House Plants

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Orchid Issues

There are a few things going on here, but the bottom line is you're right, the plant still has hope for the future!
1. Orchid flowers usually last about a month, sometimes a bit longer from bud to the finish of flowering, so this one wasn't unusual in that regard. No flowers last forever, even orchids, which are among the longest flowering of plants.
2. When you have an orchid in the house, the first thing to do is to remove that moss that they put over the top of the pot around the plant. This is done for decorative purposes and isn't necessarily good for the plant. It often keeps the plant too wet or damp around the top, and can lead to rot. So take that away now.
3. Once an orchid flower fades you can leave the stem where the flowers were - some orchids will grow a new flower spike from lower on that stem, even a few months later. Others do not, but basically you can't go wrong by leaving it there until it turns yellow or brown and is clearly dying off. Once you see that, clip it down to near the foliage.
4. Keep the plant in a bright window but not in direct sun. An Eastern window is ideal if you have it. We don't see a window in this photo, and if the plant isn't in the light it won't live, so move it next to a window - even a western or northern-facing window is better than no window at all. Plants make their food out of light (photosynthesis) so this is really important.
5. Water the plant about twice a week or every five days by putting it in the sink and running some water over it - but don't keep it in a container that doesn't drain. The decorative box we see that it's in now might be keeping too much moisture around the roots and causing them to rot. If your house is cool you could even water it only every six days... do not let the pot that it's in sit in water for any length of time. Just water it well for at least a minute, let that water drain out into the sink, and then replace the plant in the window where it will get light. You can put it on a saucer to catch any drips.
6. Use an orchid fertilizer according to directions.

By | 2015-11-28T05:14:58-08:00 November 28th, 2015|House Plants|0 Comments
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Dried Fern

Your fern (looks like it may be a Boston fern although the photo is a bit blurry and dark so it's hard to be positive) has dried up. Ferns need an even level of moisture in the soil at all times. At this time of year that can be more difficult because as it gets colder outdoors our heat comes on more frequently and so the plants dry up more quickly. Also, when a plant has been in the same pot for a long time, and yours clearly has, the roots become so thick that there is little space in the root ball to retain water. So this is a plant that would probably benefit from putting it in a larger pot. It could go in a standing pot instead of a hanging basket at this point.

The bottom line here, is can this plant be saved, or should you try and save it? Sometimes people have trouble "saying goodbye" to a plant. There are two ways you can go when a plant reaches this point, and neither one is the right way...you'll have to decide which is the right way FOR YOU.

1. You can thank a plant for coming and toss it out, and get another plant. If you compost, you will know that the plant will be adding richness to your soil.

2. You can cut out all the dead foliage, put the plant in a larger pot with new potting mix, and water it more. After it gets used to the new container (be sure all containers you use have a drainage hole and don't put any rocks etc in the bottom of the pots no matter what someone else might tell you. Use only soil and never cover a drainage hole with anything.) you can start to fertilize.

By | 2015-11-27T04:18:50-08:00 November 27th, 2015|House Plants|0 Comments
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Spots On Hibiscus Leaves

Although from seeing a photo one leaf it's difficult to diagnose a problem, here are our thoughts on your hibiscus plant:
1. This does not look like typical insect damage on an interior hibiscus. The most common insects on these plants are whitefly, aphids, or mites and this damage doesn't look like what those bugs do. So it's pretty sure we can rule out insect damage.
2. This also doesn't look like disease damage. Fungal diseases cause yellow or dark spots, not what we see in this photo.
3. From what we see this looks most like contact damage of some sort. Was this plant recently fertilized? If so you might be seeing fertilizer burn if the plant was fertilized when it was dry or given too strong a solution. Were any cleaning products used near the plant recently such as window cleaner? If so it's possible that the damage has been caused by such products hitting the leaves. Or was some other garden product sprayed onto the plant such as an insecticide or fungicide? Might something else have been dumped on the soil in the pot, or might a cat be using the plant for its litter box?

If you think this might be fertilizer burn be sure to water the plant really well by placing it in a shower or tub and running a great deal of water through the soil to wash out excess fertilizer salts.

Whether you figure out what caused these spots or not the treatment would be the same: remove the leaves that show these symptoms so you can monitor if the problem is still going on. Keep the plant in good shape as you obviously have been in the past - the other leaves we see are a good green color and look healthy.

By | 2015-11-13T20:53:31-08:00 November 23rd, 2015|House Plants|2 Comments
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Browning On Houseplant Leaves

Browning in the interior of leaves on houseplants can be caused by several situations including sunburn, fertilizer burn, salt or fluoride build-up, contact from cleaning products, or diseases such as powdery mildew. Sometimes without culturing in a lab it's hard to pin it down. For leaves such as yours that show browning in between the veins on the leaves it can be narrowed down a bit since sunburn would present over the entire leaf surface, fertilizer burn would be likely to show along all edges, and contact from cleaning products would cover the entire surface of the leaf. So that narrows it down for your plant to sunburn (unlikely at this point on Cape Cod!), salt/fluoride build-up, or disease.

Of these three, we're wondering about powdery mildew first because of the faint, grey appearance we see on the bottom and bottom right of the leaf. If you see this continuing to develop on the leaf, that may be the clue to the cause. Look under the leaf for signs of grey powder as well.

No matter what is the cause, remove all the leaves that look like this and throw them away. This will make the situation easier to monitor as well. Next, be sure that the health of the plant is supported by watering deeply less often (don't just give a "lick and a promise - water the plant deeply when you water, soaking the entire root ball and letting the water drain into a saucer below. After a couple of hours empty that saucer so that the plant isn't kept too wet.) Be sure the plant has good air circulation and the room that it's in doesn't go much below 60 degrees.

If it seems like powdery mildew isn't the issue, perhaps this plant has been in the same pot for some time and there has been a build up of something that is causing the leaf issue. If this is the case, repot the plant and remove as much of the old soil as possible without harming the roots, and replace that with clean, new potting soil. Don't start to fertilize for a month until the plant gets resettled. Consider using an organic fertilizer in the future.

If you see that powdery mildew could be the problem, get a fungicide that's labeled for powdery mildew at your garden center and use it according to directions.

If we haven't hit on the answer yet, take some more shots including underneath of the leaves and give us some more information about the history of the plant and we'll take it from there!

By | 2015-11-23T04:47:40-08:00 November 23rd, 2015|House Plants|0 Comments
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A Very Sad Chinese Evergreen

We can tell you care about this plant because you've kept it for 20 years but the hard truth is that it will never be healthy or happy in the circumstances you describe. This is an Aglaonema and it is struggling. Your plant needs brighter light and it also needs a period of darkness. 24 hours of fluorescent light is not good. The fact that the soil stays wet is also cause for concern. This plant is fairly drought tolerant and should only be watered when the top half inch of soil is dry. If you water it once a week, even when the soil feels wet, then you are over watering and this can lead to root rot which can kill the plant. If it were our plant we would thank it for its service and add it to the compost pile. If you are determined to try to save it, you may attempt the following (but we make no promises it will work!)
1) Cut back all the stems EXCEPT THE ONE STEM WITH THE MOST LEAVES to about two inches above the soil. These leaves will photosynthesize to keep the plant alive while you try to stimulate new growth.
2) Bring the plant home and put it in an east or west facing window. If you can't do this, forget about saving it. A grow light will not be sufficient to jump start a plant in such a sad condition.
3) Water ONLY when the top half inch of soil feels dry.
4) If and when you see new growth emerge from the cut stems and a few leaves have unfurled, cut back the one long stem to two inches above the soil.
If you decide to undertake this experiment, please let us know how it goes. Good luck!

By | 2015-11-18T01:02:31-08:00 November 18th, 2015|House Plants|1 Comment
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Browning On Houseplant Leaves

Browning in the interior of leaves on houseplants can be caused by several situations including sunburn, fertilizer burn, salt or fluoride build-up, contact from cleaning products, or diseases such as powdery mildew. Sometimes without culturing in a lab it's hard to pin it down. For leaves such as yours that show browning in between the veins on the leaves it can be narrowed down a bit since sunburn would present over the entire leaf surface, fertilizer burn would be likely to show along all edges, and contact from cleaning products would cover the entire surface of the leaf. So that narrows it down for your plant to sunburn (unlikely at this point on Cape Cod!), salt/fluoride build-up, or disease.

Of these three, we're wondering about powdery mildew first because of the faint, grey appearance we see on the bottom and bottom right of the leaf. If you see this continuing to develop on the leaf, that may be the clue to the cause. Look under the leaf for signs of grey powder as well.

No matter what is the cause, remove all the leaves that look like this and throw them away. This will make the situation easier to monitor as well. Next, be sure that the health of the plant is supported by watering deeply less often (don't just give a "lick and a promise - water the plant deeply when you water, soaking the entire root ball and letting the water drain into a saucer below. After a couple of hours empty that saucer so that the plant isn't kept too wet.) Be sure the plant has good air circulation and the room that it's in doesn't go much below 60 degrees.

If it seems like powdery mildew isn't the issue, perhaps this plant has been in the same pot for some time and there has been a build up of something that is causing the leaf issue. If this is the case, repot the plant and remove as much of the old soil as possible without harming the roots, and replace that with clean, new potting soil. Don't start to fertilize for a month until the plant gets resettled. Consider using an organic fertilizer in the future.

If you see that powdery mildew could be the problem, get a fungicide that's labeled for powdery mildew at your garden center and use it according to directions.

If we haven't hit on the answer yet, take some more shots including underneath of the leaves and give us some more information about the history of the plant and we'll take it from there!

By | 2015-11-15T02:39:25-08:00 November 15th, 2015|House Plants|0 Comments
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Pothos Plant Problems

Houseplant leaves turn yellow and brown and dry for a variety of reasons: when grown in too little light, an irregular watering pattern, or the plant is sitting in water and may be the beginning of root rot. Usually if the problem is over-watering the entire plant will turn yellowish - if the problem is uneven watering, that is drying between waterings, then the older leaves turn yellow and brown first but the new foliage looks OK. So evaluate your plant by looking to see if all the new growth is fine but the older leaves are the ones that are going - if that's the case you need to water the entire plant really well and then check it in a few days to see if it is dry.

Often our houseplants dry more quickly at this time of year when the heating is coming on more frequently. Be sure to water really well when you do water - never give a plant "just a little" because you don't want to over-water, don't want the water to leak out of the drainage holes, or don't have time to fill up a container with enough water. In other words, soak the entire root ball well when you water and let it drain into a sink or saucer for a couple of hours - then remove from any standing water and test the soil in a few days to see if it's dry ready for watering again.

Plants also dry up more quickly when they've been in the same pot for awhile. When you see brown leaves on a plant, tip it out of the pot and see if it looks root bound. If so, putting it in a new, larger pot with fresh soil will help.

This does not look like a nutrient deficiency but most houseplants should be fed a slow-release or organic fertilizer formulated for indoor container plants.

By | 2015-11-14T11:16:31-08:00 November 14th, 2015|House Plants|13 Comments
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