GARDENING
Plant passion comes indoors
By Sally Cunningham
From left: abutilon (flowering maple), plectranthus, and musa (banana), all plants that can become houseplants in the winter. Photo by Elizabeth Licata.
Angel trumpets (Brugmansia).
Mandavilla. Photos by Sally Cunningham.
The stark contrast is almost too much to bear. One week we’re sipping cool drinks in lush gardens, surrounded by blooms, living as if summer will never end—and suddenly we’re battered by wind, rain, and snow. And we try to hold onto the joy. Just before frost we drag our potted annuals and tropicals inside. Some work for us and give back all winter. Others fail miserably and should have landed on a compost pile. Others barely survive.

Which plants are worth the effort? And how can we help them?

If you have a greenhouse, conservatory, or Florida room, all your plants have it made. They are getting what they need: great light, enough warmth, and humidity. Lucky you. Lucky plants. As for the rest of us…

Conditions for houseplants
A few traditional houseplants (philodendron, snakeplants, aspidistra/cast-iron plant, dieffenbachia) have managed to grow in dimly lit, dry houses since Victorian times. But no plants like it. They want more.

Light: All plants need more light than most houses offer. Your brightest windowsill, facing south or west, may get enough sunlight, but then the hot afternoon rays burn the leaves. For most plants, bright indirect light is best, and that only comes from those sunrooms, skylights, or supplemental lights. You’ll need fluorescents or grow-lights (not your normal incandescent lightbulbs). Many of us search for attractive lighting systems, and often settle for less. It’s not easy.

Humidity: The most under-estimated plant requirement is humidity. Heated houses are drier than the desert, and we’re asking tropical foliage to like it. We must increase the humidity by adding humidifiers or by placing the plants on a mini stream-bed. Fill trays (like large lasagna pans) with an inch or two of pebbles, and keep the water level to the top of the stones. Set the plant pots on those. Putting plants close together helps the humidity level also. (The humidity they release is part of why plants are good for us, too.)

Watering: Most houseplant roots end up in the bottom two-thirds of their pots, so you can’t always tell by looking if the plant is dry. Put your finger into the soil a couple of inches down, to feel for dryness. Then water until the water runs through the pot. Also learn about the needs of that plant type. Some need the top inches to dry out before getting more water (begonias); others want continual moisture (peace lily, Spathiphyllum). Some cacti want complete dryness from late fall through spring.

Temperature: The most popular foliage houseplants have been those that live with us comfortably—in 70° to 80° daytime temperatures, and 60° to 70° at night. Flowering plants do best when the night temperatures dip to 55°. Broader temperature extremes cause problems like bud blast, bud drop, or just no flowers.

And if these conditions aren’t met? Not only do plants look bad and fail to flower, they typically develop pest problems when they are stressed. If hibiscus gets too dry, expect spider mites; scheffleras (umbrella plant) in warm, dry rooms get scale. Provide the right conditions and houseplants have few, if any, pest problems.

Successful, satisfying exotics
If you can provide minimum requirements, many tropical plants—many of today’s container choices—overwinter quite well. And if you grew these plants and let them expire last October, don’t despair. You can buy many of them in the houseplants section of fine garden centers.

Abutilon (Flowering maple): With variegated leaves and colorful bell flowers, it’s just as pretty indoors as in containers.

Breynia: New species and cultivars are popping up, but you are most likely to have met the little Breynia that has tiny, round, green-white leaves with a hint of pink. Sometimes garden centers offer it clipped into miniature tree shapes—adorable.

Calathea (Prayer plant): New cultivars with exotic patterns are entering the market for use in containers, but they are all fine houseplants if they don’t get too dry or cold. The “prayer” reference comes from their sweet habit of folding up their leaves at night.

Musa (Dwarf banana): Usually we advise cutting back giant banana plants to winter in the basement. But try planting the offshoots (“pups”) for houseplant use—quick to grow and ready for spring sooner.

Plectranthus (Cuban oregano and many others): A personal favorite, the Cuban oregano is useful in cooking but also is simply pleasing for its fragrance. Many plectranthus have fragrant, succulent leaves, and thrive if they have enough light.

Salvias: This is too broad a species to generalize, with too many new cultivars to count. But if you use container salvias, try some indoors. The gold-leaved “pineapple” salvia smells just like pineapple! When they’re leggy, cut them back.

Setcreasea (Moses in a boat or Purple heart): Recently a container plant star, it’s really an old-fashioned houseplant with purple leaves and pink flowers.

Tibouchina: In California it’s a tree. Here it’s a great house or summer deck plant, with touchable velvety leaves, fall color, and rich purple flowers. Let it live with you!

The dormant ones
Not all plants make good houseplants. Some of our most dramatic tropical plants—caladium, cannas, elephant ears—grow from bulbs, corms, or tubers. They go dormant in winter. They will do best if you dig them up (even after a few frosts) or cut them all the way back in their pots. Then store them in a cool basement, around 50°. If you try to keep the great foliage inside, the low light and dry air usually lead to disappointment. Let them sleep.

Many other flowering plants, such as tropical hibiscus, also benefit from a rest period in winter. Simply stop watering (indoors) until the leaves all drop, then put the plant in a cool place (45°). Add a little water only if the soil is dry three inches down. Then remember to reintroduce it to light and water in early spring. Angel trumpets (Brugmansia) and large bananas also like to rest (and grow too huge if you keep them as full-time houseplants). Just cut them down when you bring them inside, and supply the cool ambiance.

More than ever, we have new plants to try. Even the experts don’t know much about overwintering some of the new tropicals, tender perennials, or new cultivars of old plants. Many future houseplants have yet to be discovered. So let’s increase the humidity, work on the lighting, and try them!

Sally Cunningham is a CNLP, horticulturist, garden book author, and consultant at Lockwood’s Greenhouses in Hamburg. She writes a column for the Buffalo News and may be seen on Sunday mornings on WIVB-TV (Channel 4).
Bloom Again Orchids cover courtesy of Timber Press.
Orchids have a bad rap among many gardeners, or would-be gardeners. They’re seen as difficult and delicate, fit only for the expert or orchid specialist. Yet, even in the rough and tumble conditions of the Buffalo Spree corporate office, orchids have been known not only to survive, but to rebloom year after year. And unlike many flowering houseplants, an orchid bloom lasts for months, making it a cost-effective alternative to cut flowers.

Contrary to popular prejudice, orchids are actually among the most hardy houseplants you can buy, especially the easy-care phalaenopsis, which can best withstand the typical low-light, low-humidity conditions of the average home. Most orchids can go for weeks without water, and few seem vulnerable to insects such as spider mites and scale, which can devastate a ficus or a palm in a matter of days.

Like any plant, all that is needed with an orchid is the willingness to find out its requirements, and provide them to the best of your ability. And keep this in mind: more plants are killed by too much fussing and worrying than by neglect. If you leave a plant alone—don’t overwater, overfeed, and cut off leaves or stems unnecessarily—it’s more likely to survive than if you smother it with love.

Finally, too few gardeners are willing to do their research. There are excellent books available on orchids and orchid care from Timber Press, including The New Encyclopedia of Orchids, by Isobyl La Croix, Moth Orchids: The Complete Guide to Phalaenopsis by Steven A. Frowine, and—most recently—Bloom-Again Orchids, by Judy White, which focuses on orchids that are easier to grow and that will rebloom for the average windowsill grower. There are fifty orchids in the book, each with complete care instructions and lovely photography. This will surely tempt you to expand your repertoire of orchids beyond phalaenopsis.

Books and plants may already be the perfect companions to get through a Buffalo winter—and this book will help you figure out how to make your winter surroundings lush, fragrant, and slightly more remininiscent of the balmy days of summer.

Check your local bookstore or timberpress.com.

—Elizabeth Licata


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