Plants and the Xerox Research Center Palo Alto California

My English Ivy-Hedera Helix

Interior Landscapes and Indoor Plant Care

I started in the interior landscape industry as an interior landscape technician in 1985, working for Tiffany's Decorative Plants in Fremont, California. One of my first accounts was the Xerox Research Center in Palo Alto, CA. It was such a big account that it took an entire day to complete all of the work caring for the plants. Not long after I started this job, my supervisor at Tiffany's (then the 2nd largest interior landscape company in the San Francisco Bay Area) let me know she had received the first ever compliment from one of their clients, my contact at Xerox. What a surprise that was, it got me a small promotion and, of course, more work! Indoor plant care seemed pretty easy to me but maybe it is genetics...my mother and grandmother were always avid gardeners but they never really ventured into the world of indoor plants. I have always enjoyed the job because I never had to stay in one place for very long. Days are never boring in the interior landscaping world, that's for sure. Anyway, that is the beginning of the story of my interior landscape career. In other words, I have a lot of experience taking care of indoor tropical plants! I have always enjoyed helping customers on accounts with their personal plants when they had problems.
Visit my website PlantAndFlowerInfo.com for houseplant care and help and feel free to contact me if you need some assistance. Thanks!

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Pruning Your Umbrella Plant (Schefflera Arboricola)

How to Prune Your Umbrella - Plant Schefflera Arboricola, Umbrella Plant Schefflera Arboricola I recently received an email from a visitor to my website asking how to prune her Umbrella Plant. She sent along the picture to the right. Here is her email and my answer: Hello, I'm just wondering how to prune an umbrella plant. My plant is getting out of control, growing upwards and I can't seem to get it to grow like a bush. I'm afraid to cut it to shape cause I might kill it. I've had this plant for over 10 years and from the picture I sent you can see it's still growing good. I just want to trim it down but I want to do it properly. Thanks! Hi Julia When pruning an Arboricola (umbrella plant), cut just above a leaf stem or node. I usually cut the tallest stem back into the center of the plant, leaving some leaf nodes for new growth to start. Doing this every once in awhile keeps the plant fuller and shorter. You can cut the really ta...

Dracaena Marginata Houseplants Pruning and Rooting

My Little Dracaena Marginata Question from Gilbert: I have a marginata house plant, It's about 2 1/2 feet tall, my question is: can I cut it in half and if I do will It continue to grow or will it die? And can I replant the top half? Also, will the trunk grow in diameter? Answer: Yes you can cut back the trunk of your Dracaena Marginata . It will put out at least one new shoot, if not three to four or more new shoots. It will not die as long as you are taking good care of it. You can re-plant the cut-off top, but Dracaena can be a little harder to root than say, a Pothos plant that you can just leave in water and it will grow forever. You can air-layer your plant . Another option is to root in moist sand. You can lay the piece of Marginata trunk down on its side in moist sand and it should eventually root, although it may take some time. This has worked for me before. If you want to root it in its upright position, try some rooting hormon...

Dracaena Marginata Plant Care

Plant Care for Dracaena Marginata Potted Dracaena Marginata Plant My last post was about the Mother-In-Law Tongue plant, the most searched and researched indoor plant and its care, at least on my website. This post is about Dracaena marginata, the second most searched for indoor plant. The dracaena marginata is sometimes called Dragon Tree. We just call her Marginata or Marg... Marginata is my favorite Dracaena, I just love the thinner, long, delicate and arching leaves of the marginata. If your Marginata has been growing in really good light in a nursery, the leaves may be thicker and stiff. As it grows in new foliage acclimated to the lower light in your home (or office), the leaves will thin and become more graceful and arching. That is the way I like them best! Dracaenas in general are really easy to care for once you get them settled in and learn how to water them properly. Many of the plants that we use in our interior landscapes are dracaena varieti...

Indoor Plant Care - How to Houseplant Care

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