Indoor Plant Care - How to Houseplant Care

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 every day 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 positive results with their house plants. I care for indoor plants as my job and I know that there are not many plants that I care for that always us...

Rhapis Palm House Plant Care Rhapis Excelsa Palm, or Lady Palm, is a great indoor house plant. The fan-like fronds are a shiny, glossy green when healthy. Rhapis Palms will tolerate lower light and temperatures than many other palms, making it a good choice for the home or office. Rhapis excelsa is a fan palm. Although most fan palms are seldom sold as house plants and will mostly be found in large, indoor landscapes because of their size and spread, the Rhapis Palm is well suited to life in the average home or in the office. The Rhapis palm plant has more of an upright growth habit than many other fan palms. This elegant palm plant has a fairly tough constitution. Read more about the fantastic palm plant that can be used as a potted, indoor plant.

Indoor House Plants Pictures Names Neanthe Bella Palm Plant Do you have indoor house plants that you would like to identify? There are many indoor plants that we use to grow indoors. Many of those are only available at a greenhouse or from a tropical house plant grower but some of them are sold at your local home improvement store or local grocery store. There are a few house plants that most people have had if they ever tried to keep and grow an indoor potted house plant. Pothos is a very common indoor plant and I see them everywhere as I am out taking care of plants in commercial interior landscape accounts. Peace Lily is another plant that many people have in their home or office. If you have an indoor house plant that you would like to learn the name of and how to care for it, I have created a page on my website that shows pictures of common indoor house plants for identification, their names and links to care pages for each plant. Check out my page of indoor house plan...

House Plants - You Have Questions, I Have Answers, But... Rhapis Excelsa Palm on My Model Home Account Hi Plant People, hope you all had a nice October. Hard to believe it is already November 2016. Just realized that since I started working as an interior landscape technician in 1986 and it is now 2016, I have been taking care of, installing, warehousing, replacing, selling or unloading indoor tropical plants and flowers for just about 30 years. Most of that was direct, day to day care of different types of tropical plants in many different locations, from the west coast to the east coast. There has been a break here or there for a year or two but for most of the past 30 years I have been involved in all aspects of the interior landscape industry. That's a lot of plants! On my website, I offer simple, straight forward advice on caring for your indoor plants. As you can tell from the first few paragraphs, I have had lots of experience to work from. ...

How to Combat Those Little Flying Bugs - GNATS! Although fungus gnats can be a problem with indoor plants at anytime of year, they can be a bigger problem during the warmer months as they are also outside in greater numbers and, no doubt, plotting an invasion of your home...  :) Not a Fungus Gnat-Just One of My Plants Here is a little information about fungus gnats: Fungus gnats are small flies, about 1/8" long, black or dark colored. Adult females may lay up to a few hundred eggs in a 7-10 day period. And they will lay them in the moist topsoil of your indoor plants, if they get a chance. Fungus gnat eggs hatch in about six days, producing small, white maggots. Larvae will grow to about 1/4" in two weeks and then form pupae. Then adults will emerge from plant media in a week or less. And the cycle begins again! While adult fungus gnats do not damage your indoor plants, they can be very annoying. You may see numbers of them about your plants, if they are...

Christmas Cactus Plant Christmas Cactus - Zygocactus truncatus The Christmas Cactus is a beautiful, flowering type of forest cactus. In their natural environment, a forest cactus will attach itself to trees in wooded areas and jungles. So it is not too surprising that they are so different looking from their typically spine-covered desert cousins. The Christmas Cactus is one of many popular plants to give or receive during the winter holiday season. If you know someone who loves plants, you might like to give them a beautiful Christmas Cactus for the holidays. This beautiful plant is usually in full bloom when received as a gift. Zygocactus truncatus or Schlumbergera truncata are botanical names for the Christmas Cactus. It is called Christmas Cactus because it blooms between late November and mid-January. When in full bloom, this is one beautiful plant. Flowers may be white, red, pink or purple. This plant (similar to its close relative the Easter Cactus) ha...

Dracaena Warneckii Plant Plant Questions and Answers Here is a recent email question from Grace, someone looking for some help with her houseplant... "I got a plant for my moms funeral and now it's very tall and don't know if and how to split it. Any help? I attached a picture of it. Card that came with it says it's a dracaena but couldn't find any helpful information on line." Hi Grace, Thanks for the picture. Your plant is a dracaena Warneckii . You can cut back the stem any place that you want to and it should regrow from that point. Is that what you wanted to know? Your plant looks nice and healthy! Good job. Let me know if you have any other questions or if I did not tell you what you wanted to know.... Hi again Grace, Forgot to mention that you can root the piece you cut off in moist sand, then you can plant into its own pot when the roots get a few inches long. You should remove the leaves (from the cut piece) when yo...

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. ...

Do you love to  ‪#‎ travel‬  and also love  ‪#‎ plants‬ ?  Love to visit the local  ‪#‎ botanical‬  gardens when you visit someplace new? If you happen to be in the vicinity of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, you might want to set aside a few hours to visit  ‪#‎ LongwoodGardens‬ .  The grounds of Longwood Gardens encompasses over 1,000 acres of woodlands, meadows, gardens and fountains. Spring and summer are great seasons to visit as many plants and flowers will be in glorious bloom! Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania The largest conservatory in the U.S. is located at Longwood Gardens with 4.5 acres of wonderful plant life to enjoy. And please don't miss the Orchid Room in the conservatory, a grand collection of more than 9,000 plants. Sounds like a wonderful trip! And if you visit in September, plan to take in the 30th Annual Mushroom Festival on September 12 and 13, 2015. Known as the mushroom capital of the world, this ...

Cute, unique decorative planters... Saw these cute and quite interesting planters while browsing around the internet. While they may not be ideal for all indoor plants, as there are some that really don't do well when they get water in the leaves, they certainly are more fun than just pouring some water into the soil. Maybe use them on your deck, in the sunroom or on the patio?? What do you think of these planters? Would you use them? What would you plant in them? See more about these unique, decorative planters ...

Warneckii A recent letter from a PlantAndFlowerInfo.com visitor: "Hello. When I purchased this plant it was distressed and about 1 foot tall. It is now 7'2" tall. Is it a type of Dracaena? It's in an 18" pot. It does not have a woody looking stem. The leaves are 20" long, and are dark green down the center, with a small white stripe on each side of the dark green, and then a lighter colored green on the outside of the leaf. I would like to know the name of the plant. Can I cut it shorter? Can I plant the piece I cut off? Any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated. Attached are 2 pictures - one is a full view and the other is a close-up of a leaf. Thank you very much. Hortie" Close up of Dracanea Warneckii leaf At first, I had not received the attached pictures and replied that it sounded like a Dracaena Warneckii. Eventually the pictures confirmed that it is a Dracaena Warneckii .  Yes, you can cut or prune the stalks back ...

Use beautiful greenery in your office space Adding plants to your office is something that every employee (and business owner and employer) should want to do. The benefits, both physical and psychological are evidenced in numerous scientific studies. The cost savings are also significant enough for any cost conscious  business owner to sit up and take notice. Many people working in an office environment surround themselves with reminders of home. That often includes house plants. Whether you bring your own and care for them yourself or engage the services of a local interior landscape company, every office should include beautiful potted plants. Improve your environment and help clean the air, add indoor tropical plants to your work space! Click through for more about why plants are good to have in the office. Then come visit us at  www.PlantAndFlowerInfo.com  to read about lots of different plants that you can put in your work place.

Welcome to the New Orleans Botanical Garden. From the 1930s to today, we're proud to offer the city of New Orleans carefully cultivated gardens. Open year round, twelve acres of gardens and art await you. Whether you are a local or a tourist, make sure to  take a leisurely stroll through our many gardens. We know you'll see something new each visit and always leave with a smile. After you visit the New Orleans Botanical Garden, come see us over at www.PlantAndFlowerInfo.com  to learn more about your favorite house plants...

Beautiful Orchids Do you love orchids? I know that I do. Although many of them need a special environment that not everyone can provide, that doesn't mean we can't enjoy the unique beauty of these wonderful plants. We most often use Phalaenopsis orchids in our interior landscapes and that is the type I usually keep at home but there are thousands of types of orchids. Wouldn't it be fantastic to see many of these all in one place? If you live in the Santa Barbara, California area or plan a visit or trip to the area, you might want to consider stopping in at the Santa Barbara Orchid Estate . Check them out and be amazed at the scope of orchids they have on display and for sale. As an additional bonus , there is an annual orchid show in Santa Barbara. The 70th Annual Santa Barbara International Orchid Show will take place March 13-15, 2015. There will be an art show and sale, information on flower arrangement and exotic displays and, of course, orchids to see an...

With a working farm, childrens garden, Orchid and bromeliad displays and great nature trails for walking, you might want to plan a visit to Denver Botanic Gardens in Littleton, Colorado. And everyone loves a Corn Maze and Pumpkin Festival, part of the gardens fall fun. When you arrive home and find your indoor plants need some attention, come and visit  www.PlantAndFlowerInfo.com . But first  Enjoy Denver Botanic Gardens !

Paphiopedilum Orchid There are many great places on the internet to find pictures, images and photographs. I was looking through some websites last night trying to find some orchid pictures when I came across a fantastic site. I have never seen so many great orchid pictures all in one place. The photographer is named as  QT Luong . It also says that many pictures are from "our home-grown orchid collection".  Take a look, it is quite unbelievable. The website is  terragalleria.com  and the images are available through license.  All of those flower and orchid lovers out there, take a look, if you haven't seen this work before. I am amazed at that extent of these photographs.  If you purchased a houseplant (or an orchid) from your local nursery or retailer and you need some assistance with its care, come visit  PlantAndFlowerInfo.com . After you take a look at  QT Luong's  great images!

Field of Daffodils Where can you see 25000 flowers in bloom all at the same time? Visit the Tower Hill Botanic Garden  in late April or early May and you can enjoy the spectacular Field of Daffodils. The Field of Daffodils is just one of 16 unique areas at Tower Hill devoted to flora and fauna. The garden also boasts an apple orchard, vegetable garden and wildlife garden. If you are in the area during the colder months, Tower Hill also has an area with plants that are at their best during the winter season. Tower Hill Botanic Garden is located in Boylston, Massachusetts. A small town with a population of about 5000, Boylston is approximately 45 miles from Boston. If you are in the area, you should try to stop in and see the gardens. After a long day touring the historic area and visiting Tower Hill Botanic Gardens you may arrive home and find your own plants need some help. If so, come and visit us at PlantAndFlowerInfo.com .

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...

Beautiful Orchid A basic common sense  approach to plant care and trusting yourself to make the right decisions will give you the best results with all of your plants. Working in the interior landscape business for over twenty years, I learned that the most important part of plant care is not so much the type of plant you have but the  light   your plants receive and the  watering  of your plants in relation to the lighting. A litte trial and error is really all you need to find out what your houseplant needs from you to grow and thrive. Read more about learning to care for your indoor plants...

Hi Plant People, The PlantAndFlowerInfo.com sweepstakes/contest ended on July 31, 2014. Thanks to all of you that entered the contest to win a beautiful, new interior houseplant and container. The winners have been drawn and notified. They include two runner-up winners who will receive a botanical themed decorative art print for their home. I am so happy to be able to send a few of our readers these great prizes. Winners will be announced as soon as their eligibility has been verified. Thanks again to everyone! Visit the website if you need some assistance with your indoor houseplants!