House Plant Care - How to Have Great Looking Plants

Watering for Healthy Plants

Watering Rules, House Plant Care

Working in the interior landscape business for more than 20 years has gotten me lots of questions about how to care for indoor potted plants.

Customers ask about their own plants at home...why does my plant have yellow leaves... what causes brown leaf tips...how come the new growth on my plant is dying...I water my plant everyday but it still isn't doing well...how much should I water my house plant?

It can be hard to diagnose every indoor plant problem when you do not have access to the plant itself. So I generally find myself asking them questions about how they care for their plants. Most often, the problems are solved by changing watering habits. 

In almost every instance, changing the way they look at watering their indoor plants gives them positve results with their houseplants.

I care for indoor plants as my job and I know that there are not many plants that I care for that always use the same amount of water or need watering on a rigid schedule. Many different things influence a plants water use.

Customers turn off the lights, leave the lights on, turn off the air conditioning, turn up the heat, close the blinds, open the blinds. All of these things, and many other things, influence the way you need to water an indoor plant.

There are many things to consider when you are watering your house plants. Read more about watering properly for good results with your indoor house plants... 

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One Very Popular Houseplant-Dracaena marginata

Dracaena marginata plant

Dracaena Marginata Plant Care

The marginata plant is one of the most popular houseplants. It is one of my favorites and I get so many emails asking questions about Dracaena marginata that I have to think it is one of everyones favorite indoor potted plants.

One of the care questions that I get most often about this beautiful, indoor plant is about pruning. Is it alright to cut it back if it is too tall? Where should I cut the stem?

The answer to the question is yes, you can cut back the stems or canes of dracaena marginata. You should cut the stem just above the height that you want new growth to start. It is best to do this in the spring time when most plants do much of their growing.

If you look closely at the stem you will see rings that encircle the stem. This is where the leaf nodes are and where your dracaena marginata will push out some new growth. You will most likely get a few new "heads" starting before you know it.

It is best to do this before your plant gets so tall that it needs support to stay upright. Also, it may be a shock to you when you see your plant cut back so far. It also encourages healthy new growth and keeps your plant fuller and healthier looking. 

Read more about dracaena marginata plant care and about other indoor plants....

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Best Indoor Houseplant For Beginners

Snake Plant - Houseplant

As an interior landscape technician, I get a lot of questions from people during the work day. Some want to know why their plant is not doing well. Others ask what the little bugs on their plant are and how to get rid of them. Some people want to know the best way to prune or propagate their houseplants.

Another common houseplant question is: What is the best houseplant to get if I have never had an indoor plant before?

That is one of the easiest questions to answer as it doesn't require finding out alot of other information. The answer to this question is undoubtably...The Snake Plant!

Snake plants are great indoor plants as they will tolerate an owner that doesn't pay them much attention. They will live in lower light but they will become thin and leggy over time if the light is not sufficient.

However, if you are one of those people that likes to water their plants everyday, you should not get a Snake plant! There are not many indoor plants that will last long with everyday watering!

Snake plants are known as Sansevieria. The long tall foliage looks something like a snake and that is no doubt where the name Snake plants come from. Another name is Mother-In-Law Tongue. Someone will have to explain that one to me.

Anyway, if you are looking for a houseplant that does not need a lot of attention, try a Snake plant. Read about Snake Plant care, Sansevieria houseplants...

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Pretty Poinsettia Plants

Poinsettia Plant

Every Christmas season for twenty or more years, I have had hundreds of these lovely "flowers" in my care.They are delicate and fragile and you must use care when handling them. Place them out of high traffic areas and away from places where they might get a cold draft. If you are moving them during cold weather be sure to enclosed them in a loose fitting sleeve or plastic bag. Just be careful not to break them. They are quite fragile and easy to damage.

When shopping for your Poinsettia, be sure the bracts are well colored up. For maximum use of your flowering Christmas Poinsettia, the flower, small and yellow in the center of the bracts, should be....read more about Poinsettias

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Great Indoor Potted Plant - Decorate for the Holidays

Norfolk Island Pine

The Norfolk Island Pine is a versatile plant. It can be used as a unique indoor potted plant, a decorative focal point on your patio as a container plant and it is often decorated with miniature ornaments and used as a holiday tree.

Yes, the holidays are almost here. The poinsettias will soon be out and the Christmas trees and other holiday decorations will be showing up everywhere.
Time sure does fly! The 2014 holiday season is about to begin...

An evergreen tree native to Norfolk Island in the Pacific Ocean, the Norfolk Island Pine, or Araucaria heterophylla, is often used as an indoor live Christmas tree during the holiday season. We often give these out during the holidays to our great interior landscape customers. Read more about the Norfolk Island Pine...

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Best Indoor Palm Plant

Lady Palm - Rhapis excelsa

If I had to choose which indoor palm plant is my favorite houseplant, it would be Rhapis excelsa palm. This lovely plant is a favorite with interior landscapers as it is hardy and will survive in lower light levels. It is also more cold tolerant than many other tropical indoor palms.

Most types of fan palms are not well suited to life in the average home because of their tendency to spread out, requiring lots of space. While used in large interior landscapes, most fan palms tend to quickly outgrow any available space in smaller areas.

Rhapis excelsa, or Lady Palm, has more of an upright growth making it a good choice for use in your home. It has glossy, dark green fronds and while it can be maintained in somewhat low light levels, it will look its very best in bright light with some morning sun.

Read more about the care of this beautiful indoor palm...

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Get Rid of Those Plant Pests!

Mealy Bug Insects (Missouri Botanical Garden)

House Plant and Pesky Insects!

The very best way to be sure you don't have insect problems on your indoor plants is to check for bugs before you buy. Always try to buy your houseplants when they have just arrived at the local retail store from the growers.

The folks that produce your plants at the nursery follow a regimen of treatment to make sure they do not have insects damage their plants. However, once they arrive at the local store, the probability that they are going to end up with some kind of insect problem tends to increase.

I usually walk through the indoor plant section of the local home improvement stores (I won't name any names) whenever I am there to purchase something else. I can't tell you the number of times that I find insect problems starting up on the house plants.

My recommendations for keeping pests from being a problem indoors is to always check plants before you buy or bring home. Once you get them home, isolate from other plants for a week or so, keeping an eye out for any pest problem. Many insects are almost unnoticable at first, so look very closely. Under the leaves, in the leaf axil, even on the soil surface.

Wash them down every few days with a shower of water, making sure to hit the undersides of the leaves. You can add a few drops of mild soap to the water if you use a spray bottle. Mild dish detergent works or you can pick up some Peppermint Castile soap and enjoy the nice smell. You can use Peppermint Castile Soap for just about anything else around the house including bathing your pets! 

A small amount of rubbing alcohol added to the water can also be effective but it doesn't smell as nice! (Not for your pets)

You don't usually do not need any harsh chemicals. Bugs don't like water or soap. I use a mixture of water, a few drops of liquid soap and a few drops of olive oil or vegetable oil while I am caring for customers plants and for my own plants. Works just great!

For your outdoor plants, a daily shower of water from the hose will be quite effective in sending most insects into the neighbors yard to eat their plants! If that doesn't work for you, here is an idea for a do-it-yourself organic insect spray from Jami in Pleasant Hill, Oregon. Homemade stuff is always fun!

If you need some advice or help with your houseplants, PlantAndFlowerInfo.com is always here.

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Trillium Flowers - A Rare Breed But Not a Housplant

Grandfather Mountain NC

These are a couple of photographs I took of Trillium flowers. The first one to the right was growing on the East coast, near Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. From what I have read, this particular Trillium is fairly rare and Grandfather Mountain is one of the few places that it grows. That may or may not be so. Any information about Trilliums?
The next photo of what I assume is a Trillium was taken in the forests of Oregon. I happened upon it as I was taking a little hike with the dogs and spotted it on the side of the trail. There were only a few but they are kind of pretty.

Oregon forest

I just thought I would post these, even though my website is about the care of indoor houseplants. Any one out there an expert on Trilliums or have any information to offer about them?
Houseplant care and information available here. If you need some advice, I would be happy to help out. Hope everyone's new year is going great.

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Poinsettia - Holiday Plant Care

Euphorbia pulcherrima - Poinsettia

Pretty Poinsettia Plant Care

Your pretty #holiday flowering #Poinsettia #plant will need some TLC or maybe I should say TLPC. Yes, that is tender loving #plant #care! It is the holiday season once again and Poinsettias usually start to appear just after Thanksgiving week. When the Poinsettias, or Euphorbia Pulcherrima, are put out, the Christmas trees and decorations start going up.
Poinsettia is most commonly used as an indoor potted plant at Christmas time, at least in the United States. In some of our milder climates, it can also be found in exterior landscapes. A member of the Euphorbia family, Poinsettia is a succulent plant. That tells you something about your beautiful Poinsettia flower. These native plants from south of the border do best if placed in bright lighting and average room temperatures. Poinsettias are not difficult to care for it you just use common sense watering practices. Do not expose them to the cold as it will quickly damage the leaves and bracts. For information on re-blooming your Poinsettia when the holiday season is over and plant care for your Poinsettia flowers read more...
Have a Great Holiday Season! May God Bless Everyone Around the World with Peace and Happiness...

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Pothos Plant Damaged by Wind

Question from Michele: Please help, I just received a 25 year old Pothos with very long vines. I left it outside the first night I got it and it was very windy. Every leaf on the vines are gone. Will they grow back?

Answer: Thanks for your question, sorry to hear about your Pothos losing all of its leaves. However, as long as there was no tissue damage to roots or stems from excessively cold temperatures or the wind, your plant should regrow, if cared for properly. It may be a good idea to cut back some of the longer stem to help your plant fill out faster but it should regrow even if you don't prune it back. Read more about Pothos plant care...

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