This is Joe in northern Indiana. I’m a confident gardener outside, but I often struggle with houseplants. They are, however, a pretty essential aspect of getting through our long, cold, snowy winters, so I’ve been trying more, and have had some successes I’m happy with.
Rabbit’s foot fern (Davallia fejeensis) has been an easy-to-grow star for me. When I first bought it, it looked terrible; the fronds all got brown and crispy on the edges. But I think that was just the process of adapting to the conditions in my house because after that, it put out new, beautiful green fronds and has been thriving in pretty low light and my often-forgetful watering schedule.
The fuzzy rhizomes are on the move. I think this plant is going to turn the hanging pot it is in into a solid ball of fern soon, which will be cool!
Air plants (Tillandsia) have been a struggle for me in the past. I’ve tried misting them, but that never seem to get them enough water. But I’ve got a new schedule for caring for them that seems to be working great.
Once every week or two, they all go in the sink and get a soak in lukewarm water for about 20 minutes while I check if my other houseplants need water. They’ve done great!
Low light is an issue in my house, and some plants are suffering for it. This little cactus is stretching because it is just too shaded. I think I’m just going to have to let this one go and choose more low-light plants.
But I have found a solution to some of my dark areas away from windows. This corner of my home office has no windows, but plants are thriving because . . .
. . . I put cheap LED lights on the ceiling! LED lights are affordable and so energy efficient it costs almost nothing to run them. They have allowed me to green up more corners of my house.
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