I did a little house plant (is house plant one word or two? Houseplant?) maintenance this weekend so I thought I would share some pictures. I’ve acquired a few new ones and had a few casualties. Sorry String of Pearls. I promise never to buy another one of you since it never ends well.
I have managed to keep my Pilea Peperomiodes (Chinese Money Plant) alive. It has actually grown and has little babies popping up!
I gave all of the plants a bath (except for the African Violets, who protest violently when I accidentally get them wet). Our house is ridiculously dusty because we live on a fairly busy street and we like to have the window open a lot. I either put them in the sink and give them a spray down or, if they are too big, I give them a good dusting and wipe down the leaves with a damp paper towel.
My newest plants are a Ficus repens (Green Creeping Fig) and a Hypoestes phyllostachya (Polka dot or freckle face plant). The Hypoestes was a dicey choice because I don’t have a great history with them either. In an effort to give it a better chance I’ve put it near my little plant humidifier.
Isn’t this cute? I can’t remember where I got it but I think it is adorable. Most of the plants in my office are under a heating vent so I like to run the humidifier for them when the heat is running. It’s also nice for those super hot days we get in the Summer. The only thing I don’t care for is it has a light at the base that rotates between neon pink, purple, blue and green. I wish it would just have a white light or no light. The light does shut off after a while though. I just kept waiting for the light to fade to white to snap a picture.
I had to give up on having a Boston fern in the house. I just can’t keep up with the watering and misting. So I’ve put it outside under a hanging fuchsia that is on a drip system. The water runs through the hanging basket and waters/drips on the fern. I’m hoping it is happier there.
A question for my fellow house plant lovers – do you regularly feed your plants? I feed mine whenever I water them. I use Eleanor’s VF-11 plant food. You can use it every time you water and also as a foliar spray. I’m just wondering if there is anything else out there that people have had success with.
I do love having lots of house plants.
