in France your house insurance expects your roller blinds to be down whenever you are out
Really? That seems like a great way to signal an empty house to a thief.
It's been a terrible winter for houseplants here. Dark and damp most days but not cold enough for consistent dormancy. I've had lots of fungal issues that I've never seen before and some plants want watering one day then drop leaves because they've been watered the next. I'll be glad when I can get them all back into the greenhouse for the summer.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
I have a couple of ferns and peace lilies, but, if I'm honest I prefer outdoor plants as they change more through the yr. I had a couple of air plants for a decade and they didn't do anything. Stayed the same size throughout. I confess to having found them dull companions. 😉
Those are all lovely, @Loxley. I particularly like the rhipsalis and the hoya. I have the tricolour wayetii and I really enjoy the look, shape and feel of the leaves.
I have great success with houseplants and swear by a regime of monitored neglect and a few basic rules.
-Only water when dry, even when this means certain species look to be suffering - they always bounce back and some seem to thrive.
-Only use rainwater.
-Feed a nominal amount with every watering (honestly, who has time to plan a feeding regime?!).
-Do not place them in stupid locations even if you think it looks good (e.g. draughty or dark places...or somewhere too bright and warm!).
-Follow common sense when potting up; a houseplant in a constricted pot is generally better than one with too much room as its harder to manage watering and drainage.
-Follow common sense when choosing growing medium (dont put a cactus in houseplant compost...).
-Don't be deterred by failures, you will have more of these than successes.
People may disagree with some of the above but its generally worked for me.
Thanks. A Philodendron squamiferum leaf is pushing into shot in the second photo.
I love the Rhipsalis too. My current favourite is the related Epiphyllum chrysocardium though, the fern leaf cactus.
I agree with McRazz's comments, although I don't use rainwater for most of mine; I find letting them almost dry out and then giving them a really thorough water in the shower suits basically all of my houseplants.
"What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour".
I too have just started a houseplant collection (I have bought some small, cheapish ones as I'm not usually very successful), mostly succulents... strings of things (hearts, turtles etc). Have already lost one... think it was called string of bananas... my problem is there seem to be a lot of little flies around them... what should I do to get rid?
The little flies are probably fungus gnats. They like to lay their eggs in damp compost. So if you have them it's likely the compost is a bit too damp. You can use a barrier to stop them. A 1/2" layer of fine gravel (fine aquarium gravel) will stop them getting to the compost. Or let your plants dry out a bit more between waterings
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
A short lived experiment involving a gin bottle, hydroleca, and one of the many pieces lopped off a rhaphidophora tetrasperma that wanted to take over the universe. They root well in hydroleca and this plant graced the dining table for a few months before its situation became ridiculous and it, and the gin bottle, had to go.
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I have a couple of ferns and peace lilies, but, if I'm honest I prefer outdoor plants as they change more through the yr. I had a couple of air plants for a decade and they didn't do anything. Stayed the same size throughout. I confess to having found them dull companions. 😉
Platycerium bifurcatum, Stags Horn Fern
Curio rowleyanus, Peperomia "Hope" and Philodendron "Neon"
Rhipsalis paradoxa sbsp paradoxa, Hoya wayetii, Epiphyllum chrysocardium
I love the Rhipsalis too. My current favourite is the related Epiphyllum chrysocardium though, the fern leaf cactus.
I agree with McRazz's comments, although I don't use rainwater for most of mine; I find letting them almost dry out and then giving them a really thorough water in the shower suits basically all of my houseplants.
They like to lay their eggs in damp compost.
So if you have them it's likely the compost is a bit too damp.
You can use a barrier to stop them.
A 1/2" layer of fine gravel (fine aquarium gravel) will stop them getting to the compost.
Or let your plants dry out a bit more between waterings
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.