Houseplants

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hello dear readers!

I know it's been awhile-I had a death in my family and that took me away from writing for awhile. I'm back though, and there are two new articles for you. One is a guide to safely transitioning your plants to outdoor living for the summer, and one is a guide to figuring out why a plant died and how to prevent it from happening again. Check them out and leave a comment to let me know what you think!

I was out in the garden today, planting begonias, impatiens, and geraniums, The best part about these plants, aside from their hardiness and beauty, is that once the growing season ends, they can be brought inside and put on a sunny windowsill! They will overwinter beautifully. Give it a try!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi dear readers,

Just a quick note to let you all know about a new feature. Now you can leave comments on the articles themselves. The discussion area has been closed and made read only so if you have any questions, please use this new feature. We love hearing from you!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hello everyone!

Summer is here and it's about time! I am sorry I haven't blogged in awhile, unfortunately May was a horrible month for me. Both of my computers went down at the same time, my bathroom plumbling went, one of my cat was diagnosed with cancer, and I was feeling under the weather for awhile to boot. Ugh! I am glad the month is over-I just know June will be better!

With summer in full swing your houseplants should be growing like crazy. Unfortunately this sometimes means pests are too, especially if you've put them outside. Check out our latest article for tips on how to fight them and keep your plants healthy!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

I am back after a sudden hard drive failure. Here's a tip..if your computer starts making odd squeaking or grinding noises, back up your data ASAP because the end is near for your hard drive! I hadn't done a back up for about a month so I lost some data, but not as much as I could have!

On the bright side, the world is fresh and green again! I just love spring. I went to the local nursery and picked up some geraniums, violas and sweet potato vines, and now my windowsill garden is bright and happy. This time of year is a great time to find houseplants-most nurseries and garden centers will have a nice selection! Don't overlook plants you might not think of as houseplants-in addition to the ones mentioned above, coleus, impatiens, begonias and many herbs will do just fine inside!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

I hope you'll check out my latest article, which answers readers questions about prepping your plants for spring. Be sure and check out our newest feature too-you can now leave comments on our articles! We love hearing from our readers so be sure and leave a few!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hello everyone!

I hope you're enjoying spring as much as I am. The weather had been just gorgeous and I've been taking advantage of it to get my outdoor gardening started. This is such a great tme of year. The day are getting longer and longer, the weather is warming, the stores are brimming with plants-what could be better?

If you have an area of your home that gets less than optimum light, check out my latest article. You'll be sure to find a plant or two that would be perfect!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

We have a wonderful new category here at Houseplants-Urban Gardening! If you live in the city, you know what an important place houseplants have in the urban garden. Be sure to stop by and check out CW Laurence O'Sullivan's great article there, and while you're at it check out my latest article about the mighty Ficus!

Happy Spring!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

Be sure to check out my article on getting your plants ready for spring and my newest one about great books for houseplant lovers. I don't know about you, but one of the things I love as much as houseplants is reading about them. You can never learn too much, and the more you know, the better off your plants will be. This will save you money too-the better able you are to care for your plants and treat problems as they occur, the less likely it is that you'll have to buy replacement plants-although lets face it, buying new plants is never a bad thing!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

How are your plants doing? Now that the days are growing longer and longer you should notice a growth spurt happening. My asparagus fern is shooting up a new stem everyday it seems, and my prayer plant is unfurling leaves like crazy. Now's the time to start fertilizing again! I've also noticed the stores filling with more and more houseplants. That's because the warmer temperatures make shipping them around the country a lot easier! This is just a great time of year to be a houseplant lover!

Posted by Susan Walsh

Hi everyone!

Spring is finally showing itself. The clocks have been turned ahead and the days are growing longer. This is the time to start preparing your plants for the new growing season. Now that they will be getting more and more sunlight they will beginning putting out lots of new growth. Start feeding as soon as you see this and check to see if any will need repotting. For larger plants, scrape away the top inch or two of soil and replace it with fresh. It's still too soon to put your houseplants outside in most places, but you can start moving them closer to your windows as long as you know they like direct or bright light. Stay tuned for more info as Spring draws closer!