|
When looking for a plant for indoor gardening, select only those plants that seem to be free of pests. Check underneath the foliage and the axils of leaves for any signs of insects or disease. For best results, always select plants that look sturdy, clean, and well-potted. Try to choose plants with healthy foliage. Avoid plants with yellow or chlorotic leaves, brown leaf margins, wilted foliage, spots or blotches, or spindly growth. In addition to this, avoid those with torn leaves and those plants that have been treated with "leaf shines," which add an unnatural polish to the leaves. Plants that have any new flower and leaf buds along with young growth are usually of better quality. Optimal light requirements are usually indicated on the tag with the plant. Make sure your interior can meet the requirement from natural sunlight. If not, artificial lighting may be needed as a supplement.
When moving plants for indoorgardening, remember the two seasons of the year that can cause damage: the hot summer and the cold winter months. In summer, try to avoid placing plants in a car with the windows shut, as temperatures will rise and destroy the plant in a very short period of time. Shade the plant from direct sun while it is in the car as the plant will be burned by the sun shining on it. Do this even if the air conditioner is on and it's comfortable in the car.
During winter, wrap plants thoroughly before leaving the garden shop to carry them to your car. A short run from the store to the car in very low temperatures can severely damage or even kill plants. Wrap plants thoroughly with newspaper or paper bags, place in the front of the car, and turn on the car heater. The boot of most cars is too cold to carry plants safely during the winter months.
If you plan to go away, make special arrangements so that plants will not be frozen or damaged by cold weather. Many foliage plants will be damaged if the temperature drops much below 50°F, so maintain as warm a temperature as is possible around the plants when moving them from one location to another. Never allow wind to blow across them from open car windows.
Research conducted in Florida in the late 1970s revealed an interesting phenomenon:
Tropical plants grown in full sun have leaves (so-called sun leaves) which are structurally different from the leaves of plants that are grown in shade (shade leaves). Sun leaves have fewer chloroplasts, and thus less chlorophyll. These chloroplasts are located deep inside the leaves and the leaves are thick, small, and usualally large in number. Shade leaves have a greater numbers of chloroplasts and therefore more chlorophyll, are thin, large, and fewer in number. When plants are grown in strong light, they develop sun leaves which are photosynthetically quite inefficient. If these same plants are placed in low light, they must either change their existing sun leaves into shade leaves or drop their sun leaves altogether and grow a new set of shade leaves which are photosynthetically more efficient!
To reduce this shock which occurs when a plant with sun leaves is placed in shade, one should gradually reduce the light levels it is exposed to. This process is called acclimatisation. The gardener should acclimatise plants when placing them outdoors in the summer by gradually increasing light intensities, and then reversing the process again before plants are brought indoors in the Autumn. For newly purchased plants grown in high-light conditions, one should acclimatise them by initially locating them in a high-light area of your home and gradually moving them to their permanent, darker location over a period of say, 4 to 8 weeks.
Happy indoor gardening! |
Related Articles |
|
Indoor gardening , How to Re-laminate Your Kitchen Benchtop tips can be invaluable when it comes to making sure your vegetables , Cleaning your Plants are pollinated properly and therefore produce a good quantity ofmore... ... |
|
|
Since you will be seeing the basket from below, trailing ones are an obvious choice; plus some to climb up the chains. Very small flowers , Growing Mangoes and Lychees from Stones willmore... ... |
|
|
The most usual hanging container is a wire basket (which may have to be lined with plastic , Growing Passion Fruit or foil for indoor , Orchid Flasking use, to prevent drips), or a plasticmore... ... |
|
|
To keep Ferns healthy , Choosing Ground Covers grow them, if possible, in a mixture consisting of equal parts of sand, peat and compost; a handful of leaf mould would be amore... ... |
|
|
If your room , Growing Peaches, Apricots and Nectarines From Stones is warm choose some of the plants , Mulching listed below. But if you have central heating make sure there is enough humidity for them, they allmore... ... |
|
|
Ideal for a cool, light , When to Plant Roses room are plants , Sunrooms which do not mind a lack of warm sunlight as long as they receive sufficient day-light.more... ... |
|
 |
Growing Peaches, Apricots and Nectarines From Stones -
Crack the stone , Standard Roses a little - just enough to break the sides open slightly. Then plant , Pruning Established Roses it in a 4 inch pot , Kitchen Remodeling of compost, , Water Garden Plants about 1 inch deep. Put the pot , Bonsai History in a warm, shady place , What is soil pH? and keep the compost , Hydroponic Systems - Aggregate Culture damp. After some months, a little shoot should appear. Place , Landscaping on sloping Ground the...
Costing a Job -
The best way to organise an estimate of the materials required for a job is to break it down into its individual steps. recording the type and quantity of the materials needed at each step. List every item required for building , Water Garden or installation. including...
Containers for Bonsai -
The bonsai , How To Get Australian Native Seeds to Sprout container is always selected to complement the mood and colour , Cleaning your Plants of the bonsai. , Cleaning your Plants It must help to present the tree , Bamboo Flooring and never detract from it. There are traditional colours , DIY Safety that are used with certain species. Muted earth , Conditions Required for Australian Native Seed Germination colours such as darker reds,...
Brown Olive Scale -
The brown olive scale (Saissetia akar) occurs throughout the State on a wide variety of host plants. , Growing Ginger It is best known as a pest , Growing Ginger of citrus but also commonly infests olives, passion vines, and many different ornamental shrubs, , Seed Raising including oleanders. This scal...
Growing Cacti and Succulents -
Cacti and Succulents , Growing Orchids thrive on neglect and are almost the only plants , Choosing House s that need no watering when you go on holiday. In addition, they are untroubled by central heating or air , Stony Soil conditioning....
Pruning -
Pruning includes not only the cutting back or removal of sound branches but also the taking out of dead and diseased wood. , Humidity and House Plants The purpose in pruning , Sowing Australian Native Plants flowering shrubs , Lawn Mower Blades is to secure the maximum amount of good quality blooms, well coloured fruits , Rose Pests and Diseases in berrying shr...
Feature Walls -
A feature , Caring for Bulbs wall can completely transform an ordinary old room , How To Grow Beans into a sophisticated and stylish sanctuary. More than a just focal point, a feature , The Cherry Aphid wall can set the tone and mood of your space. And there has never been more choice when it come...
Seed Raising -
There are three essentials for the successful germination of seeds , Will lime break up clayey soil? of all types - moisture, , Landscaping on sloping Ground warmth and air. , Bonsai Containers In addition, most seeds , Lawns from Stolons germinate best in darkness; there are a very few which respond best when exposed to light. , Caring for Bulbs The depth of sowing is governed...
Sowing Seed -
Spring and autumn , Seed Sowing and Germination are obviously the best seasons , Bonsai Styles for sowing, spring , Medicinal Tea - Chamomile being the more important. The soil , Composting should be broken up, dug and reduced to fineness by adequate raking. Digging immediately prior to sowing leaves the surface crumbly and loose, so tread...
|
|
|
| |
|