SOME HARDY INDOOR PLANTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 608, 9 March 1929, Page 28

SOME HARDY INDOOR PLANTS

The conditions that exist in rooms 1 are not conducive to the health of - plants generally, so that uuless they 3 are well cared for their condition will j not long remain satisfactory. Plants 1 ! with ornamental leaves are most suit- • able for rooms, though certain flower- ' i ing plants —vallota purpurae, for ex- , ample—can be made to succeed. The i | aspidistra is most familiar, while the J I Indian rubber plant (ficus elastica), ’ aralia or fatsia japonica, araucaria excelsa and grevillea robusta are elegant i foliage plants, frequently grown in the home. Kentias -belmoreana and fosteriana are useful palms, and i among ferns, asplenium bulbiferum, a adiantum williamsi and pteris cris- £ tat, and pteris tremula have proved j. satisfactory. i- The most important detail in the l* management of room plants is water--1 ing. In winter, when activity' is at its e lowest, not much water Is needed, though, if the soil becomes dry, the

lowest leaves will drop and the plants he rendered unsightly. When water is givSn, however, it should be suffticent to moisten the whole of the soil.

If the soil does not become dry after a reasonable period has elapsed, remove the plant from the pot and after loosening the soil at the bottom, rearrange the crocks. Repotting in the ordinary way should be done in August. Keep the leaves clean by sponging once a week with luke-warm water. By turning the pots round occasionally, all parts of the plants will benefit by being exposed to an equal amount of light. Plants in rooms from which the sun is obscured will be improved by being moved into others more favourably situated. Avoid draughty positions and keep the foliage of window plants from touching the glass.