picture of the sized pots she was going in. She has come a long way! I'm hoping this is the last time I will re-pot her for a while...her rootball wasn't extensive and she needs time to grow. I realize why she isn't blooming - she's working on leaf production.

My pieces of Earth are growing pretty well, all in all. I'll take pictures tonight if I have time. I'm bringing work home with me and I may or may not be completely braindead by then. This post made me feel better about my indoor garden. I feel like I've been killing a ton of plants lately, but that hasn't been the case. Most of them are still here with me, growing away the day.

Damn you, mother nature!

My brain is frying. It's audit time here at work and I swear my IQ plummeted from 140 to 100.

I've been so scatterbrained that I left Coral outside during several rains...and her soil was already wet. I was so annoyed this morning because I knew it would rain Monday...not SUNDAY INTO MONDAY. Damn you! I was going to move her into the greenhouse this morning but I was too late. I might do an emergency dryout for her tonight.

My poor boyfriend. He's really been the victim of my brain this week. I've been working 6 days a week and dog tired the whole time. Poor guy had pink eye all week and we finally got to see each other over the weekend. I should do something nice for him tonight...maybe make him dinner.

Anyway, my plants are chugging along. I got plants from Mr. S and for the most part, I'm satisfied. The Schlumbergera looked pale and weak (which he told me about prior to shipping) and on a whim, I divided and repotted. They're on a stool near a west window and they get plenty of light. The Tradescantia zebrina didn't make it home. I think I shocked the crap out of it putting it in the enclosed entryway, which is pretty bright all day. I had to chuck it.

The Nematanthus 'Tropicana' is looking great. It's in a sunny spot and I hope it doesn't go the way Coral did. No mealies, please!

Most of my plants are doing fine. I have some that are throwing hissies for whatever reason. Trent is still kind of floppy and still gets yellow leaves, though not everyday. I just watered him after ~1-2 weeks of not doing so and I'm terrified he'll pull the leaf drop thing with me again. He was doing so well before I re-potted!

I'm keeping the windows open to stave off having to move my plants off the sill so I can put my AC in. I don't know where I will put them - especially Russell the Ficus, which has been enjoying pretty high light all year. He hasn't shed one leaf on me and I wasn't planning on that happening anytime soon.

Enough rambling.

New plants/random plant events.

On an impulse, I made a purchase of two Hoyas from Gardino nursery. The two Hoyas I bought were going for insane prices for 3-4" pots elsewhere. I would try to pounce on an Ebay listing and I would get outbid every time. Shipping was quick, the plants look healthy and I feel like I got my money's worth. Anyway, here they are:

H. mindorensis. I have been looking at it for some time - it's blooms are gorgeous and the foliage is pretty enough to grow it without blooms. The foliage is a little plain, but they sent me such a nice sized plant for $10. I was really impressed.

These sell out really quickly for whatever reason. I snatched it up before I made the mistake I made with H. macrophylla.

Oh my god. I love H. obscura! This plant also sparks bidding wars, and I wasn't about to spend $15-20 for a small pot. This went for $8 and I'm so happy about the color of the foliage.

Though I probably won't be able to maintain this cheery red, I'm going to keep it as happy as I can.

I also have some plant events. Not all are about growth:

I transplanted the (probably not) Aloe nobilis into a bigger pot. It was horribly rootbound! I know it's big, but I want to give it room to grow. I haven't been having much luck with repotting aloes...I usually remove all of the previous mix and re-pot like that. I had a division that didn't like that and I trashed it yesterday. I'm terrified that I will kill this poor thing. Luckily, this root ball had bigger roots, so I may have better luck.

The aloes' pups. I have a feeling one of them will take. We'll see.

Do not mind the fly strip - still battling fungus gnats. Anyway, this is what Trent looks like now...on his good side. The ventilation and sunnier spot has seemed to end his fussing.

Lots of other things are going on in my jungle apartment but I need to cook dinner. My poor boyfriend has pink eye and I haven't seen him in a little while. Work is getting hectic (we have an audit coming up) and so this quiet time is welcomed.

Until next time, arrrivederci amici!

Lessons learned.

1. Pinching works. Wow, does it work. I pinched my Fuchsia and my Crassula tetragona cutting and both sprouted from two points in less than a few days. It's not like I never believed that pinching was effective, I just looked at the new growth like something to cherish, not pinch off. I am a believer now. I'll be pinching my branching plants from now on.

I just pinched Chaka, the H. phyllostachya (who, by the way, has gotten HUGE in just three months). I'm sure that will be a success too. Miss Weedy made it a success in about 24 hours. Oh my god.

2. Miss Hoya needed a little time (and neglect) in order to show new growth. Miss Hoya is really four separate plants, and for a while only one was really doing anything. I snipped her all white leaves off and left her alone. She got water maybe every week and a half. Now she's got growth on each plant. I'm so happy!

3. Trent the Euphorbia milii has been having a hissy since being repotted. I did some reading and apparently they're pretty pissy in general about being transplanted. (One plant a user uploaded showed almost ALL the leaves yellowing and falling off. It made Trent look like an absolute angel.) I calmed down a bit and took the one bit of advice given - give it some moving air. I cracked open the windows and allowed my fan to blow by i. It's lost maybe one leaf since I did this a few days ago...that's much better than the 4-5 a day he was dropping.

4. Jazzy only seems to be fussy when she's got flower buds. She's resting now and very tolerant. Phew.

--------

Put Coral and H. fitchii outside in the back. It shouldn't be too cold for them. I know that to get Coral to re-bloom, she will need lots of light. She won't be getting that in my northwest facing bathroom. I think my M. inflatta and E. suzannae died due to lack of light and too much water together. I don't want to kill these, which are quickly becoming favorites.

I also ordered from Gardino nursery. Ordered Saturday (when they were closed) and they're sending them out today! I should have them Wednesday. :) Also awaiting Mr. S' plants. Should be here Thursday if he ships them out tomorrow. Excitement!

Ciao!

Walkaways/shame on you.

Hey ya'll, hey. I just got back from work/looking at plants, so my week can now begin. I walked away with one new plant, but here are some that I decided to leave behind:

Philodendron 'Silver'? I love the pattern on the leaves, but I have too many hanging plants right now and I would probably need more light than I have to keep it this way. Lowe's, $10.

Hoya polyneura! I came in expecting to see the usual EA Hoyas, but I've never seen this one before. I was very excited because people are selling cuttings of this particular Hoya for the cost of this entire basket - $15. Joni @ SRQ Hoyas did list it as not for beginners, though. I took the hint - I'm not going to be able to care for it properly...yet.

Hoya nummularioides. I was very excited about this one too for the same reasons. Alas, the weight of the baskets would snap my curtain rod. $15.

Aeschynanthus radicans. I really like gesneriads, but I know they're mealybug magnets (though I still love Coral something fierce) This huge plant would probably have to be half destroyed by mealies before I notice. I will pass for now. (WHY U NO HAVE SMALL POT?) $15.

Not so much tempted by this, but when I saw it I thought, 'Sammy? Is that you?' I rescued Sammy in February because my boyfriend's job is changing buildings. He looks just like this now that he's with me! Chlorophytum comosum 'Hawaiian'. $15.

Even though Trent is being a little haughty right now, I still love Euphorbia milii. It's that time of year where clueless people randomly pick out plants for their mothers, not caring about care instructions. Big Box stores stick them in "decorative" pots and uptick the price. I wasn't really trying to pay $10 for this, even though the hybrid is just gorgeous. It has green splashes in the red/pink bracts. Very nice. My reasoning was that I could always get the hybrids some other time, for less.

Bad pic (all of these were taken with my camera phone), but this is an example of the bract.

I've started to gather some plant-shopping pet peeves. This is clearly a Chlorophtum, but:

As you can (or maybe cannot) see, this is not what the tag says. I just took the tag out and laid it on the shelf.

Agave something or other. It says it on the tag and it kept poking me.

Shame on you, Lowe's. SHAME. I don't even know what this plant is, but what is this? 

So, I never explained why and how my boyfriend complained.

My boyfriend saw the aforementioned bonsai plants on the shelf for $40. Dying or already dead, Paul snapped a few pics and put it on their facebook. He said, "shame on you for trying to sell these plants full price!" They immediately responded and asked him to email them. He did, explained that I'm that crazy plant lady, and that that's a bad sales move. They did the standard we-will-bump-this-up-to-the-proper-authorities. However, Paul was at Lowe's by himself and noticed that most of the plants that he saw last time had fresh soil. I gave him a pat on the back. What a plant activist.

I just noticed lots more of employees working the garden area. They actually watered the plants while I was there and that's a big deal. I'm there often enough for odds and ends that I've never felt a properly watered plant in the place. Hey, my boyfriend's mouth got something done. Good for him!

I would expect nothing less from an Aquarius with a Libra stellium.

I'm starting to become pickier with the plants I buy. I came home today with a Haworthia turgida because I have been eyeing it online and it's selling for $7+ not including shipping. I bought it for $3. Anyway, things I would have thought were cute before just don't catch my eye. I still like the more common plants, but I'm not tempted.

Okay. I have figured out who will be first under my plant spotlight. I have two plants from September, and though that's not a SUPER long time to have them,they're the ones I'm most attached to. Russell the Ficus benjamina is up first. I don't know why exactly this will be done, but hopefully in the next week or so.

Thanks for reading!

When plants die.

I have a story that kind of makes sense to my point, so here we go:

My very good friend Kevin graduated last night. He is officially a BSW, and probably going to go into the advanced-standing MSW program at Temple. We both met during our Intro to Social Work class, which affirmed his love for Social Work and my aversion for it. (I was trained in the discipline of Psych, which is harder and faster than Social Work. We're more about classifications and proper care/research as opposed to group work and policy. I respect it, but a lot of the students were of the mind that they can change the world, whereas Psych majors know we can help what's directly in front of us. I digress...)

I felt like a proud mom, sitting with my boyfriend and watching him walk. Not to get too personal, but when I met him he wasn't comfortable with himself. He had started coming out to more people and was very self-conscious. The changes he has made in the last few years have been amazing. I am so very proud.

It's been a very busy week for me (one spent almost entirely in the ER with a client) and so this was a good note in a very long, scattered week.

I come home, take the plants off the bed, check some of the plants that were just coming out of isolation. Mama, a Euphorbia suzannae, hadn't been looking too good. She had a bunch of pods upon purchase, and with the help of a euphorbia gardener, I tried to drench/let dry which she was working on her babies. Unfortunately, her pods fell off and weren't viable, but she stayed green. According the the gardener, that's OK. She'll grow and work up some more pods in the future. I can dig that.

Tonight, she looked a little lopsided. I went to check her root ball

and her whole head came off.

Underneath was mush. The dirt had a bunch of roots, but I guess Mama just a) didn't like how I cared for her or b) pulled a quick one on me. I don't know, but I kind of took it personally.

Then, I checked Trent, my Euphorbia milii. He has been playing this yellow leaf game with me ever since I repotted him in my faster draining mix. He was bought in a peat-based mix, which I hated, but I tolerated it until his root ball looked okay to transfer. He seemingly does not like this. I can tolerate old leaves falling off - Euphorbia tends to do that. However, yellow leaves continuing after I haven't watered you in a week...frustrating. It's an easy care plant, yes, but I do not understand. I did my regular watering routine and left it alone.

------

So, something snapped within me. I started to throw out plants I didn't particularly care for anymore, plants I know aren't doing well in my apartment, and plants that were on their way. Sorry, I cannot deal with some of you guys right now. Not your fault. I hate to throw away a living thing, but if it's going to die a slow, awful death...I don't want to see it.

Instead of picking plants I like the look of...I'm going to try to focus on the plants I can care for and do well in my apartment. Plants die. I know this is a fact of gardening life. However, I know for a fact that I'm keeping everything else happy. I tend to take these things personally but the approach needs to change.

Stick to plants that work with you, not the ones you think look prettiest. Maybe I'm too busy most of the time to give some of the more needy ones the care they need. Either way, something will give.

!!!

Good:

My Ledebouria socialis (Lil, not Phil) is offsetting! I know that this is not a special thing for it to do - it offsets like crazy most of the time - but this is my first one.



Bad:

My Hoya fitchii has mealybugs, or what my tired eyes deemed mealies. It's with Coral the Nematanthus in the bathtub, sprayed down with neem. With such a small apartment, I may need to bring both outside into the greenhouse. I can't afford a widespread mealy infestation. (They weren't placed anywhere near each other on a daily basis.)

Kalanchoe tubiflora had webbing around her base. I removed it and then a black...thing came out and crawled away. It doesn't look like a spider mite from what I remember but she's going outside tomorrow morning. Sorry, guys.

You tell me:

Jazzy is almost done blooming. I pruned her spent buds back. I think she will probably focus on shooting out crazy arms again before blooming again. Hopefully this is good for her.

I'm not even done checking my plants. Tomorrow, I will resume.

Happy Friday!

Today was so very long. Coming back to my plants was nice.

Senecio radicans, or 'String of Bananas'. Poor thing was bought at an unfortunate time - I do not have much space near windows. I know how to treat Julia, the other Senecio...she gets lots of afternoon sun. Unfortunately, he's going to have to wait like the other plants. 30 days and then he can hang. He was left out in the hallway under fluorescent lights, and was just recently brought in. 

He didn't mind. I potted him up maybe a week or two and I'm always glad to see that they're taking to the new pot/soil well. He's even showing me a bloom. Doesn't smell like anything to me.

Carol the Aglaonema had these already upon purchase, but have shot up in the last few weeks. She does look a little sparse, so I'm hoping these give her a more full look.

I'm going to start spotlighting some of my plants. I'm just trying to figure out how to do it - do I do my oldest first? The ones I have a soft spot for? The rescued plants? That's still all up in the air.

For now, my plants say Hasta luego!

Is it any wonder I can't sleep?

I'm in a very Smashing Pumpkins mood. I have no clue why, but this is awesome.

Anyway, I present some verbal diarrhea with some pictures.

Chaka is one of my prima donnas, believe it or not. She straight up fainted on me about a week ago, but was like JK LMAO when I watered her. Hmph. She's grown quite a bit since I got her. She was a lot more compact than this. I know that Hypoestes Phyllostachya tends to get a little ungainly with time, so I may need to cut her back. She already has roots poking out of her drainage hole. I RE-POTTED HER TWO MONTHS AGO.

I haven't named this P. afra yet. Funny, because I've had it for about two months now. It's a really good, easy plant. It's grown a ton of new leaves, has never dropped one on me, and loves her sunny spot on the windowsill.

This is a new plant. It's Rhipsalis rhombea, though I've read that that's not a recognized species. (Species? Cultivar?) I've walked away from it before, but not this time. Mom bought some plants so I got two as well.

Rhipsalis mesembryanthemoides. I don't know if that's correct because all this pictures I've seen don't mimic this particular growth habit. However, I don't have any better guesses. This isn't a plant I'd usually be interested in but I told myself to think outside of the box. It had lots of new growth, so I said 'why not?'

Another P. afra. I like the variegated version better, but I bought a four pack so I was going to enjoy it damnit. I gave two away and potted up two for myself. It's putting on growth quicker than its variegated sibling. It's not really all that close to the window, either. It's on a stool about three feet away.

Kalanchoe tubiflora. It's grown a HELL of a lot in the two or so weeks I've had it. It put on a full inch without me noticing. I picked it up on Sunday and then saw a picture of it after purchase. Wow.

BIASED PLANT OPINION AHEAD. I think Euphorbia milii is the easiest plant to grow, seriously. Yes, Trent is very touchy about being overwatered. He will threaten you with yellow leaves all up in his area. I firmly believe that's because of the crappy peaty soil he came in. That all changed today. I gave him a nice 5.5" pot to sit and grow in. It wasn't nearly as bad repotting as I thought - all of his soil came off and I just avoided his thorns.

Oh my god, I love his leaves.

H'okay. My boyfriend suggest orchid supports for Jazzy, and I always thought they looked too big from seeing the packaging. I caved and clipped her up gently. Doesn't she look miserable? She has been dropping leaves and one of her leaves looks "burned". I checked for mites and I'm not seeing anything. No webbing, no specks. I just hope this is her still being mad at me for leaving for 48 hours and not watering her enough to last that long. I'm sorry!

Sally returns to her soulmate, Sammy. She is all done blooming and ready to go back to her bright little love cove. (Don't mind the fly strip...Sammy is still in the MG soil and I'm trying to avoid repotting him. However, the fungus gnats are insane around him!)

This is Buster, a Pilea depressa,  looking fat. He's not looking good on one side, and I'm CONSTANTLY watering him. Of course, this is not because I love him that freaking much...it's because he's always dry. That was it - he got re-potted. The pot is really not that much bigger than the last. I may be re-potting him again before I know it.

This is Queen Anne, a Pothos 'Marble Queen'. She's named after my mother. She's everything my mom is - tolerant, subtle yet beautiful, and generous.

And generous she is - she's trying to give me three more new leaves after popping out two in the last two weeks. Another shoot is starting from the soil. Queen Anne is happy as a Pothos. 

 1. I do agree with the sentiment that not enough plant bloggers actually blog about their failures. As a beginner, I fully admit to my failures. Jazzy does not look happy for whatever reason and it's frustrating because I fuss over her. I try to keep her moist then leave her alone in a sunny spot. She was fine with this until I left. I don't get it.

I killed an Aeonium that was gorgeous because it's really not an indoor plant, and an Echeveria after I left for 3 days. I watered it and everything but it called it quits while I was gone. I'm thinking too much heat near the window. I've thrown away plenty of dead outdoor plants.

2. I'm in the process of ordering from Mr. S. I'm really excited about the plants I want. I may get a "real" Christmas cactus!!!!

3. Trying to save money for a house when there are perfectly good plants for sale is HARD.

That's it for now. Alla prossima!