Is it just me???

I'm getting a little lazy with my plants as the days get shorter and the weather gets cooler.. What is wrong with me?

I'm not neglecting them... but I am a little bored.. surely when the spring arrives, I will be ready to play some more....

Am I alone?

LOL Tracey ... nope, you are not alone! This time of year my plants are subjected to neglect but don't seem to be suffering, I think they like being left alone for awhile. ^_^

It's the winter doldrums. This time of year most of my house plants get moved into an upstairs room to make space for the tree and holiday entertaining. They are pretty crowded up there and hard to care for. They always suffer some neglect and I seem to have trouble mustering the strength or interest to move them back down. Holly

Whew!! I thought I was 'losing it'...

Thanks. I hope you are all enjoying your holidays..

I thought it was just me. I was thinking of planting my small starter plants into big group planters so I don't have so many pots to check and less frequent watering, lol. I was picturing the assortment of plants that would go into it and it would work out for a while until they filled in a little. I monstera can climb a small hibiscus, right? Just kidding.

I'm just the opposite! Summer is the time I neglect my houseplants, because I'm busy with outdoor activities. In winter, I cherish my 200 potted treasures, and give them daily attention.

Incidentally, the days are not getting shorter, because we've passed the winter solstice. In fact, today was two minutes longer than yesterday! We may not notice this slight change, but our houseplants surely do!

I have the opposite problem. All summer long I have so much going on in the gardens and beds, + all the containers and bonsai trees that require soo much attention .... by the time I put the gardens to bed in the fall I'm ready for a little break. After a month or two with not much to do except tend the tropical trees & other stuff under lights in the basement, I'm all fired up and looking for things to do - antsy for spring to arrive. ;o)

Al

I guess I am more worried about forgetting a small plant whereas a larger planter is easier to check, and can take more abuse. I'm happy to report that I have penisetum rubrum grass blooming, lol. I saw some buds on geraniums, too. I'm glad they are getting enough light.

Wintergardener, Your name really says it all. : )

I'm glad to know that its just a little lull and I will 'snap back' soon.

I have outdoor plants but most of them are pretty self sufficient. -- I don't have anything in the ground close to tender except for two burgandy spires cordylines that I'm having to baby.. Because I'm a zone (and maybe a half) off its hardiness, I have taken cardboard boxes and wrapped them well with plastic to cover them when we are getting close to the freezing level.

One night I was sick and didn't go out to cover them.. I asked hubby what the low temps were expected to be.. and he said the weather guy sd mid to low 40's.. so I didn't drag myself out there... Turns out that was the thickest sheet of ice on my windshield the next morning that we have had yet, to date this year. -- My cordylines seemed to have weathered it fine.. they still look good. I don't see any damage, but I have been sure to cover them when it seems needed.

Everything else I own are either houseplants or patio plants.. which for the time being are also house plants. I love my patio plants, but I think I have gotten a little frusterated with ALL of them in the house.. I really need a greenhouse. We were driving to my Mom's for Christmas Eve, and saw a place that I have never noticed before.. but they build/sell greenhouses.. I plan to check into it SOON... I want to have it up and ready for use BEFORE next fall. Hubby said if they only build commercial GH maybe he could talk them into building me a 1/2 GH, lol... We did see a smaller scale one.. so maybe they do.

Ahhhh, just imagine all the plants I will have next year if I have somewhere to put them besides in the house....

This message was edited Dec 27, 2009 7:26 AM

Daisy, We have been planing a GH for quite a long time now and were supposed to start one last summer. What happened to me last fall with GH dreams dancing in my head (I knew that I would have to overwinter them in the house as the GH wasn't to be built until spring) I took tons of cuttings and brought back quite a few tropicals from an end of season trip to Fl. It was a set up for disaster. Over crowded & bug infested just more than I could care for, really learned my lesson. This year I was much better got a handle on the bug issue as best as I could early, didn't bring in many cuttings and resisted the lovely Fl. plants on the fall trip. Ric had a pretty serious hand injury last spring so the GH didn't get started but I have high hopes for next year. I have a feeling that GH much like ponds are never big enough and it won't take long to fill one up. LOL Holly

HollyAnn and daisylovn, I hope you get your GH. I am starting to want one, but I am just afraid it will be too hard to keep warm here without costing a mint. I can't spend a mint on my hobby without feeling really bad because something else needs the money more. So I think I am stuck with gardening in the house, and employing bigger planters to make that an easier proposition. I kind of have the same thing, though our clearance was end of season at Lowe's and they were/are bug infested and then I start cuttings that I can't throw away, I have to grow them, lol. I found bugs this year that I had forgotten existed since it's been so long since I found any. Anyway, I really feel for you. Daisy, maybe it is just a small case of too much of a good thing. By the way, the plants really don't mind if you ignore them a little. I have wintered over plants for years with infrequent watering, and just too busy to pick at them, so it will be alright.

Thanks for the encouragement.. I'm sure it will all work out...

My own houseplants were terribly neglected from Thanksgiving until just before Christmas. I'd been concentrating on what we had at work, and by the time I'd come home in the afternoon or evening, the last thing I wanted to do was think about plants. They finally told me it was costing them more to have me keep the 50% off plants alive than to just let them (and therefore, me) go. I was immediately freed to care for my own, but lost a few including some bougainvilleas, my Key Lime and a few questionable orchids. What's worse are the mealy bugs but I have the problem under control. I am fortunate to have an attached, heated sun room where I keep the tropicals and can control the heat and humidity. On sunny days, I can open the doors to let the moist air in the family room and, during summer, the skylights are opened to keep it cooler. We have ceiling fans running to circulate the air and it's so much better than having a greenhouse since it's a dual (or triple) purpose room. It has its own heating zone which helps immensely. The only time I worry is when we lose power and that happens more often than you'd think, but we do have a generator. The cacti and succulents are in the living room where they have a western exposure and drier air. The only problem my plants seem to have (beyond the mealy bugs) is me! I keep hoping they don't want me back at work until spring planting season so I can continue the remedial care to my poor babies!

I haven't seen mealy bugs in years. Now this year I have them. I saw them on some bargain orchids first and then a couple other new plants (along with millipedes, ew yuk). I'll keep after them when I see them, but come spring, they are toast when I move my plants outside and can spray neem by the gallon. Hope it works, anyway.

What I am doing is wiping the plants with neem solution by using a sponge paint brush and also one of those small, angled, white bristled brushes. This way, I can remove the pests and apply the neem without spraying. The only problem may be if there are root mealies. I like taking each plant and inspecting while I water and groom. And I have well over 100 orchids, plus all the others! This is why I feel so guilty for the neglect! Knock wood: at least I haven't seen any spider mites.....

Mine seem to be holding their own and they will be back down stairs as soon as the New Year festivities are over.
mamasita, Do you water with a neem mixture? My bottle says you can use it as a drench and I do that from time to time. I still see some signs of a couple of nasties but I am keeping on top of them and doing much better than last year.

I'll pop the plants out of their pots to check for them first. No sense using any more pesticides than necessary. Just hate those nasty creatures!