|
What type of plants are you interested in growing? This poll is closed. |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Perennials! |
|
142 | 20.91% |
| Annuals! |
|
30 | 4.42% |
| Woody plants! |
|
62 | 9.13% |
| Succulent plants! |
|
171 | 25.18% |
| Tropical plants! |
|
60 | 8.84% |
| Non-vascular plants are the best! |
|
31 | 4.57% |
| Screw you, I'd rather eat them! |
|
183 | 26.95% |
| Total: | 679 votes | ||
|
My sister-in-law got me a succulent as a gift. She told me it needs a lot of direct sunlight, but I live in an apartment with North-facing windows so I only get direct sunlight for like two weeks out of the year. Do I need to buy a lmap to keep this thing alive?
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2016 04:38
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 23:43 |
|
|
It might survive but it definitely won't be very happy. Growing under a simple desk lamp/CFL/timer setup is pretty fun and chill though, it's worth looking into, especially since someone you know probably has an old lamp they don't want any more.Smugworth posted:Thanks! Pretty sure it was you. Put in an order and sent you a PM. The internet is cool!
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2016 08:42
|
|
|
Gonna try and sprout these acorns, not sure if I'll have any success or not: I picked them from the ground and some from branches of some large oaks growing 60 miles north of me, which is pretty far north, only 200 miles more and you're at the arctic circle. And these trees have managed to thrive anyway. So I'm hoping I can plant oaks in my garden, where I live I am one climate zone milder, which is also classified as the coldest zone for european oak. But this is gotta be an extra resistant strain. But I've heard of a large oak that managed to grow in Lapland, Finland too, those genes gotta be worth saving. Since winter is coming I was told to plant them in soil and keep them cool until spring, so they don't get their internal season clock the wrong way around.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2016 12:24
|
|
|
His Divine Shadow posted:Gonna try and sprout these acorns, not sure if I'll have any success or not: I'm curious if that's going to work. I successfully germinated some acorns a couple years ago by putting them in plastic baggies with some soil and water and sticking them in the fridge for a couple months. Seems like you're missing the crucial cold step?
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2016 12:51
|
|
|
I was told if they germinate I can proceed to the step you proceed and be put to sleep, but it has to be done before they sprout leaves.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2016 13:49
|
|
|
melon cat posted:I have a question about this... shrub growing in our gravelled front yard: Eh, evergreens typically aren't too good about replacing dead foliage. Most only grow from the tips. The good news is that your bush is still small, so the tips should still be near the trunk. You can clear out dead stuff any time of year as long as you don't hurt the parts still alive, no matter the plant. I recommend you do that now and free up any shade that the dead foliage is causing. Again, be careful not to hurt the stuff that isn't dead yet.
|
|
#
?
Sep 20, 2016 07:19
|
|
|
Anyone know anything about grass? Is zoysia a good soil stabilizer in loose fill dirt soil and sand/silt? And would any of y'all recommend some pretty (preferably flowering) plants that can survive or even thrive in alkaline soil? If there's another place for these questions please let me know, I've looked for other plant threads!
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2016 22:32
|
|
|
life is killing me posted:Anyone know anything about grass? Is zoysia a good soil stabilizer in loose fill dirt soil and sand/silt? What area do you live in? Where I live, it's at the very end of the growing season for zoysia. You might have problems if you're counting on zoysia to grow enough right now that it can hold onto anything before winter comes. That being said, once zoysia starts growing, its tight growth habit can really hold onto dirt, so it's great for slopes. Zoysia loves it hot, humid and sunny. If it has those 3 things, it will grow great. Speaking of where you live, we need to know that too before we could recommend any plants. We don't want you to waste money and time planting something that won't survive the winter. What's your USDA zone? We do have a thread for gardening here in DIY, but that's about it. That one is for crop plants mostly. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 23:01 on Sep 21, 2016 |
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2016 22:58
|
|
|
kid sinister posted:What area do you live in? Where I live, it's at the very end of the growing season for zoysia. You might have problems if you're counting on zoysia to grow enough right now that it can hold onto anything before winter comes. That being said, once zoysia starts growing, its tight growth habit can really hold onto dirt, so it's great for slopes. Zoysia loves it hot, humid and sunny. If it has those 3 things, it will grow great. I live in North Texas. Hot and dry, humid sometimes, typically drought, we just had torrents of rain starting last year, wherein it would rain heavily all day every day for 4-5 days straight. I live on the lake, the one adjacent to our lake was nearly dry, and mid-last-year it got so full from the rains they had to open the spillway into our lake, which is constant-level due to a large military contractor's plant right on the water. Our soil on our lot is really alkaline, and stays wet much of the time because we have drainage issues. Our Turffalo plugs failed to spread and then died. We turned off the sprinklers to try and isolate why our yard stayed wet constantly, and that just made our yard look crappier and didn't help. Basically, hot, occasionally humid, alkaline soil, not much growing in my yard because of water oversaturation, need to either get the soil stabilized and the drainage issues fixed or hope that zoysia can handle alkaline soil. I know I kind of went off the rails here. It's maddening. As far as plants we do have, we have a large flower bed in the front of the house which the sidewalk from the driveway to our front door borders. Last year around Easter we bought petunias, a shasta daisy, Easter lilies, a gardenia, a juniper, and some Texas sage among other things like some kind of grass, like what you might see on freeway medians sometimes. We also have some Indian hawthorn which has flowered maybe once ever. At any rate, half of the flower bed is always in the sun, 1/4 of it is sometimes in the sun, and 1/4 of it is never in the sun, so we bought and planted accordingly. Our shasta daisy never grew, our petunias that didn't die are actually way out of control, the lilies died because they are annuals (I think), and really all that's left are the petunias, the gardenia, the juniper and the sage. I'd like to replace all of these with perennials that will flower, be able to handle the alkaline sand (of course we planted everything with topsoil and added root stimulator), and are drought-tolerant. My wife loving hates desert plants, and insists on buying a bunch of annuals so that we will constantly have to buy new plants and re-plant all the time. Someone in another thread where I'm getting advice on my drainage and hill erosion issues had said to stick with native plants instead of trying to make our house look like something it isn't, so IDK.
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 00:14
|
|
|
Our container tomato plant finally started blooming and even has a tomato on it... at the end of september.  It wouldn't get enough sunlight inside but it would stay warmer, at least. Is it worth it to try to bring it inside or should I just hope the single fruit matures regardless of temperature and give up on the rest? Any tips on bringing plants inside for the colder months with minimal insects?  Oh god I don't even know where they're all going to go
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 00:41
|
|
|
Fister Roboto posted:My sister-in-law got me a succulent as a gift. She told me it needs a lot of direct sunlight, but I live in an apartment with North-facing windows so I only get direct sunlight for like two weeks out of the year. Do I need to buy a lmap to keep this thing alive?
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 01:26
|
|
|
They'll survive in low light for the most part, but they don't go into stasis, they etiolate. They grow long and spindly. It's annoying if you want big healthy plants, but for someone like me who has been moving apartments for a decade or so, you can take a spindly cutting and grow a healthy plant when you finally can give it good sunlight.
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 02:54
|
|
|
life is killing me posted:We turned off the sprinklers to try and isolate why our yard stayed wet constantly, and that just made our yard look crappier and didn't help. Adjust the timer, just don't pull the plug. Also, you might want to look into xeriscaping in general. There are quite a few low water plants that don't necessarily look like succulents. Red hot pokers come to mind. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 03:07 on Sep 22, 2016 |
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 03:05
|
|
|
life is killing me posted:My wife loving hates desert plants, and insists on buying a bunch of annuals so that we will constantly have to buy new plants and re-plant all the time. Someone in another thread where I'm getting advice on my drainage and hill erosion issues had said to stick with native plants instead of trying to make our house look like something it isn't, so IDK. Maybe you can convince her to like certain desert plants, even if they aren't native ones? There are all sorts of colorful succulents out there. It's really going to be a losing battle trying to force plants to grow in unfavorable conditions, and it's a shame that's usually what people try to do instead of working with what they have.
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 14:19
|
|
|
life is killing me posted:I live in North Texas. Can you post which USDA Plant Hardiness Zone you're in?
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 16:08
|
|
|
robotindisguise posted:Can you post which USDA Plant Hardiness Zone you're in? Looks like it's 8a. kid sinister posted:Adjust the timer, just don't pull the plug. We turned off the sprinklers at the valve for a couple weeks on the advice of the drainage specialist who came out to look at our property and give us an estimate. He said our slab was getting saturated with water and he wanted to see if it was the sprinkler system leaking. We did of course turn it back on. Fitzy Fitz posted:Maybe you can convince her to like certain desert plants, even if they aren't native ones? There are all sorts of colorful succulents out there. It's really going to be a losing battle trying to force plants to grow in unfavorable conditions, and it's a shame that's usually what people try to do instead of working with what they have. I couldn't even get her on board with a bougainvillea, a very pretty flowering plant in my opinion. Of course that's not really a desert plant but I feel like it could do well in our climate. Every time I mentioned any desert plants, she shot me down. Of course, I wasn't really pointing out flowering desert plants.
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 17:17
|
|
|
life is killing me posted:Looks like it's 8a. Unfortunately, your local climate trumps her opinion. If she wants a tropical paradise, then she will have to move. The best you could do is work around her requirements. Again, look into "xeriscaping" and "drought tolerant plants". There are quite a few that don't really look like desert plants. Edit: some drought tolerant plants. I'm not sure if they'll all survive Zone 8 though. Look em up: Penstemon/Beard Tongue Sea hollies Lavender Coneflowers Russian Sage Daylilies kid sinister fucked around with this message at 18:53 on Sep 22, 2016 |
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 18:41
|
|
|
cheese posted:It has been my limited experience that as long as a succulent gets at least a little water and a little light, the worst that will happen is that it will basically just not grow. They are survivors and while many need ideal conditions to grow well, most just sort of enter this stasis when conditions are not right. Different than, say, a fern, which just says "gently caress you" and dies if things are not perfect. If they're not getting much light, you have to really restrict water as they aren't too happy in low light and turn to mush with surprising speed  I've finally accepted that if I really want to have succulents, I need a proper light set up.
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 19:35
|
|
|
A lot of my succulent cuttings went to mush (some etiolated and are still alive though) because I had them inside and overwatered. r.i.p.... They did well on the window sill in the bedroom because there was sun, but I had to move them. And there are mealybugs on my fern go away I hate bugs
|
|
#
?
Sep 22, 2016 20:00
|
|
|
Love this thread! And now I think I've got the sundew bug, Kenning you don't ship to the UK do you? Any ideas of a reputable place to get them here? Here's my current indoor menagerie (most of which need repotting the next time I get a chance) This phalaenopsis I got for £1.80 as it was just finishing flowering, but this is now the third flush of flowers on the same stalks, bargain!  Anthurium and orchids in the kitchen window (and a bonus dried teasel stem from the garden, broke off in a storm and I'm hoping it set seed first)  Phlebodium pseudoaureum's fuzzy feet proper busting out of his pot and Crassula 'Gollum' in the bathroom  Dracanea we've had since our first apartment 8 years ago, one victim of the cat where she can reach it  Calathea also has had a few nibbles. I had to give away a nice big Dieffenbachia for this very reason, before she could get to it.  Monstera living up to its name, and the plant connoisseur herself. This one's starting to concern me for space. I'm in a maritime 9a, would it survive living outdoors permanently from next spring now it's quite big (the monstera, not the cat)? Could I keep it out if I fleeced it in the winter?  Also, my ginger sprouted, what's the best growing medium to put it in? 
|
|
#
?
Sep 23, 2016 20:15
|
|
|
Go bargain bin phalaenopsis buddies!  I can't believe mine is happily trucking along after a few years now.I also picked up a spider plant for €1 that was mostly dead from a DIY shop's usual terrible neglect of plants. I mostly expected it to die, but the thing has grown insanely over the last couple of months. I've had to repot it twice, and now I have 5 spider babies that it produced and which are now cheerfully growing in their own little pots. At this rate, the entire house might end up overrun by this fellow's progeny in a couple of years.
|
|
#
?
Sep 23, 2016 21:27
|
|
|
Enfys posted:Go bargain bin phalaenopsis buddies! 
|
|
#
?
Sep 23, 2016 22:11
|
|
|
My roommates call my mystery orchid "the rescue orchid" because I found it without flowers, tipped over and shoved under a shelf in the hardware store. Got it for like five bucks and no idea what it is (possibly a cattelya hybrid I think). Poor thing still hasn't flowered yet this year though. I'm dying to know what it looks like but it may be holding back until it feels better.
|
|
#
?
Sep 24, 2016 03:26
|
|
|
Spider plants seem pretty much impossible to kill. I'm a complete idiot when it comes to plants and my spider plant has survived for several years and keeps growing larger.
|
|
#
?
Sep 24, 2016 14:13
|
|
|
My sister is a serial plant killer and her spider plant is some sort of superhero that cannot be destroyed. It only maintains its current size because it lives on top of a cabinet and when it trails down far enough that the cats can reach it they generously trim it and deposit the leftovers in piles of vomit around the house. I think need to steal one of its runners next time I'm cat sitting.
|
|
#
?
Sep 24, 2016 16:27
|
|
|
XVIII posted:Love this thread! And now I think I've got the sundew bug, Kenning you don't ship to the UK do you? Any ideas of a reputable place to get them here? Not sure on UK vendors specifically, but Araflora is enormous and I think they can ship all over Europe no problem. You should also see what The Carnivorous Plant Society schedule of events is. There are usually vendors as well as people trading/giving away plants at carnivorous plant meetings.
|
|
#
?
Sep 27, 2016 18:49
|
|
|
I couldn't tell if this or the Veggie+Herb Gardening thread was the best one for my question but oh well. So a few weeks ago (Mid August) I bought some succulents from Lowe's and planted them in the appropriate soil. They're in temporary 'planters' but I'm picking some up this Friday after I get paid. They get plenty of sun and I water them maybe once every 1.5 weeks. However one of them is starting to worry me! Album of pictures! For starters, it's opened a LOT. I don't know if it's normal for this specific plant, as I don't actually know the species of the plants I have. (I'm still trying to determine what they are to better care for them). Secondly, it's got this white powder around the base of the stem. I'm not sure if it falls under the wax that some species produce to block UV rays, but all my research on mold and plant fungi have come up short. None of the other plants have it, but I worry it's only a matter of time before the other plants get it
|
|
#
?
Sep 29, 2016 03:18
|
|
|
It's called a flapjack kalanchoe. I'm not seeing the mold, but a little white on top of the soil is common. Are you deep watering or just giving it a sip? Do your planters have drainage holes? What's your potting mix composed of?
|
|
#
?
Sep 29, 2016 03:38
|
|
|
robotindisguise posted:It's called a flapjack kalanchoe. I'm not seeing the mold, but a little white on top of the soil is common. Are you deep watering or just giving it a sip? Do your planters have drainage holes? What's your potting mix composed of? I've currently have them in clear plastic bowls (though that is changing Friday) so i can see when the water finds it's way to the bottom and then I stop watering them. I figure that overwatering is bad so I err on the side of caution (is that wrong? should I be soaking them outright?) One of my planters has drainage holes, and the others are in the aforementioned containers, though it's only the flapjack that's showing signs of this which has me puzzled. I enlarged and drew circles on the white bits I mentioned! As for the soil, currently it's just MiracleGro Cactus/Palm blended with a little coconut fiber, but I am absolutely up for changing it. My friend gave me a bag of it and said she used it on her succulents so I figured it would be fine. Flapjack~ Looking at pictures of Flapjacks it seems that it's fairly normal for them to splay their leaves out like that? Regardless I'll move it into it's own planter this weekend so it doesn't overcrowd the other plants. Is there a good site for identification that I'm missing?
|
|
#
?
Sep 29, 2016 04:01
|
|
|
My bad. The white stuff is normal. For some reason I thought you meant on the soil. Sounds like everything is okay for it.
|
|
#
?
Sep 29, 2016 16:13
|
|
|
The white stuff is normal? Thats a relief! What exactly is it?
|
|
#
?
Sep 29, 2016 17:22
|
|
|
I was told it's called bloom and a sun protectant, however that information came from a nursery worker 20+ years ago (A Sticky Business, somewhere in California). No idea if that's correct and I can't find any corroborating evidence. Someone smart will hopefully come around and tell us what's up.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2016 15:38
|
|
|
I bought a house here in Albuquerque this summer, and of course the back lawn rapidly dried up over the few weeks before we moved in and has never really recovered. A lot of the lot is already covered in gravel or low-water plants, but I do like to have a bit of lawn. I'm thinking of putting in something a little more drought-resistant. I really like clover, but I've seen conflicting accounts online: some say it does great in dry weather, some say it needs lots of water. What's the real deal? I'm also having a hard time figuring out what species of grass to mix in with it. Bermudagrass's invasive tendencies won't do, given that there are planter beds all around the lawn. Perennial ryegrass looks nice but apparently needs quite a bit of water. Should I plan to simply overseed my lawn and hope that the new species + the clover eventually outcompete / reach equilibrium with the existing grass? I'm finding quite a bit of crabgrass too so I'll have to manage that somehow as well.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2016 21:17
|
|
|
You need two kinds of clover for year round coverage. One for the cool months and one for the warm. Maybe thats why you're getting conflicting reports? As soon as I can get a local source I'll be experimenting with red and white. For ecoturf, try looking into perennial peanut. It's pretty awesome with nice yellow flowers for a good portion of the year. Handles mowing, walking, and athletic dogs running full tilt and does great in the scorching Florida heat. It has become quite popular as a median plant as well, due to the low maintenance and needs no irrigation. Seriously can't say enough good stuff about it.
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2016 04:52
|
|
|
What is this and how do I take care of it? Lady in the store said to keep the pot in water and make sure the plant's in a humid environment. Currently keeping it in a cloche in the window.
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2016 14:44
|
|
|
I want to make a few sealed jar terrariums for my apartment and my desk at work. From basic reading I see that I need some pebbles, charcoal, and potting soil. Where's the best place to get these in small quantities? Any regular garden store?
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2016 15:34
|
|
|
Schiavona posted:I want to make a few sealed jar terrariums for my apartment and my desk at work. From basic reading I see that I need some pebbles, charcoal, and potting soil. Where's the best place to get these in small quantities? Any regular garden store? Garden stores should have the pebbles and potting soil. You'll get more selection on pebbles at a pet store though. They may also have the carbon.
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2016 16:40
|
|
|
anatomi posted:What is this and how do I take care of it? Lady in the store said to keep the pot in water and make sure the plant's in a humid environment. Currently keeping it in a cloche in the window. I think it's a Drosera capensis.
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2016 17:17
|
|
|
Pham Nuwen posted:I bought a house here in Albuquerque this summer, and of course the back lawn rapidly dried up over the few weeks before we moved in and has never really recovered. A lot of the lot is already covered in gravel or low-water plants, but I do like to have a bit of lawn. I checked and discovered grass seed's cheap, and my lawn is pretty hosed anyway, so I YOLO'd and hit up the local nursery. Got 1/2 lb each of white clover, tall fescue, and perennial ryegrass. I raked the grass and then scattered some (not even close to all) of the mixed seeds around. We'll see how it does; in any case, the twice-daily waterings for the next few days should help perk up the existing grass! Edit: I also bought a little fig tree. It's about 4 feet tall and cute as hell 
|
|
#
?
Oct 2, 2016 00:08
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 23:43 |
|
|
Fitzy Fitz posted:I think it's a Drosera capensis. Looks like it. Thank you.
|
|
#
?
Oct 2, 2016 12:45
|
|