Care and How-To Articles - Houseplants and Indoor Gardening

Petunias have been one of the most popular flowering annuals for years. Their popularity can be attributed to several desirable traits. Petunias are easy to grow, bloom reliably all summer, and are available in a wide range of colors, flower forms, and growth habits. 

Most gardeners buy petunias at their local garden center or greenhouse in spring. However, petunias can also be started indoors in late winter. 

Timing

Sow petunia seeds indoors about 10 weeks before the intended outdoor planting date. (Petunias should be planted outdoors after the danger of frost is past.) Late February or early March is an appropriate sowing date in Iowa. 

Reusing plastic, clay, and other containers is a great way to save money and reduce the amount of plastic waste that goes into landfill.  Plastic containers cannot be recycled in traditional single-stream home recycling programs and, unfortunately, programs to collect and recycle plastic pots are not common.

Proper cleaning and disinfecting of pots requires just a minimum amount of effort, yet can mean the difference between the success or failure of containerized plants, plus it allows you to reuse containers and reduce plastic waste. Follow the steps below to clean and disinfect used containers.

Geraniums have been a popular bedding plant for many years.  Most gardeners purchase plants from garden centers and greenhouses.  However, geraniums can also be grown from seeds.  Se

There are over 100 genera in the Gesneriaceae or Gesneriad family. Most are tropical plants, such as African violet and gloxinia, and are native to Africa, Asia, and Central and South America. Approximately 300 species are cultivated, many as houseplants. All are excellent houseplants with showy flowers or foliage.  A few of the most common cultivated species are listed below.

Aroids or arums are members of the Araceae family.  The Araceae family is large, with more than 100 genera and 3700 species of mostly sub-tropical monocots.  Many species are popular as houseplants, and a few are distinctive landscape plants. 

Spring, summer, and fall are a great time to bring the garden indoors with cut flowers.  No prior experience is necessary to harvest flowers for bouquets.   
If you cut flowers from your own garden, there are several things that can be done to condition those flowers to ensure they stay fresh, colorful, and vibrant for as long as possible.

Harvest & Conditioning  |  Care  |  Good Species from the Garden for Cut Flowers  |  More Information

Nearly every sentiment can be expressed by flowers. It’s been said that, “Flowers are a perfect replica of human life: Planting, growth, bloom, withering.”

The following list includes some of the most common flowers and their meanings, realizing there are multiple sources with this information and sometimes flowers can have multiple meanings.

Next time you give flowers to someone, consider selecting particular ones to express your sentiment.

https://www.iowapbs.org/shows/gardeningsteil/digital-short/3531/plant-shoppingIn spring, many gardeners will be at nurseries, greenhouses, and garden centers looking to buy plants. Selecting the right species and cultivar of a plant for the landscape by matching sun, water, soil, winter hardiness, and other growing requirements is important. Equally important is selecting high-quality plants. Below is advice on how to purchase high-quality plants from the garden center.

Leaf vein cuttings are produced using a large leaf blade pinned flat to the rooting media to produce a new plant. New roots, leaves, or cluster of leaves that looks like a small plantlet emerge from the areas on the leaf blade where leaf veins have been cut and come in contact with rooting media.  Leaf vein cuttings work well for species such as begonia, among other plants.  

To successfully propagate houseplants by cuttings, there are several factors that have to be considered, such as the rooting media, rooting hormones, decreasing water loss, and finding the right environmental conditions (humidity, light, and temperature).

Stem section (or cane) cuttings are produced using a section of thick, leafless stem that has buds on it to produce a new plant. New stems and roots emerge from the buds on the thick stem.  This form of propagation is particularly useful in propagating plants with lanky and leafless canes.  Cane cuttings work well for species such as dracaena and dumb cane, among other plants.  

Several factors have to be considered to successfully propagate houseplants by cuttings, such as the rooting media, rooting hormones, decreasing water loss, and finding the right environmental conditions (humidity, light, and temperature).

Layering is a form of propagation where new roots are formed on stems while the propagule is still attached to the parent plant.

There are several methods of layering.  The method best used depends on the species of plant and not all species are propagated by layering.  Many houseplants are successfully propagated by air layering or simple layering.

Steps to propagate by air layering and simple layering are below.

Propagation is the creation or growing of new plants. When houseplants get large or more plants are desired, many can be easily propagated by division or offsets.

Division is a method of propagation where the entire plant is separated into smaller, whole pieces that contain all vegetative parts (leaves, stems, roots, etc.).

Learn more about the steps to take to divide your houseplants below.

Terrariums are closed transparent glass or plastic containers used to create a mini-environment or ecosystem for plants.  They create a jungle-like atmosphere of high humidity, warm temperatures, and no drafts, which are perfect for many houseplants.  Find steps on how to create your own terrarium, lists of plants perfect for terrariums, as well as a little history, in this article.

Due to improved construction methods, buildings are better sealed to maximize energy efficiency. Yet, these "sealed" buildings often trap gases from synthetic materials that can pollute the indoor air. These air pollutants can cause problems for inhabitants especially during the winter when people are forced to spend a great deal of time indoors.

Growing houseplants is a rewarding and popular hobby. Indoor plants help create a welcoming, calming, aesthetically pleasing environment in homes.  Plants have been shown to make people more creative and productive, improve their overall health, improve indoor air quality, and make people happy!  

Follow these tips to successfully grow healthy and attractive houseplants.

A wreath is an attractive decoration for the holiday season. Making a wreath isn't as difficult as you might think. Follow these steps to create a holiday wreath using evergreen branches from your own yard.

Cyclamen (Cyclamen persicum) is a popular houseplant in winter. They have attractive marbled or mottled heart-shaped leaves that skirt bright pink, lavender, red, or white flowers. The flowers themselves are unique because the petals curve backward, each blossom somewhat resembling a butterfly or badminton birdie.

Learn more about the selection and care of cyclamen as well as what to do once the blooms fade to have the plant rebloom next year. 

Using mistletoe and holly as decoration during the holidays is a long-standing tradition.  These classic evergreen plants are not commonly grown or found in Iowa, but their use and traditions around the holiday season make them familiar plants.  Learn more about these interesting plants and the traditions and folklore that surround them.

Holiday cactus is the collective name used to refer to a group of closely related flowering houseplants including Christmas cactus, Thanksgiving cactus, and Easter cactus.  These easy-to-grow indoor plants can be very long-lived sometimes being passed down from generation to generation.  The long life of these plants is due to the fact they are easy to grow. They thrive on benign neglect, have few insect and disease problems, and don’t require frequent repotting.

By the end of the growing season, many of our annual plants in the garden are gorgeous to overgrowing! It is hard to watch these prized flowers die after the first frost. Fortunately, some annuals can be propagated from cuttings and brought indoors during the winter. This is a great way to extend their beauty inside and reduce the cost of annual flowers for next spring.

Growing indoors plants is a rewarding hobby that yields beautiful results.  But when problems arise with your indoor plants, it can be difficult to determine what to do to fix the problem.  Learn what to do when your houseplants have problems.