Success with House Plants

Practicing the art of raising plants is a pastime that has captivated human beings for centuries. Perhaps it’s true that being around plants is therapeutic, but you don’t have to be a horticulturist to know that it does take work to keep those beauties looking healthy.

There are plants to brighten every season of the year. Some plants only bloom during the winter months and rest during the summer. Take for example the thick-stemmed Amaryllis with its trumpet-shaped bloom. Well-grown bulbs can produce four to five flowers per stem during the month of December. Leaves usually appear later. This plant is know to grown on the banks of rivers in China and Japan. Most people think of this plant as a garden shrub. It is often white in color, but turns blue acid soil. Another interesting floral plant is the Hydrangea. It blooms in the beginning of April an turns into a flower through September.

Most indoor and outdoor plants require watering, feeding, transplanting, cutting and/or grooming. There are some plants that are more practical for balconies and terraces and others that are best to hang in an office. Each plant, under your care, requires you to use your “green thumb,” and if you think you don’t have one, acquire one!

Success with house plants is often a result of trial and error, doing research and learning more about plants.

Water is Life
All living organisms depend on water. Indoor plants are no exception. A plant’s roots function as a water pump. It carries minerals and nutrients to the leaves. Water then evaporates and falls to the soil where the cycle is repeated.

Overwatering
Horticulturists will tell you that most plants die from over watering, rather than from thirst. Most plants should be watered we when the potting soil is almost dry from the last watering. To check whether a plant needs watering, simply feel the soil. Is it cold or wet? Knock the side of the pot. If it resounds, it’s dry.