5 indoor plants that everyone else has that live without problems, but I don’t
I consider myself a fairly experienced florist, but there are plants that I could not cope with in any way. I tried a lot of attempts, tried to observe all the necessary conditions, but I constantly had to throw out another specimen. I will share my failures.
Anthurium
About the attempts to grow it I can write, probably, a book. I lost count, but at least 8 (!!!) copies I had. Now I don’t have a single one. And I didn’t give them away, sell them, or throw them away for nothing. Not a single one survived.
I’m sure that now those who are happy with an anthurium’s constant blooming have their eyes slightly rounded: how can it be, there are no problems with it!
I honestly don’t understand it myself, but I honestly tried everything I could.
I tried to grow them in the same purchased soil (transportation) – a few weeks anthuriums grew perfectly, but then sharply began to yellow leaves and as a result rotted.
Then I tried kneading a special soil for them. Perhaps, in the composition was not only unicorn pollen: and bark, and leavening agents, and good peat, and expanded clay and many other modern additives. Once I even bought a special soil for anthuriums from a fairly well-known company (not cheap, by the way). The result was exactly the same.
Lighting, watering, air humidity – I practiced all sorts of combinations, but the result…. guess for yourself.
In general, I do not know: whether it is not my flower (I am so often written), or whether I was caught constantly some specimens on the last breath, but to know the “male happiness” (the second name of anthurium) I have not yet succeeded.
Phlebodium
I do not know why, but with ferns I have not worked out since childhood. My English teacher had a huge fern at school. And so with the frequency of every three months, I dug out a sprout from there and tried to start it at home. I even succeeded once, but the happiness lasted a couple of months and then the fern dried up.
It was all about nephrolepis. When I plunged back into the world of floriculture, already being in my right mind and solid memory (at the age of 20), I did not try my luck again with nephrolepis and decided to try its fellow – phlebodium.
Of course, attempts to make friends with him was not as much as with anutrium: two times was enough to stop torturing myself and humiliate his floral ego.
About air humidity, moist soil, good lighting and properly selected substrate I was also aware then – nothing helped.
Rosa cordana
I think who keeps at home at least a couple of flower pots, at least once, yes tried to start a rose cordana. They are sold everywhere: supermarkets, flower stores, fairs, ads on the Internet …
I also tried to get one of these. Unlike an anutrium and phlebodium, here, most likely, everything is clear: inappropriate climate in the apartment ruined the first rose, and the second ruined the spider mite, which I brought, apparently from the store. In addition to the rose this mite then tried to kill the neighboring pots, because it was decided to say goodbye to the rose.
By the way, I did not throw it out: planted at my mother in the vegetable garden and the third year it grows there perfectly and has already leveled with other grafted roses. Apparently, there she and place.
Unlike the other plants in this article, I do not want to buy a rose anymore.
Calatheas
A bit of a slip of the tongue by adding calatheas to this list, because several calatheas still live in my house: pinstripe, triostar, networx. And I don’t know any problems with them.
But those that are considered the most popular – medallion, lansifolia and orbifolia, could not cope with the living conditions in the apartment.
And it happened so quickly that I did not even have time to realize that there was a new plant in the house. With one of them my acquaintance lasted literally a week (I did not even have time to water it).
Dry air? Pests? Stress? I don’t know. At that time I was still a very young florist and probably made a lot of mistakes. So now I have them in my plans, but later.
Dandelions on the dacha: are there any benefits from them and how to get rid of these flowers
Dandelions are pleasing to the eye when they grow on the edge of a forest or in a meadow. But for dacha growers they are a real scourge. However, they can be removed if you use our advice.
Dandelions seem like cute little flowers with their cheerful sunny yellow blooms and adorable little puffy seed heads that kids love. And the bees love them! But for many homeowners, they are a scary dream.
Dandelions are perennial weeds, which means that they come back every year, will take over your summerhouse if you don’t take them out. So unless you want to have a garden or flowerbed full of these flowers, sooner or later you will have to deal with them.
But before you start pulling your hair out over those weeds, it’s important to realize that no yard can be 100% weed-free, so don’t stress yourself out trying to achieve perfection. A few weeds here and there are perfectly normal for a lawn, even if you treat it several times a season. But here’s what you can do to keep dandelions and other weeds under control.
How to prevent dandelions
Your first defense against dandelions (or any other weed) is to make sure you have a nice, thick, healthy lawn. This means not mowing too short or too often, as this will cause weed seeds to germinate in mowed areas.
What to do if dandelions have already sprouted on your lawn
- If you only have a few dandelions, you can dig them out by hand. Be sure to dig up the root (or as many roots as possible). Dig them up before they sprout, or you’ll have thousands of other seeds to deal with.
- You can also treat them with any herbicide. If the plants are large, it may take two applications, but follow the directions on the package. You can also do a spot treatment with herbicide.
Can dandelions be eradicated without chemicals?
If you want to use an organic option, be aware of its limitations. Regardless of what you’ve heard, studies have shown that most currently available organic products can be just as toxic as synthetic products! In addition, they require multiple applications and do not handle mature or perennial cottage weeds such as dandelions.
Homemade weed killers can be dangerous too. For example, borax, a common ingredient in homemade remedies, is toxic to pets. And magnesium sulfate can feed the weeds, while lemon juice or hot water has only a temporary effect.
Sure, the weeds may look wilted or dead at first, but after a week or so they will reappear. This is because homemade remedies only have a local effect and are not absorbed systemically by the weeds.
Finally, homemade products are not selective, so you’ll kill everything they get on (including weeds!) if you don’t choose your spray location carefully. You can certainly try these products, but be prepared to reapply often and be very careful where you use them. If you try the hot water method, water dandelions that have sprouted in gravel paths or sidewalk cracks with it so you don’t scald other plants.
But there is a safer way to have a dandelion-free lawn! Allow grass to grow 3-4 inches tall to shade out sun-loving dandelions, or use specialized tools to have a thriving, healthy yard that is safe for children, pets and wildlife.
Ten things you might not have known about dandelions
Whether you love them or hate them, dandelions are some of the most familiar plants in the world. They are one species that almost everyone can identify at a glance, they are as familiar to people as a dog. Dandelions are quite possibly the most successful plants in existence, masters of survival around the world.
Before lawns were invented, people praised the golden flowers and lion-toothed leaves, believing them to be a bountiful source of food, medicine, and magic. Gardeners often weeded the grass to make room for dandelions. But sometime in the twentieth century, people decided that the dandelion was a weed. Today it’s the most unpopular plant around, but it wasn’t always that way.
After all, dandelions in the countryside are just fun. The dandelion seems to be a flower meant for children: In a park or garden, it is the only flower a child can pick without getting into trouble. In a field full of dandelions, a child will almost never be bored.
Blowing on dandelion balls can tell you if it’s time to go home, how many years you have left until your wedding or how many children you’ll have – and, of course, if you catch a flying dandelion seed, you can make a wish.
Dandelions need sun and disturbed soil to thrive. That’s why they seem to “seek out” humans: roadsides, construction sites, parking lots – and lawns. Having escaped from grass gardens decades ago, they now seem eager to return to the yards they left behind.
Dandelions may never be eradicated, but we can learn to treat dandelions and other wild plants more peacefully – and maybe even love them a little.
Why do houseplants die
I recently read a post on social network that all purchased plants must inevitably die, because they are grown on hormones and additives and all in the same vein. In the discussion, many confirmed that yes, as I do not beat, but the flowers do not grow, the energy is not the same, and the hands are not from there.
I got thinking after reading this and decided to delve into this topic-why is this happening? What do you think? Are hormones and energy really to blame?
In my opinion, plants do not grow because of errors in care and mismatch conditions of a particular apartment (home, office) those that need this particular plant. Everything!!! Period.
Why did my adenium died this winter? Because I, despite the fact that I know perfectly well that watering in the cold leads to rot – lazy, did not insulate the window properly, and watered it in the evening, when the window is especially cold. As a result, I got rotting and the flower went to the trash.
Also in every case of death is almost always to blame for errors in care. Either little light, or little or a lot of watering, or not fertilized or fertilized not that, or missed the pest and did not cope with it.
When bringing a plant into the house, you should already know what it needs and where we will put it, and how we will take care of it.
If I have southern windows, cyclamen and azaleas will not survive, and if I have northern windows, bougainvilleas and adeniums will not grow and bloom well there.
Planning the purchase in advance compare his requirements and what we can give him. Based on this we decide to purchase.
There was a case-neighbor decided to buy a dracaena, a large adult plant to beautifully place it in the corner of the room. The room with a window northwest, in front of the window a large tree, behind the window balcony. All the initial data said that the dracaena would not survive five meters from this already not very suitable window. The answer was-I want it.
After about a year, the remains were thrown out, with the words-“All purchased plants do not live at home”.
Do you think store-bought plants have a chance of living happily ever after with you?
How to revive a dying houseplant
Falling leaves. Drooping stems. Pests. The signs are obvious: your houseplant is unhappy. But does that mean it’s time to throw out the dustpan and consider it a lost cause?
Not so fast. Many indoor plants are more resilient than you think, and they can recover from some pretty tough conditions. You just need to figure out what disease your plant is suffering from and take steps to try to fix it.
So before you part with a sad-looking houseplant, analyze it and figure out exactly what’s going on. While we can’t promise that you’ll be able to save every suffering plant, it’s worth a try so you don’t have to say goodbye to yet another indoor friend (and the money and effort you’ve spent on it). Below you’ll learn the simple steps to reviving a plant, as well as when you should recognize that your plant is beyond saving.
Before you panic, check the plant for signs of life. Often a houseplant may look dead or dying, but there is still plenty of life in it. Also, some plants go dormant for part of the year and lose all their foliage. So even though some signs may look alarming, sometimes it’s just part of a perfectly normal process.
To determine if your plant is alive, start by inspecting the stems. Live stems will be flexible, not brittle, and green in color. On woody stems, use your fingernail to scrape off a small section of bark to see the green tissue underneath.
Carefully remove the plant from the pot to examine the roots. Healthy roots are white or yellow and plump, but even plants with brown roots can be revived. However, if the roots are all mushy and rotten, it is a sign that the plant can no longer be saved.
Once you’ve identified the signs of life, it’s time to focus on revitalizing the plant. The secret to revitalizing indoor plants lies in meeting their unique needs. Not all indoor plants need the same amount of sun and water, and not all plants thrive at the same temperatures.
So take the time to first read up on the needs of your particular plant, and then consider the following ways to troubleshoot problems.
Correcting overwatering problems
Overwatering is one of the most common causes of indoor plant death. When the soil becomes waterlogged, there is no room for air to move through the soil, causing the roots to suffocate.
A simple and immediate solution is to reduce the amount and frequency of watering. Allow the topsoil to dry out between waterings. Check to make sure containers are draining properly and empty the trays if water stands in them for more than 24 hours.
Excessive watering can lead to root rot.
Therefore, if you see browning roots on inspection, do not rush to repot the plant. Use sterilized scissors to cut off the roots showing signs of disease and repot the plant in fresh soil. Then switch to a more moderate watering regime to give the plants a little rest.
How to turn the soil on the bed into enriched soil – 5 ways available to any gardener
I learned that from my neighbors. I have such gardeners-experimenters living on 3 sides of me that only observe and learn, which is what I do.
Whatever the soil, whatever the crop
They each have their own “point”. One neighbor is a “sower” – that’s what I call him. His main job is to go and scatter fertilizer granules. He always has a shed full of them in stock. There are on shelves all kinds of fertilizers and signed – when what under which crop to bring, so as not to forget.
The result of his technology: since his beds are not weeded and not even dug sometimes not once a season, he has uneven harvests – that managed to break out from under the cover of grass, and grew to a man’s height and gave fruits of unprecedented size, for example, tomatoes with a flat. And if not – and sits quietly and unnoticed in the dense green grass, for example, strawberries. But the fruit is always excellent.
The second neighbor is a “mole” – day and night digging, loosening and uprooting. Perfect cleanliness at any time of the year on the plot. If a thistle or dandelion has grown, the entire root is dug out to its full depth. All haulm is carried away from the site into a neighboring ravine. “Chemical” does not like, manure is expensive – fertilizers almost does not contribute.
The result: the vegetable garden is beautiful, what can I say, but the harvest is average. Although all summer the spouses are working in the mode of “watering, loosening and watering”. This I will tell you a hellish labor – we have heavy soils.
The third neighbor – “super-busy” – he has no time, so for the vegetable garden is given a minimum of time – all the waste from the vegetable garden and kitchen are thrown at any time of the year wherever in the vegetable garden, right on the snow in winter, for example. In the spring, everything is plowed over with a hired motoblock mixed with thawed cleansings, shriveled haulm, ashes, scattered manure. Everything is planted all over without gaps with anything, watered also something-can.
The result: and the harvest is not bad. But there are a lot of diseases and rot.
I have a large plot, but I reduce the area of beds, reasoning as follows: to grow seedlings, we buy enriched soil. We realize that only such soil will give fast growth, strong plants, health and harvest.
And why do we not create the same conditions in the beds? After all, the removal of useful substances every year – colossal, it is from the top fertile layer, how much haulm, how many fruits from each meter of beds grows? And if the original soil is not fertile?
Using the experience of neighbors, I gradually began to adhere to the 5 ways of creating a fertile layer on the beds, and the crops do not complain.
Everything that grows, I leave in the vegetable garden
Lawn grass cuttings, weeds, small branches, leaves, raspberry and blackberry shoots and shoots go for mulch. First of all, the most voracious plants – raspberries and garlic. And I make an impressive layer – up to 20 cm. In raspberries I throw everything I have during the summer.
I mulch strawberries with husks, buckwheat is my favorite. It is also a big layer – I cover all the rows with a layer of up to 10-15 cm. Under it does not grow grass, moisture is kept for a long time – saving time for watering, loosening and weeding. Care is reduced to two jobs: mowing the green mass after fruiting and watering once a month.
I put the excess kitchen waste, fruits and haulm directly on the vacated bed, cover it with spunbond, sprinkle with any compost maturation gas pedal – and by fall I get an excellent fertile bed. On the spot, without boxes and bags. But experience shows that there is only enough waste for one bed, but what a bed!
But the “problem” haulm – tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes and eggplants and kitchen waste – I collect in bags and make compost also with Baikal – it has already been tested, this preparation processes any haulm, no diseases and pests have been observed. In them, a mass of worms breed, then you put then on the bed just a lump of greasy substrate with a lot of worms.
Ashes are dry and burned only
Anything that does not go into compost is burned. Usually a barrel of ash is collected, and during the summer it will be used up. By the way, fertilized apple trees with ash during the fall of ovaries – the harvest was very abundant, I had to put struts under almost every branch. Ash is useful only dry and well burned.
Cleaning – the more thorough the better
We collect all diseased fruits (zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, apples, etc.) during the summer and do not put them in compost, but burn them or take them to the garbage. We do the same with the haulm if we see any obvious signs of disease.
Remove mummified fruits of plums, apples and cherries from trees. We collect diseased tree branches and leaves of diseased trees separately and burn them as well. This is also care for fertility, because the soil should be healthy.
Siderates – not to take away, but to give nutrition
Those beds that did not have enough mulch in the summer, we add useful substances in the form of siderates. At the stage of filling buds immediately embed in the soil. It is better even earlier, otherwise siderates will take more from the soil than they give.
Once a year we buy a small cart of manure and in the fall we apply it to the beds. First of all under roses (remember that “the rose is a child of manure”), under vegetable crops that respond well to organic fertilizers. We also fill the planting pits of new seedlings with it.
What we have as a result:
1. saving time and effort on watering, loosening and weeding.
2. Consistently fertile beds that produce a steady harvest.
3. No disease outbreaks.
4. I apply mineral fertilizers as the need arises, not all over the place.
5. The soil is structural, crumbles, although our soils are very heavy.
I believe that these are elementary things, the main thing is to do it all systematically and at the right time.
How do you maintain soil fertility?