indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 14, 2014 10:44:56 GMT -5
My father got my started on houseplants when I was a young woman in my 20s. He always had houseplants in his apartment in North Hollywood, CA and really everywhere else he lived, and he gave me his own houseplant book. When I lived in California, I kept them on my second floor balcony, everything from mother in Law's Tongue, to creeping Charlie, to wandering ivy, to asparagus ferns, to jade plants, to spider plants.
When I moved to Colorado at 21, I was poverty stricken and I begged friends for cuttings of everything from coleus to creeping Charlie, which I grew in local dirt in the coffee cans from the old time Soda Fountain where I worked.
As an older adult, when I had my son, he was allergic to plants and so I have long had a thriving house plant garden in my office, which takes up a huge desk. They love the fluorescent lights and do well with minimal care. I have watered them before a three week vacation, and come back to a thriving set of houseplants. Currently I have mother in law's tongue, ficus, Christmas cactus, jade plant, spider plants, aloe vera, golden pathos, green pathos, and African violets. I often give starts to younger colleagues or new graduate students coming in to my building.
I will post some pictures soon and I encourage my fellow house plant lovers to join in.
My students love the atmosphere they provide and the plants keep my going through the long winter months.
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Post by bestofour on Jul 15, 2014 15:10:19 GMT -5
I have a Christmas Cactus that someone sent me and an aloe plant that everyone should have. I love it when my cactus blooms.
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Post by daylilydude on Jul 15, 2014 22:07:23 GMT -5
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 16, 2014 10:05:24 GMT -5
It actually hasn't bloomed yet...it is a start from a 60 year old plant...My friend was given a start from her Mom who is a Nebraska farm woman. I am hoping it will bloom this year.
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 16, 2014 10:30:26 GMT -5
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Post by horsea on Jul 16, 2014 12:04:57 GMT -5
Okey dokey, what's a mother-in-law's tongue? I know I've seen a fabulous cactus called mother-in-law's cushion... farm8.staticflickr.com/7004/6590324195_23037c378d_o.jpgWhile I'm here, I have a huge jade plant. It is really old. Someone told me that it will bloom one fine day. I'm not an expert on house plants; have you any idea when this will occur?
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Post by pepperhead212 on Jul 16, 2014 12:26:30 GMT -5
Do hydroponics count as houseplants?
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:15:50 GMT -5
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:17:38 GMT -5
Wow, of course, hydroponics count...any pics? Do you grow veggies in your system? How hard was it to get the system going? Any tips?
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:18:27 GMT -5
I love this cactus, but no, not the same plant
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:19:56 GMT -5
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:20:23 GMT -5
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:20:41 GMT -5
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indigogirl17
Pro Member
Blazing here again...90's and dry after aq period of 3 weeks of solid rain a few weeks back. .
Posts: 191
Zone:: 5b
Favorite Vegetable:: sweet corn, collards, turnip greens, yellow wax beans, Cherokee purple tomatoes
Joined: March 2011
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Post by indigogirl17 on Jul 17, 2014 12:21:37 GMT -5
You can see the Mother in Law's Tongue in the very top left corner if you click on the picture...sharp, upright leaves...hence the name:)
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Post by bestofour on Jul 17, 2014 18:42:39 GMT -5
My Christmas cactus is somewhere between pink and red with a little white. Really pretty.
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Post by pepperhead212 on Jul 17, 2014 21:01:17 GMT -5
Wow, of course, hydroponics count...any pics? Do you grow veggies in your system? How hard was it to get the system going? Any tips? It's not really difficult, esp. when growing just herbs and greens, like I do. They don't need any changes in the water, as when you are growing fruited vegetables, and they are ready to harvest in a short amount of time. I take a break in the summer, when getting everything from outside, but in mid-Sept., or thereabouts, I set them up, and start cloning basils, and starting things like parsley, dill, and leaf celery indoors in pure coir, so I can set it inside the baskets in the systems. I use 2 deepwater systems (7 gal. each), with an undergravel filter pump and sponge filter, plus an airstone in each one. I have been an aquarium buff since I was 10 years old, so I have a lot of these kind of things things around! And aquarium water test kits help out, too. Early on, I got a relatively inexpensive truncheon meter, which is an electronic device for testing how much fertilizer is in the water. It saves money in the long run, since water testing kits are not cheap (except for the pH test kits). I use MaxiGro, which is a cheap nutrient, created for vegetative growth, which is all I need. I also use Hygrozyme, which is not cheap, but not much is needed, so it lasts a long time, and it basically helps the dead roots decompose, to feed the bacteria in the system. A friend in a hydroponics shop has given me samples of many things, and this was one, and I noticed a difference in the roots very quickly, with almost no brown, slimy, dead roots any more! Definitely worth the price. The basils and parsley grow so well that I only need one of each plant! Even after harvesting a couple cups of basil leaves, it comes back so fast that I could do the same in a day or two. And parsley grows HUGE! I am actually trying to find a smaller parsley, so it won't be so large. Here are some hydroponics photos. And here are a few parsley photos, showing what I meant about ho large it gets. Besides this, I bring my kafir lime and curry trees indoors, as soon as it gets too cool for them, after cutting them way back. The lime tree grows so much inside that I have to cut it back again, to get it out! The curry tree grows some, but only enough to keep me supplied.
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Post by bestofour on Jul 23, 2014 20:35:40 GMT -5
You only need one of those giant parsley leaves for garnish.
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