POT CULTURE FOR THE HOME

Can you imagine a home with no houseplants in it?  Stark and cold, wouldn’t you say?

Plants bring beauty, warmth and serenity to any environment, and that’s why there are houseplants.

Houseplants have been around for thousands of years.  Originally used to decorate the courts and palaces of royalty and the wealthy, they are now found even in the humblest of homes.  Trinidad and Tobago’s climate is particularly good for growing plants in containers, so it is not surprising that beautiful houseplants abound throughout the country.

Selecting Plants

Good houseplants should be both shade tolerant and conditioned to low light intensity.

Certain species adapt more readily than others to an indoor environment.  Heading the list are aglaoenemas, and other members of the araceae family, followed by palms, ficuses, pipers, other dark green plants, cacti and succulents.  Suitable flowering plants are orchids, bromeliads, African violets and spathiphyllums.  .

Before purchasing a plant, look first at its overall appearance, checking the colour and texture of the foliage; then examine the stems and undersides of the leaves for pests.  Plants with crisp, dark green leaves usually make the best houseplants.

POTTING MIX

No matter how much care and attention you give to your houseplants, they will not thrive unless they are in a good growing medium. You can either buy a prepared soil mix such as Pro-Mix, or make your own.  Ensure that it is sufficiently porous to provide good drainage, yet can retain moisture and nutrients. 

 A recommended growing medium is a mixture of 1/3 sifted garden soil, 1/3 sharp sand and 1/3 coconut fibrebast, well-cured manure, compost or peat moss.  A higher content of sharp sand is required for bromeliads, cacti and succulents. For orchids the growing medium is entirely different. It must provide absolute drainage and must not restrict the spread of roots in any way. A mixture of ¾” to 1” charcoal and clay crock is a simple growing medium for most orchids.

Fertilizing

Houseplants, in general, should be fed with a liquid fertilizer with a high nitrogen content.  They will also do well with a sprinkling of a 12-12-17-2 granular fertilizer every two to three weeks.  If your plants are undernourished, chlorosis or yellowing of leaves occurs and the growth rate slows down. However, overfeeding is just as bad as underfeeding, as root and foliage burn and unwanted growth may occur.

If a plant grows too rapidly it may lose its shape and have to be pruned or repotted.  A slow release fertilizer, such as Osmocote, sprinkled over the surface of the soil. is safe.   It will keep the plant nourished for many weeks.

If you have any gardening news or tips you would like to share, or if you are having a problem in your garden, e-mail me at thehappygardner@tstt.net.tt

******************************************
(Click on the Back button to go back to the list of Johnny's articles)