RE: houseplants

I have fewer houseplant now than ever before.  Seems that the more room I
have to plant outside, the less I keep inside.  I agree, trying to keep
houseplants looking good in winter (heater) and summer (AC) seems like an
exercise in futility.  I have one spot over the TV on a ledge, that I have
killed even unkillable things (pease lily, caste iron plant, philodendron).
I don't know what it is about that spot- there must be a wind tunnel there
from the heater or something.  I think I'm going to look for something else
to put there- like a sculpture or something!  The one thing that seems
pretty sturdy here is bromeliads.  They come in lots of interesting leave
shapes and colors- so even if they don't bloom again they still look good.

Theresa

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gardenchat@hort.net [o*@hort.net]On
Behalf Of Kitty
Sent: Sunday, June 27, 2004 9:50 AM
To: gardenchat@hort.net
Subject: Re: [CHAT] Shouldn't it > houseplants


I don't 'do' houseplants as I find them to be a bother.  Always forget to
water them, they get dusty, they are more 'housework' for me, and I don't
like housework.  That said, I like them in other people's houses.  And I do
overwinter tender plants on a large lightstand, which I suppose, makes them
short-term houseplants.

My experience with plants in the house during the winter months (neIN, Z5)
has shown me the difficulties of low humidity which might in some way mirror
your situation year-round.  Do you use A/C a lot?  This can remove what
little humidity you have.  Last year I had a new furnace and A/C installed
and I had an April Air humidifier attached.  Now my humidity in winter has
been increased from as little as 20% to 50% and I saw a noticeable
difference in the overwintered plants.  I don't know if this is an option
for you, since you are likely in this location to escape humidity.  If so,
you can increase the humidity imediately around the plants by placing the
pots atop trays of stone and water and it may not cause too much of an
increase of RH all around the home.

Kitty


----- Original Message -----
From: "Dakota" <Dakota@hisword.com>
To: <gardenchat@hort.net>
Sent: Sunday, June 27, 2004 8:54 AM
Subject: [CHAT] Shouldn't it be this way?


>
> Does anyone know about house plants that are easy to keep? I've tried
> many times to have a Boston fern, but they never survive. LOL! We have
> low humidity here, but they didn't even survive in CA. My orange
> honeysuckle is blooming!! When we bought this land last year, there were
> no flowers at all, except wildflowers. The previous owners only planted
> one pine tree, one globe willow, two pecan trees, and one apricot tree.
> There's a row of some type of bamboo looking growth in one area, too.
> Makes a good wind block. Our new cottonwood tree seems to be doing the
> best right now. Does anyone else here live in AZ, NM or TX?
>
>
> God bless,
> Dakota

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