I abandoned the garden on my day off.
Although the sun was out, I felt like relaxing after working all weekend but, as I sat with my book, my eyes couldn’t resist checking out my house plants and feeling quite proud of my latest group.
Using the same pot and similar foliage, I featured in the centre a Zanzibar Gem for height, a Madonna Lily in flower, and a variegated aglaonema with white stripes.
They are all hardy indoor plants, but the Zanzibar Gem takes the prize. It hardly needs watering.
Madonna Lilies, sometimes called Peace Lillies love a drink, but they will let you know when they begin to droop.
By now you have probably realised I only take home the toughies – selecting plants for inside at this time of year needs to be done carefully.
Always check at point of sale where knowledge is available as we are now turning on the heating, in which plants, like Maiden Hair Ferns, need daily attention and regular watering and a cool spot, such as the bathroom where they aren’t going to be dried out.
I personally don’t tend to fill my home with large plants, perhaps because I have too much furniture collected over the years.
Currently, large indoor plants are extremely popular – tall Kentia Palms and Happy plants are both hardy and sought after.
Now that winter is approaching, Ficus lyrata (Fiddleleaf Figs) can be a little hard to find as growers find they don’t like the cold.
Burgandy and variegated Rubber trees handle the cold well as do Strelitzia Nicolai, which need space to grow tall.
Gardening inside is often experimental – check out the light situation at this time of the year as the sun is lower.
I often find I have enquiries now when I am shown leaves with burn marks, mostly when I check the plant is against a window.
Have you ever checked how cold glass is at night?
THIS WEEK:
* Don’t be tempted to prune roses – it is too early.
* Once dormant, spray deciduous trees with copper oxychloride.
* Nurseries will either have new season deciduous trees in stock or taking orders.
* Dissolve one tablespoon of sulphate of ammonia in half a watering can of water and sprinkle it around parsley plants.
