Be a Well-Informed Houseplant Buyer - 27 East

Residence

Residence / 2300286

Be a Well-Informed Houseplant Buyer

Number of images 12 Photos
This 13-inch wick-type humidifier creates no white dust and uses very little electricity. Often sold as baby room humidifiers they are quiet and efficient at adding humidity in the area of your houseplants -- as long as you remember to fill it. Some have several fan settings, and you can find them for under $40. ANDREW MESSINGER

This 13-inch wick-type humidifier creates no white dust and uses very little electricity. Often sold as baby room humidifiers they are quiet and efficient at adding humidity in the area of your houseplants -- as long as you remember to fill it. Some have several fan settings, and you can find them for under $40. ANDREW MESSINGER

There are a number of types of Crotons like this attractive specimen. They prefer bright light, temperatures on the warmer side and a moist soil. If placed too close to a cold window or if night temps get too cold they will drop leaves. Repot twice a year. ANDREW MESSINGER

There are a number of types of Crotons like this attractive specimen. They prefer bright light, temperatures on the warmer side and a moist soil. If placed too close to a cold window or if night temps get too cold they will drop leaves. Repot twice a year. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a fiddle-leaf fig, or Ficus. It can be a ceiling buster if not managed but does well in medium to low light. In lower light they can get leggy and ungainly, but pruning the main stems can help as can better light. They tolerate drier soil but should be well watered as needed. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a fiddle-leaf fig, or Ficus. It can be a ceiling buster if not managed but does well in medium to low light. In lower light they can get leggy and ungainly, but pruning the main stems can help as can better light. They tolerate drier soil but should be well watered as needed. ANDREW MESSINGER

Begonias can be great houseplants for medium-light situations (not full sun, which may burn them) and if not overwatered they are very colorful houseplants. They are easily propagated from leaf cuttings. Allow the soil to dry between waterings, but don’t let them sit in standing water. ANDREW MESSINGER

Begonias can be great houseplants for medium-light situations (not full sun, which may burn them) and if not overwatered they are very colorful houseplants. They are easily propagated from leaf cuttings. Allow the soil to dry between waterings, but don’t let them sit in standing water. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a Fatsia japonica, which can make a great tall and full houseplant that isn’t overwhelming. This plant appears to have a nutrient deficiency but twospotted spider mites can cause a similar looking type of damage to the leaves. Washing the leaves occasionally can help manage spider mites as can horticultural oil and neem oil. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a Fatsia japonica, which can make a great tall and full houseplant that isn’t overwhelming. This plant appears to have a nutrient deficiency but twospotted spider mites can cause a similar looking type of damage to the leaves. Washing the leaves occasionally can help manage spider mites as can horticultural oil and neem oil. ANDREW MESSINGER

These are all varieties of Dracaenas, one of the most popular and easiest houseplants for medium- to low-light situations. The Dracaena marginata in the center will grow quite tall, and it’s normal for it to drop lower leaves as the plant grows. Cutting the canes (not all at once) when the plant gets 2 feet tall will result in the canes branching and filling out. ANDREW MESSINGER

These are all varieties of Dracaenas, one of the most popular and easiest houseplants for medium- to low-light situations. The Dracaena marginata in the center will grow quite tall, and it’s normal for it to drop lower leaves as the plant grows. Cutting the canes (not all at once) when the plant gets 2 feet tall will result in the canes branching and filling out. ANDREW MESSINGER

Bromeliads are a family of plants related to pineapples. They are slow growers, need little care other than occasionally putting water in the center where the flower forms. They tend to grow on trees in the tropics and prefer high humidity, but water the soil sparingly. ANDREW MESSINGER

Bromeliads are a family of plants related to pineapples. They are slow growers, need little care other than occasionally putting water in the center where the flower forms. They tend to grow on trees in the tropics and prefer high humidity, but water the soil sparingly. ANDREW MESSINGER

If you want to start a houseplant collection these 2-inch potted specimens are a great way to begin. This group contains Aralias, Peperomias, Pilea, Begonias and others. While they are inexpensive, you still need to know their growing requirements to be successful. ANDREW MESSINGER

If you want to start a houseplant collection these 2-inch potted specimens are a great way to begin. This group contains Aralias, Peperomias, Pilea, Begonias and others. While they are inexpensive, you still need to know their growing requirements to be successful. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a Monstera philodendron. These make great low-light plants where they grow slowly. While initially purchased in a pot, often attached to a piece of tree with bark on it, they can grow quite tall. Other philodendrons like the P. selloum are not as tall but can get quite wide. Another philodendron variety is in the background. ANDREW MESSINGER

This is a Monstera philodendron. These make great low-light plants where they grow slowly. While initially purchased in a pot, often attached to a piece of tree with bark on it, they can grow quite tall. Other philodendrons like the P. selloum are not as tall but can get quite wide. Another philodendron variety is in the background. ANDREW MESSINGER

One of the easiest houseplants to grow are the Peperomias. These succulents, sometimes called baby rubber plants, are very forgiving as long as you don't overwater them. They need warmth, slightly dry soil and bright light but no sunlight. Only water when the top inch or two of the soil becomes dry, and never leave in standing water. The leaves can be smooth, textured and in a variety of colors with patterns. ANDREW MESSINGER

One of the easiest houseplants to grow are the Peperomias. These succulents, sometimes called baby rubber plants, are very forgiving as long as you don't overwater them. They need warmth, slightly dry soil and bright light but no sunlight. Only water when the top inch or two of the soil becomes dry, and never leave in standing water. The leaves can be smooth, textured and in a variety of colors with patterns. ANDREW MESSINGER

Use either a rubber flat or double up on plastic flats (no holes) to create a humidity tray. Add 2 inches of pea stone or bluestone (seen here) and keep 1 inch of water on the bottom so the stones on the top remain dry. Fill as needed. ANDREW MESSINGER

Use either a rubber flat or double up on plastic flats (no holes) to create a humidity tray. Add 2 inches of pea stone or bluestone (seen here) and keep 1 inch of water on the bottom so the stones on the top remain dry. Fill as needed. ANDREW MESSINGER

This 13-inch wick-type humidifier creates no white dust and uses very little electricity. Often sold as baby room humidifiers they are quiet and efficient at adding humidity in the area of your houseplants -- as long as you remember to fill it. Some have several fan settings, and you can find them for under $40. ANDREW MESSINGER

This 13-inch wick-type humidifier creates no white dust and uses very little electricity. Often sold as baby room humidifiers they are quiet and efficient at adding humidity in the area of your houseplants -- as long as you remember to fill it. Some have several fan settings, and you can find them for under $40. ANDREW MESSINGER

Autor

Hampton Gardener®

  • Publication: Residence
  • Published on: Oct 22, 2024
  • Columnist: Andrew Messinger

Being a well-informed plant buyer and plant parent can save you from frustrating mistakes that may not be your fault. But if you buy the wrong plant, for whatever the reason, you can just be throwing your money away on a plant that I can virtually guarantee will die. Some in weeks, and some will have a longer and more tortuous demise.

If you read last week’s column hopefully you noticed a picture of a small potted plant with pink polka dots. Aptly called the Pink Polka Dot plant, it can also be found with white spots instead of the pink ones. You can find them as lovely, well branched but tight plants in 4- or 6-inch pots. However, this is one of the plants that will drive you crazy if you don’t know what to expect.

This plant is an annual, and it’s probably been treated (sprayed) with a growth inhibitor to keep it short and compact. That’s not how it wants to be though, as in nature it’s just a weed. Even worse, it’s an annual, though tropical, weed. This means that in a matter of weeks, possibly a few months, it will get leggy, flower and — as annuals do once they flower — die, having completed its genetically programmed role of producing seeds for the next generation.

We’ve all done it. Buy a plant that we know little about then wonder what went wrong. But even reading the label on the Pink Polka Dot Plant it won’t tell you that it’s an annual. In this case we are at the mercy of the grower and retailer. Unless of course you’re reading this now.

But before we get deeper into what plants make great houseplants, let’s look at the options for where we buy them. Keep in mind also that this is really the best time of the year to buy houseplants because retailers want the space for holiday plants and displays, and most can’t keep the tropicals in outdoor displays for much longer. Once our nighttime temps drop below 50 consistently, the tropical plants begin to suffer when kept outdoors.

The best place to buy your houseplants is at a full-service garden center or greenhouse where the plants are kept in a greenhouse. One of the best examples I know of locally is Fowler’s in Southampton. There is usually a salesperson there who knows their houseplants, and most are kept in one of two small greenhouses that are always well stocked with the plants well cared for. There’s always a selection of many plants of varied sizes including smaller potted tropicals in 2- and 4-inch pots. For beginners I always recommend starting with the small specimens as they are less expensive and often more forgiving than their older and larger relatives.

Fowler’s also has a selection of orchids, which are very popular around Thanksgiving. If there’s an orchid you fancy now is the time to find one. They sell out fast before the holidays. Several varieties, including the fairly easy Cattleyas, are available. You don’t need a greenhouse to grow orchids, but you do need to choose wisely and have the right conditions in your home. However, orchids can be so inexpensive these days that some consider them disposable when they stop flowering.

And what are the right conditions in your home for tropicals? You don’t need a sunroom or a greenhouse but you will need a spot with good light (not necessarily sun since we’re growing mostly foliage and not flowering plants) and humidity at or over 50 percent, unless you’re growing cacti or other succulents. Temperatures should range from 60 degrees at night to 70 or higher during the day. But how do you manage the humidity when most homes struggle to stay around 45 to 50 percent humidity in the colder months? There are ways.

One thing you don’t want to do is constantly mist your plants. This is a very temporary solution that gets the foliage wet but as the water evaporates it lowers the temperature around the plant. Not great. One easy solution is to find hard rubber or plastic trays that are about 2 inches deep. Fill these trays with pea gravel or bluestone gravel then add about an inch of water to the tray — but just an inch. The water will slowly evaporate and create enough humidity around the plants to raise the moisture level in the air around them to a plant-comfortable level.

This only works as long as you remember to keep that 1 inch of water at the bottom of the tray, covering the first inch of stone. The second inch of stone is a buffer that keeps the pot (preferably clay) from coming into contact with the water and wicking it up. The trays will be heavy and hard to move around so you may want to double them up.

While this works for 2- and 4-inch pots it’s not a great solution for taller plants in larger pots. This is where a small humidifier comes in handy. You don’t need a large and noisy humidifier, nor do you need one that produces steam or a “warm mist,” as running these can be costly. All you need is a small wick-type humidifier that holds a quart or so of water. A fan draws room air over the wet wick and gently pushes moistened air out the top. You may have to fill this small humidifier daily, but it will put out enough moisture to make several large houseplants in the area very, very happy.

But I digress. As there are great places to buy houseplants there are also bad places as well. These include supermarkets, big box stores and shops that sell plants outside in front of the store when it’s 30 degrees outside. As opposed to your local plant shop or garden center you have no idea how long these plants have been around, what kind of care they’ve gotten and yes, there’s a very good reason they are inexpensive. They’ve been grown on a slim budget and that can mean you and the plant as well as its prepurchase care will be minimal.

The other important buying tip is to buy small and learn how to grow with your plants. In all likelihood you’ll do better with a jade plant purchased in a 4-inch pot that you repot every six months or so than a jade plant in a 15-inch pot that’s 18 inches tall. Start small and grow with your plants. And if you start small you can buy more and get more experience with different plants.

There is one important thing to keep in mind at this point though. Plants grow. Unless you are getting into bonsai, every plant you buy will get larger, need larger pots and expand into vertical and horizontal space. Fine if you are establishing a collection, but you don’t want to be one of those houseplant parents who is calling friends and neighbors trying to find a home for that tall and wide Schefflera you bought in a 6-inch pot that’s now in a 15-inch pot and pushing against the ceiling.

And we haven’t even looked at flowering houseplants, which have additional needs. The most common are the citrus plants like the Meyers lemon. Yes, these can be magnificent plants, and when in bloom they’ll fill your house with their magnificent citrus scents. And yes, as long as you provide them with a 10-degree nighttime temperature drop and enough light you will get fruit, and that fruit will be quite delicious, but it takes time. Though once you’ve mastered the first blooming season chances are your Meyer’s lemon will flower and fruit every year after.

Some plants to be wary of because they can easily be problematic are: Schefflera because it easily gets out of hand and too big. Fatsia japonica because it’s very sensitive to sudden temperature changes and can drop leaves easily. And while I love the thin, long leaves on the tall stems of the Aralia elegantissima, it too will drop all its leaves on the night your furnace goes down and the house gets cold. There are a few night-blooming cacti that are easy to grow but on that one night that it blooms you may find the scent of the flower so overwhelming that its perfume can be an issue.

As for plants that I can and do recommend here are a few, but again, read up on them and know what they like and don’t. Virtually all the Philodendrons and their relatives are great and accommodating houseplants. Some like to climb, and others, like the Philodendron selloum, tend to form a mound and make great plants but can still take up a great deal of space. The P. selloum tend to be large and prefer a pot at least 2 feet wide when mature. They’re easy, exotic and will take up space if you’ve got it.

Ficus also make great houseplants, be it the types with long elliptical leaves in green, near black or multicolored or the smaller-leaved Ficus benjimina with its smaller leaves on a well-branched tree-like structure. Don’t freak out when this plant drops leaves. It’s a deciduous plant and will continually drop leaves and replace them. The fiddle-leaf Ficus has become very popular in the last decade, and while a taller plant it’s very easy to care for and tolerates lower light levels.

Peperomias are another group of smaller plants that do well in homes as are the viny Pothos, Calatheas and Stromanthe. And don’t forget the orchids. Also keep in mind that you can always add water to a plant. But — and this is important — it’s nearly impossible to get a plant to recover from being overwatered.

So go forth and buy. Experiment with smaller and less expensive plants that work up to larger or more challenging varieties. Make sure you have the space and don’t have more than one person do the watering. It’s one of the few things with plants that you can’t undo. Keep growing.

AutorMore Posts from Andrew Messinger

Being a Grateful Gardener, and 'The Vegetable Prayer'

Back in October I began to think about my Thanksgiving column for this year. I ... 25 Nov 2024 by Andrew Messinger

African Violets Make a Great Addition to Houseplant Collections

When I wrote about houseplants a few weeks ago my mind seemed to be fixated ... 20 Nov 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Spend an Unseasonably Warm Fall in the Garden

Well, one thing about a dry and warm fall is that we can’t rely on ... 13 Nov 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Fall To-Do List in the Garden

As gardeners, most of us are busy in the outdoor gardens well into the fall. ... 6 Nov 2024 by Andrew Messinger

What You Should Know About Amaryllis Bulbs

In early October a catalog reliably arrives in the mail. It’s the White Flower Farm ... 31 Oct 2024 by Andrew Messinger

The Tropical Origins of Everyday Houseplants

This week, a bit of a diversion, but it’s still about your tropical and “exotic” ... 15 Oct 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Houseplant Care Headed Into the Cooler Months

As the garden plants begin to brown and the leaves on the trees fade from ... 9 Oct 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Pumpkins Are Not the Easiest Crop To Grow

In last week’s column we took a quick look at pumpkins and pumpkin lore. One ... 3 Oct 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Pumpkin Fever Sets In

It’s the time of the year when farm stands and markets put out these strange ... 24 Sep 2024 by Andrew Messinger

Choosing and Caring for Fig and Apple Trees

This week, some thoughts and advice on a couple of fruits you might want to ... 19 Sep 2024 by Andrew Messinger