Houseplants demanding, but have many rewards

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In a clime like Maine’s, with a growing season abbreviated and intense, many gardeners rely on houseplants to extend their gardening pleasure throughout the winter months.

Not all of us are as adept at growing plants in pots as we are cultivating those in the ground. So before my neighbor — whose identity I shall protect — follows through with threats to disclose a skeleton in my horticultural closet, I have a public confession to make: I am a recovering houseplant serial killer. I’m sure this is a source of disappointment to my family members, past and present, who seem to have a keen knack for propagating the liveliest of household specimens.

I’m afraid that when it comes to upholding my family’s long-standing tradition of nurturing indoor plants, I fall disgracefully short. My mother’s geraniums are prolific bloomers, gracing the windowsills of her brick farmhouse with bright pink flowers throughout the spring, summer and fall. My grandmother harvests fresh herbs all winter long from kitchen countertop container plantings. My great-grandfather was an old Yankee green thumb, starting his tomato seedlings indoors in February and harvesting the plump red fruits by the Fourth of July. On the other hand, my Christmas cactus is holding onto life by a thread — or maybe by an advantageous root.

Given my history and past convictions of houseplant murder — levied on me mainly by my husband, John, who I might note is a convicted killer himself, having mercilessly sacrificed a fledgling rosemary plant for chicken cacciatore — I admit that I am really in no position to field the questions on houseplants that I have received from readers during these winter months.

To solve my dilemma, I consulted a professional, Mary Lou Hoskins, owner of Greencare of Hampden. Having run her specialty business for 13 years, Hoskins has a wealth of interior plant information. Greencare handles all elements of interior plantscaping, including the design, installation and maintenance of indoor plants in both commercial and residential settings. Among the plantscapes for which Hoskins and her workers at Greencare are responsible are the interior landscape at the Bangor Mall and the plantings at The Olive Garden restaurant in Bangor.

Through her many years of caring for interior plants, Hoskins has learned that one of the most common problems is that people tend to overwater houseplants. Waterlogging a plant by keeping the root ball constantly saturated prevents the necessary flow of oxygen to the plant roots. Watering plants too frequently also can cause conditions that are perfect for cultivating diseases.

Light also is a limiting factor for indoor plants in Maine.

“It’s always a question about light,” Hoskins says. “Conditions in the northern part of the country are really different, even indoors. The light levels are lower, less intense.”

The cultural tags we find in plants at supermarkets and department stores often don’t relate to conditions here in northern temperate zones. “What does the tag mean when it says moderate or bright light?” Hoskins questions. “The tags are really designed for people in Florida — where the plants are from. In Maine, the sun is so low in winter even the brightest windowsill [provides] moderate light.”

Those two concerns, water and light, may have been the cause of some problems readers have been having with their houseplants.

M.A. of East Millinocket writes, “Can you please tell me how to care for a prayer plant?”

According to Hoskins, “Prayer plants prefer medium to bright light — morning sun is good. They like to dry out between waterings. They tend to go through cycles; they look great in spring and summer and decline in fall and winter.”

The prayer plant’s exotic-looking, usually multicolored leaves fold up at night as if praying, giving the plant its common name. It prefers a humid atmosphere. Misting the plant daily with tepid water is fine during the spring, summer and fall, but allow the soil to dry out slightly during short winter days to give the plant a season of rest.

A soilless potting medium, such as one composed of peat, perlite and vermiculite, is best for prayer plants.

J.L. of West Enfield wrote to inquire about her Martha Washington geranium. Her plant is 2 1/2 years old and hasn’t bloomed since she purchased it.

According to our indoor plant professional, fertility might be a problem in this case. Fertilizing plants with a fertilizer that is high in nitrogen promotes vegetative growth and retards the formation of flower buds and flowers. When selecting a fertilizer, look carefully at the nutrient content on the package. Each package will have a series of three numbers which represent the N-P-K — nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium — content of the fertilizer.

“Anything that is higher in phosphorus than the other two numbers promotes flowering,” Hoskins says. She notes that “Martha Washington geraniums like cool temperatures. Most people keep them over from year to year. Once they put them out into the garden in the summer, they usually bloom. They like the cool nights, warm days.”

F.S. of Bangor wrote to say, “I have a large plant I found at a flea market. They call it Jacobina. It looked bad and I hoped I could save it. I repotted it, as it was root-bound. Then I found some disease in the leaves — small holes in a lot of the leaves. I’ve never seen this before. Can you help?”

Hoskins notes diseases are hard to diagnose without a leaf tissue sample, but generally speaking, “Jacobina is usually pretty much pest-free,” she says. “I’d suggest looking very closely to see if it is really small holes or pale spots. If it is a disease, about the only thing you can do to help it is to cut off the diseased part or cut the plant back and hope for the best.”

Hoskins says that Jacobina needs lots of light to flower. The plant also prefers damp soil and requires frequent watering. With care, Jacobina will flower during the long days of spring and summer.

To learn more about houseplant care and interior landscaping possibilities, visit Hoskins’ display at the seventh annual Bangor Garden Show April 4-6 at the Bangor Civic Center. Hoskins, who has displayed her talents every year at the show, says putting together a design like this has required a great deal of research.

“Our display this year is going to be epiphytes, plants that grow on trees,” she explains. Orchids, bromeliads and air plants, jungle cacti and staghorn fern will be displayed in their natural context.

“Also we’ll use things people don’t think of as air plants like Christmas cacti, rabbit’s foot fern and some other cacti,” Hoskins says. “We’ll use a lot of hanging plants — like the lipstick plant and plants in the African violet family.”

You can find Hoskins at the garden show or at Greencare, 798 Main Road North in Hampden, or call 945-4104 or 800-240-4104. For more information on the Bangor Garden Show, contact Dick Stockford at Bangor Beautiful, 990-1201.

Rural and city dwellers alert: Springtime is fast approaching, and that inevitably means that many of us will flock to local farms to view the spring crop of newborn farm animals and plant seedlings. Several farm organizations in Waldo County have united to present a farm safety program March 29 at the Colby Whitcomb family’s Springvale Farm on the Birches Road in Waldo.

The daylong program begins at 9:45 a.m. and is targeted at youngsters aged 8 and up, but everyone is invited. The farm “walkabout” will highlight animal safety and handling practices, machinery and fire safety. A complimentary lunch will be provided at the Waldo County Cooperative Extension office.

For more information, contact the Waldo County Cooperative Extension at 800-287-1426.

Diana George Chapin is the NEWS garden columnist. Send horticulture questions to Gardening Questions, c/o MaineWeekend, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329. Selected questions will be answered in future columns. Include name, address and telephone number.