17 replies to this topic

[ElPirana]

 

This has turned into a new hobby of mine, sort of accidentally. 

 

My wife has been collecting a lot of different plants for the past year or two.  Late last year there was a lot going on and she got distracted from her normal plant care.  Needless to say, some plants died, and most were looking miserable.  In November & December I took a few plants to work so I could try to care for them, and I got a few to turn around.  So around Christmas-time, I went ahead and took over caring for all the houseplants full time. 

 

I really still don't know what I'm doing most of the time.  I mainly keep strict watering schedules and that has made the biggest difference.  Most plants get watered weekly.  A handful get watered twice a week.  And then there are various others that have their own unique schedules that vary from biweekly watering to a bit longer.

 

 

I have had so much fun watching these plants regain their health and thrive again! 

 

I'm going to make a few more posts to show some of the plants that have had the biggest change for the better.

[Skywatcher]

You could have fooled me that any of those plants were once in distress...........

 

They all look healthy and thriving. I have always had houseplants, and like what they do for the indoor air, not to mention how they create a more welcoming environment.

[ElPirana]

You could have fooled me that any of those plants were once in distress...........

 

They all look healthy and thriving. I have always had houseplants, and like what they do for the indoor air, not to mention how they create a more welcoming environment.

Yeah...they were having a hard time.  Some of the more robust plants were doing ok, but definitely not thriving.

 

Having nice plants around sure helps the environment like you say.  We do get a lot of positive comments when we have visitors.

[ElPirana]

I’m going to start with some of the biggest recoveries.  Unfortunately I don’t think I have any “before” pictures….I wasn’t really thinking this far ahead when I started.

 

This Jade plant was doing pretty bad.  A couple of the branches were drooping down so much that they were almost as low as the bottom of the planter.  The branches had lifted up on their own as it regained its health and now there’s some new growth.

 

Crassula ovata (jade plant)

 

 

 

 

Here’s a Hoya macrophylla.  This one started growing new leaves, and the pink edges looks so beautiful on this one!  It’s become one of my favorite Hoyas.

 

Hoya macrophylla

 

 

 

This paddle plant was very weak, the stem was soft and it needed support.  The stem is now very firm, it holds its own weight no problem.  And there are several babies that are lookin good!

 

Kalanchoe (paddle plant)

 

 

 

The picture does not do justice to this plant.  It’s hard for me to get a decent pic though.  This is a Ledebouria Silver Squill.  I repotted it a while back, it was way overdue.  It had not grown at all the entire time we’ve had it.  It’s now almost doubled in height and the leaves are looking much, much better.  I think it will need to be repotted or split up again soon, it’s pretty crowded.

 

Ledebouria (Silver Squill)

[Skywatcher]

You must have some pretty good indoor lighting. I have 3 different Jade plants, all of which are in direct sun for 7 or more hours a day to look good. Mine are outdoors.

 

My indoor lighting is terrible. I am limited to a few East facing windows and a North facing kitchen window. All the other locations are dim, and low light plants are all that do well there.

I am enjoying your share on these. The Hoya is indeed a nice one.

 

Do you feed your indoor plants? I have been liking a kelp emulsion for a feeding that is not too strong, and even gentle enough for my Bonsai trees outdoors.

Edited by Skywatcher, 04 April 2022 - 08:53 AM.

[ElPirana]

You must have some pretty good indoor lighting. I have 3 different Jade plants, all of which are in direct sun for 7 or more hours a day to look good. Mine are outdoors.

 

My indoor lighting is terrible. I am limited to a few East facing windows and a North facing kitchen window. All the other locations are dim, and low light plants are all that do well there.

I am enjoying your share on these. The Hoya is indeed a nice one.

 

Do you feed your indoor plants? I have been liking a kelp emulsion for a feeding that is not too strong, and even gentle enough for my Bonsai trees outdoors.

We do have some good grow lights for these plants.  I can't take credit, my wife found these.  The only thing I did was install them on the wall. 

 

        

 

These lights are from Soltech Solutions.  I'm pretty sure it's this one:  https://www.soltechs...ct-plant-light/

 

How are your jade plants looking?  do you have any pictures?

 

As for feeding, I'm a bit hesitant.  I was using some plant food in the water, but I think I used too much and it looked like leaves were burning on some plants, so I switched to just water.  Like I said, I really didn't know what to do....somewhere my wife read to use it every week.  But I'm thinking four feedings per year sounds more like it.

[ElPirana]

Some more plants:

 

This rubber tree plant was one that I took to work.  I looked at the date on the earliest picture I have, it was November 16.  So the first picture is the "Before" pic and the second is the "After" pic that I took today. 

The earlier pic is a bad angle, the plant was a bit droopy, not growing  new leaves.  Once it got some steady waterings, it perked up noticeably and has grown lots of new leaves.

 

Before:

 

After:

 

 

 

This trailing jade has more than doubled in size if my memory is right, lots of new leaves.

 

Peperomia rotundifolia (Trailing Jade)

 

 

 

This Philodendron had only two leaves for a very long time.  It recently grew the third (in the back).

 

Philodendron gloriosum

 

Here it's a little easier to see the new leaf, the one by itself at the top.

 

[Skywatcher]

How are your jade plants looking?  do you have any pictures?

The largest and oldest just finished blooming about a month and a half ago, and still has a nice blush on the leaves. It needs re-potting this year again. The plant is around 25 year old, and was an abandoned sprig on the fence when we bought the house. I adopted it and it has been pretty happy since. The smaller is from a small branch I pruned off the big one a few years ago, and it also needs re-potting.

These get full sun for 5 or so hours, and then broken sun about another 5 hours.

Not the best pictures, sorry.......................

 

 

 

 

[Oldpunk]

Cool stuff there ElPirana. All the plants look good n healthy. I've been trying to revive my houseplants this year as well. Since last Easter. I gotta say yours are doing better than mine. But at least I've kept them going. And it really is pretty cool to watch them start to thrive again. Turns out I like growing plants more than I thought.

I should really try an organized watering schedule. I've been trying to keep on it, but it's still a "whenever I think of it" thing

[ElPirana]

Cool stuff there ElPirana. All the plants look good n healthy. I've been trying to revive my houseplants this year as well. Since last Easter. I gotta say yours are doing better than mine. But at least I've kept them going. And it really is pretty cool to watch them start to thrive again. Turns out I like growing plants more than I thought.

I should really try an organized watering schedule. I've been trying to keep on it, but it's still a "whenever I think of it" thing

Thanks Oldpunk.  The watering schedule is not too bad, it's turned into a habit for me.  The only thing that makes it hard is that there are too many plants, it can take a while to get through all of them.

 

 

 

How are your jade plants looking?  do you have any pictures?

The largest and oldest just finished blooming about a month and a half ago, and still has a nice blush on the leaves. It needs re-potting this year again. The plant is around 25 year old, and was an abandoned sprig on the fence when we bought the house. I adopted it and it has been pretty happy since. The smaller is from a small branch I pruned off the big one a few years ago, and it also needs re-potting.

These get full sun for 5 or so hours, and then broken sun about another 5 hours.

Not the best pictures, sorry.......................

 

ohhhh those are nice!!!  I can only hope my jade plant can end up looking like yours!

[ElPirana]

Now this one is super exciting!  We've got a few hoyas, and this one has flowered several times.  BUT, it seems the flowering never completed before.  Today I checked it out and....WOW, got these super cool flowers!

 

Hoya finlaysonii  from four days ago:

 

 

 

And these pics are from today:

 

 

 

[Skywatcher]

That's a uniquely beautiful bloom. I am not very familiar with Hoya's, but these photo shares have piqued my interest.

It looks like you have planted yours in orchid bark. Are they similar in growth and habit ?

Sorry for the questions............

[ElPirana]

That's a uniquely beautiful bloom. I am not very familiar with Hoya's, but these photo shares have piqued my interest.

It looks like you have planted yours in orchid bark. Are they similar in growth and habit ?

Sorry for the questions............

oh boy, my ignorance is going to really start showing here. 

I'm really not sure how to answer your question.  My wife had read something about using orchid bark and added it to some of the plants.  I asked here about it, but she doesn't even remember exactly what she read.  The Hoya appears to be happy though, so that's something.  and to tell the truth, I'm not all that familiar with Orchids to be able to compare.  I really wish I could give you a decent answer.  I love the questions, but I'm really falling down on helping you out here.

[YoshiTrainer]

Very nice El Pirana!

Hoyas are epiphytes like orchids so they can handle similar care but don't mind a little heavier substrate. There is so much variation among them! They have different textures of leaves, plus the size, colors and scents of the blooms are incredible! Something like H. Bella is so beautiful in bloom with it's sweet smell. Others like Lacunosa has beautiful delicate flowers that will fill a bedroom with the heavy scent of Grandma's perfume. Other like Macgillivrayi remind me of grape soda, Kerrii, like spice cookies. There is one, H. lauterbachii that is supposed to have soccer ball sized blooms! Certain hoyas are a little more temprimental when it comes to winter lows.

Another plus for hoyas, when they get bigger, they usually need pruning. To start hoyas, it only takes a small piece of vine with a few leaf nodes.....they are made for sharing! :)

[ElPirana]

Here's a few more.

 

This Monstera grew a third leaf just like the Philodendron above.  This one had just two leaves for a very long time before this.

 

Monstera deliciosa variegata

 

 

 

This Philodendron has had a lot of new growth.  Actually it's gotten two more new leaves since I took this picture a couple weeks ago.

 

Philodendron Prince of Orange

 

This euphorbia is pretty hardy, it never really did bad even when it was neglected.  But I just wanted to include a couple pics anyway.

 

Euphorbia milii Crown of Christ

 

[ElPirana]

Do ya think the Monstera is root bound just a little? lol

[Skywatcher]

Oh I don't know about root bound...............

I can still see a couple square inches of un-occupied soil.

 

Kidding aside, the varigation on the leaves of that philodendron are really interesting. The plant should really take off again after you give it some more room to grow.

[phlegmbae]

I prefer outdoor lighting.