I'd like to get a small-to-medium-sized potted plant to liven up my dreary work cubicle. It won't receive any sunlight at all and will be exposed to 24 hours a day of pinkish fluorescent lighting and the glare of several computers and TV screens. The best it can hope for is fresh water and fertilizer/nutrient supplements as needed. Other than those boring and ubiquitous bamboo sticks, what else is there? Bonus points if it flowers or smells nice.
posted by Asparagirl
on Sep 12, 2005 -
10 answers
I find myself responsible for a semi-large, quite varied chunk of landscaping. Shrubs, flowers, trees, you name it. I don't have a clue what I'm doing. Where can I find help?
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posted by pornucopia
on Jul 21, 2005 -
9 answers
MeFi botanists:
These are buebells, right, blooming now until June?
(Yes, that IS my cat Widget on the scanner trying to eat them.) But what are
these, fallen from a tree or plant on the NE Ohio shore of Lake Erie?
(Pic is aprox 200%
actual size.) Does anyone else have any plants you need to identify? Are there any good books or online flora resources you recommend that allow a person to maybe search by, say, "flowers-blue" and then narrow the search, perusing images? Thanks.
posted by Shane
on May 3, 2005 -
9 answers
I'd like to become skilled with gardening and maintaining indoor plants and stuff. What's a good way to develop a green thumb? Book suggestions, websites, personal anecdotes, cost saving tips, good nursuries in Los Angeles, etc are all welcome.
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posted by sirion
on Apr 30, 2005 -
9 answers
The only window in my basement apartment faces north and is fairly obscured as well. I would really like a plant or two to liven the place up.
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posted by CaptApollo
on Apr 11, 2005 -
10 answers
Some sort of mite is attacking my houseplants, tiny, tiny white specs all over the leaves, how do I stop them and save my plants?
posted by Cosine
on Mar 30, 2005 -
26 answers
Any tips on how to make Sensitive Plants (the fern-like ones that close their leaves when you touch them) thrive? I can usually keep them pretty happy for a few months, but they gradually become more and more unresponsive and eventually die. I'm in Southern California and will be moving to a new place with a greenhouse, and am fairly ignorant in the ways of plant-tending. Another question, just for sucking as much possible information out of this as possible: Anyone have any indoor plants they really like? If so, how do you make *those* thrive?
posted by sirion
on Mar 11, 2005 -
10 answers
I have a venus fly trap which seems to be sickening and dying, and I'd love to save it.
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posted by tomble
on Feb 21, 2005 -
4 answers
Damn Kids! Filter: The wall behind my building faces an industrial and unincorporated area of the town, and it's prime real estate for spray-painting, vandalism, and the sort of activity in which teenage hooligans and ruffians
(*cough*karma returns*cough*) tend to engage. I don't much care if kids spray-paint back there--I just don't want them painting the windows or leaving their empty paint cans and beer bottles back there.
So I was thinking a way to discourage them would be to plant some thorny, prickly, brambly-type stuff back there--ideally, it's something that doesn't need tending,
isn't poisonous, and has lots of thorns and prickly things. I'd rather not install motion-sensing security lights; I'd just like to make painting my wall a difficult experience. Any ideas or suggestions for
non-poisonous brambly, prickly, thorny plants?
posted by fandango_matt
on Feb 9, 2005 -
24 answers
I have a hazelnut tree. Each year at this time, the tips of the branches extrude 2-3 inch long caterpillar-like growths which drop off. What are these called, and what is their function? This is undoubtedly a simple question which many can answer, but nevertheless hard to google.
posted by Neiltupper
on Feb 5, 2005 -
3 answers
Springfield Lemon Tree Filter: I have a
Meyer lemon tree which was subjected to very cold temperatures last month. I was able to get it inside, but it spent almost a week outside, with temperatures in the low twenties (F). All of the leaves have dried up, and most have now fallen off. No new leaves have grown. I've had this tree for about six years, and it was a few years old when I purchased it. I'd very much like to save it.
It is in an extremely oversized pot, which I thought would help shield it from the cold, but apparently it wasn't enough. At the very least, I'd like to be able to save the roots, even if I have to graft another tree to the trunk. Any ideas?
posted by bh
on Jan 17, 2005 -
5 answers
recommendations, please, for tall houseplants that need little watering (we're sometimes away for a week or two), like the warmth (summer is warm, winter has central heating), and don't mind the shade (in summer there are blinds outside to keep the temperature down)? someone just recommended
ficus alli to us, yet they are described on that page as "sun loving" - what's right? also, once bought, do we need to repot them into something larger? if so, what soil do we need? anything else plant-clueless people should know? thanks!
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posted by andrew cooke
on Dec 8, 2004 -
11 answers
At some trade show recently, Whirlpool showed a
prototype washer called
BioLogic that ("if feasible") relies on hydroponic plants to purify and reuse the water
[pdf, p17]. So, are there any users out there who go to Kitchen and Bath trade shows, and know more details about how this works? Alternate question for hydroponics enthusiasts: What kind of plants are those in the washer?
posted by Lirp
on Nov 11, 2004 -
1 answer
Looking for office cube decoration inspiration. My current job is in a grey cube farm. Floor to ceiling, everything is grey. I'm in the middle of the room away from the windows and I need to make my space more cheerful. Any ideas? What plants will survive in these conditions? (MI)
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posted by onhazier
on Oct 20, 2004 -
14 answers
My wife and I are notoriously bad at keeping plants alive. Our best success is an Aloe Vera plant (which we ignore) and a Peace Lilly which tends to behave like a plant in The Sims - colapsing as it dies, and then perking up as soon as we notice.
Accepting that plants feel pain and scream when hurt, are we evil torturing sadists?
posted by twine42
on Oct 1, 2004 -
8 answers
New orchid grower seeks advice as he hunkers down for yet another Canadian winter! Can any mefites recommend good books on growing orchids indoors? Actually, any advice about orchids, grow-lights and other tropicals that might grow well in my urban apartment would be very much appreciated.
posted by gesamtkunstwerk
on Sep 21, 2004 -
4 answers
Need help diagnosing bamboo ailment and preventing further damage. [more inside]
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posted by christie
on Aug 1, 2004 -
3 answers
I want to add some plants to my deck and I'm looking for planters, or rather looking for industrial materials which might make good planters that can be bought for cheap. I spent hours on my Tandy looking through Google and Froogle, but can't seen to find anything appropriate. What I'm dreaming about would be any sort of tub or industrial looking trough or whatever which could be adapted to hold various plants. Metal and wood are the desired materials. If anyone has advice about where to go, how to look, or on specific materials that might make good planters, please post!
posted by chaz
on Jul 14, 2004 -
9 answers
Plantfilter. And I mean that literally. I seek recommendations for my next potted plant, and I want one which can filter the air.
More inside. [more inside]
posted by brownpau
on Jul 11, 2004 -
8 answers
Question for carnivorous plant aficionados: I have a Sundew plant (
drosera adelae) that seems quite healthy. It catches a lot of fruit flies, but seems unable to actually digest them. Often, dead flies just sit on the Sundew's leaves until the fly bodies eventually mold from the humidity of the terrarium. Is the plant overeating?
posted by arielmeadow
on Jun 28, 2004 -
0 answers
Invasive species plant
Garlic Mustard .. This spring I harvested over 200 pounds from surrounding property and sent it to the landfill to rot. Has anyone eaten it before or have experience managing this invasive plant?
posted by stbalbach
on May 12, 2004 -
4 answers
Help the Black Thumb:
I am terrible at keeping plants alive. The only plants I don't kill are philodendrons, and you pretty much can't kill those things. I was given a gerbera daisy in a pot, but apparently I overwatered it. The plant still seems alive, but the flowers have drooped over. I drained the excess water, but the flowers aren't perking back up. Are they permanently wilted? Should I cut them off and hope the plant flowers again? I googled, but got nothing more useful than "Avoid overwatering".
posted by Shoeburyness
on Apr 14, 2004 -
8 answers
I work in a fairly large, open plan air-conditioned office, next to a window. The window cannot be opened. I want to buy a plant that will sit on my desk, and preferably not die with minimal maintenance. I am not a gardener. :)
I want something leafy and bushy, no flowers, that will stand around half a metre high from base of pot to top of plant, and be almost as "wide", so as to act as something slightly more pleasant to look at instead of my neighbour.
Suggestions?
posted by Mwongozi
on Apr 1, 2004 -
13 answers
I've always kind of wondered this. I don't know if it's a metaphysical question, an evolution question or just a childish question, but why exactly are there fruit trees? Has anyone seen a definitive answer to this. Does it seem weird that a tree would produce fruit just so animals can come and steal it? Do fruit trees benefit from producing fruit (like I understand how the leaves come into play)? I feel like a little kid asking this, but does anyone got an answer?
posted by Slimemonster
on Mar 24, 2004 -
28 answers
