Indoor Gardening and Houseplants: Thoughts, issues, and successes of Indoor Gardeners., 0 by Kubileya

Kubileya wrote:
No pest problems here, yet (knock wood). I've had the plants inside since whatever hurricane that was blew up the coast in September. I've probably got about 50 in here right now. My husband built me a huge, three-shelved plant shelf for one of our west facing sliding glass doors. It's gigantic-- and there's still room for more plants on it, but I'm trying to restrain myself!

My house is pretty damp, even with the forced air heat. I think that helps keep the miteys at bay. Plus, I've given up entirely on trying to grow some of the plants that always give me trouble-- particularly arabian jasmine and tropical hibiscus. I swear, arabian jasmine will attract every spider mite in a 100 mile radius. It's a shame, because I think the fragrance is divine and in a south window it will bloom off and on all winter. But, I just don't think it's even worth it to try anymore.

My biggest trouble right now is with some Thai caladiums that I'm trying to winter over indoors. They're very droopy and unhappy. I'm thinking about setting them on a heat mat for a while to see if they perk up.

Here is one of my all time favorite house plants in bloom-- Passiflora citrina. It blooms all winter long and grows like crazy in a western exposure.