The House & Garden Plants Thread - The Bear and Badger

equinox_code

Maybe if this thread also includes garden plants I won't be the only one posting in it? I guess we'll find out...

Anyway, at age 36 i didn't expect to ever find myself captivated by a new hobby. But here i am, suddenly obsessed with plants. Like many others, this started in lockdown; the perfect opportunity to work on my living space. The therapeutic benefits of channeling my focus onto something like this has really taken me by surprise. There has really been a quite dramatic reduction in the frequency of intrusive thoughts that had been weighing down my mood. I suspect a lot of this comes from the nurturing, but there is also a lot of pleasure to be taken just from figuring out the optimum placement for the plant's health that also adds to your room's aesthetic. I'm quite happy with the balance i have now

This time last year I had just 3 plants. I now have 35. Best of all, I've spent relatively little getting to this point. Excluding my first 3 plants (which were all from a shop and expensive) my total spend is just a little over 100 euros. It's amazing what you can get super cheap- or even for free- with a little persistence. eBay is definitely the place to find the best deals.

The most expensive of my purchases was the large leafed monstera you can see on the left in the pic above. It cost me 20 euros. Having been overwatered somewhat it's not in perfect health, but having seen how spectacular the mother plant was i couldn't resist. I find myself quite excited to see how it will look this time next year, after a good spring and summer of growth.

I'm really happy with my setup right now. I recently got my growlight in place to give my younger and more fragile plants the brightness they need over the winter months, and in the following days I will be getting a humidifier; an early birthday present from my girlfriend which will help keep my existing plants in good health. Moreover, it will also dramnatically expand the range of plants i'm able to keep. This time next year i hope to be in a position where i can exchange cuttings with other collectors, allowing me to indefinitely expand my collection for free.

For anyone looking to get started (really do it, this is honestly great) my tips are as follows:

- It sounds quite obvious, but don't get plants unless you can give them the conditions they need. No amount of care, attention nor ambition can compensate for a lack of humidity and direct sunlight, if that's what the plant needs.
- There are certain types of plants you simply will not find in shops, most notably mature monsteras/kentia palms etc as I presume it isnt a very viable business model to have a plant for 10 years or more before selling it. So if you want something with huge dark leaves you need to check eBay frequently. The best times for cheap plants are 08:00 - 09:00 and 12:00 - 13:00 on weekdays, while most free plants are listed 09:00 - 12:00 on Saturdays and Sundays. Keep in mind that the really great deals get picked up super fast. If the listing is 5 mins old you almost certainly wont be the first to write.
- Diseases and pests are much more common in plants found on ebay. So give any plant a thorough check before handing over any cash. You really need to flick through the soil and check under the leaves for bugs. I had a brief spider mite problem with a palm i picked up some months ago and it's really not worth the hassle of bringing those cunts into your home.
- Better to underwater than overwater!

equinox_code

My plant hospital. It's actually working so far. All these little ones were in decline but after a week under the lights there's a noticeable improvement in their health. Leaves no longer curling or drooping etc.

Kow

I harvested my Padrón pepper plants yesterday. I got 4 peppers. Hardly worth it but I'll do them better next year as I planted them arseways this time around. At least I know they thrive with little attention. They tasted great too.

Blocks100

equinox_code

It's strange for me to go from 0 to 100 interest in something like this. Last year I really couldn't see the appeal of growing ones own food etc but now I really hope to be in a position to do this too someday.

Dinostar77

I want an indoor lime plant and a lemon plant. Also a bonsai tree. Where i will put them i have no idea, but i will buy them eventually.

Unlikely

I used to have a bonsai tree. Used to.

yourfavouriteuncle

equinox_code wrote:

It's strange for me to go from 0 to 100 interest in something like this. Last year I really couldn't see the appeal of growing ones own food etc but now I really hope to be in a position to do this too someday.

I’ve put my name down for an allotment plot today for this very thing. My gardens at home are too pretty for large scale fruit and veg but i really want to start. It’s a great feeling growing anything from seed but edible stuff even more so. Really though, I just mainly want to bring my own sprouts to the table one Christmas.

yourfavouriteuncle

We’re also just finishing design detailing on a full size kitchen garden that we’re due to build in the new year and that got me in the mood too.

yourfavouriteuncle

Yoinks, double post.

Ed_Flanders

I'm growing potatoes in a couple of spare pots. They're coming up wonderfully and I think they'll be ready to harvest in a few weeks. It's been super easy so far; the only thing you need to do is add a bit of dirt as they grow.

stonechalice

I've had my Bonsai for over ten years now. Really like what you've done there Noxy. You've got loads on the go!!

poprock

yourfavouriteuncle wrote:

We’re also just finishing design detailing on a full size kitchen garden that we’re due to build in the new year and that got me in the mood too.

I’m going to get right into growing for the kitchen in the new year. Kinda forced into it because there’s a mature setup at our new house, but it’s something I really want to maintain and use.

I guess I’ll want to transition the garden from what’s already grown there over to fruit and veg I will use myself in cooking. Might be daft things like getting rid of the cabbage plants (because I don’t like cabbage much) and putting more carrots and parsnips in the ground instead, or maybe some more drastic changes like building planters nearer the house for raised beds of herbs in easy reach. I dunno.

I do know that I’ve zero knowledge or experience and I’m taking on a fucking massive garden space. Feels like quite a responsibility.

We’ve got the garden itself, a wildflower meadow, a small strip of woodland, a greenhouse and a polytunnel. I know there’s a sizeable compost heap hidden in the woodland bit, and a patch of blackberry (or blackcurrant mayber?) bushes that I fancy harvesting to flavour booze with.

First job will be learning how to bring it all back to life after the winter, I suppose.

The house has a lot of light, so I’m hoping that houseplants will be easier to look after than they have been in our (quite dark) flat. Quite fancy the idea of wee lemon and lime trees living in a sunbeam on the mezzanine, if we can get that to work.

Funkstain

Yo Uncle - we recently got our garden landscaped and have enjoyed it this summer with some nice flowers and fruits. Now it all needs some care and prep for winter: serious pruning, feeding, all that shit. And the lawn needs some love, in E London it's all clay so can easily get waterlogged etc.

ANYWAY wanted to pay an expert to come and help us out, show me the ropes so I can do the basics myself without killing everything. How do I find one? All the gardeners online seem to want to lawn only... As I said NE London, and happy to pay for someone at least quarterly

ShabbyMcCrabby

The house I live in has bricked up planters at the back of the yard which I had just let get overrun by grass and whatever. Just recently decided to utilise the space and pull up all the grass (hard work!) and put in some seeds to grow some fruit and veg. Amazing how quick the seedlings have started to poke through! Looks like we'll have at least one thing to eat at some point. We've put in climbing beans, strawberries, watermelon (might need some work keeping the plant in check!), carrots and edible flowers. Here's some of the flower seedling coming up!

equinox_code

Nice one. I have yet to attempt growing anything from seed although it doesn't seem like many people are doing this with house plants. Would love to some day have a garden space to work with.

Yesterday I saw a huge monstera cutting for sale. 12 giant leaves, 30 euro asking price. I somehow managed to haggle him down to 15 euro, which is really a ridiculous price. I didn't have pot big enough to accommodate it so I spent my evening butchering the stem into more managable pieces, which I have left in various vases/ pots of water in the hope some roots will sprout. If I can nurture these over the next months my hope is to sell them in spring time, if I haven't grown too attached to part with them.

I actually don't need curtains anymore...

ShabbyMcCrabby

I also have some star jasmine growing against the garage wall and lavender bushes that are literally outgrowing the rotten wood of their planter box.

I got these seeds from a nursery known for maintaining good quality heritage seeds so they've all sprouted really fast and seem to be doing well. We got the heirloom carrot collection so they should be all different colours and types!

equinox_code

Finally got my humidifier. Quite excited to see the health and happiness of my collection steadily improve. Dont think my cactus will like it, but fuck it, he was a freebie and way off my priorities.

Next priority is to eventually build some shelving to the left and right of my window, and make some makrame hangers for future acquisitions. I have a theory that you can never have too many hanging plants, and i'd like to put it to the test.

ShabbyMcCrabby

Nice one. I think I'm gonna get some devils ivy to drape over a blank wall in my kitchen.

I'm also wondering if I need to be controlling my orchid more and snipping some of this away but I am also excited to see what it looks like with all these flowers!
Anyone have orchid experience?

Unlikely

My orchid says good morning. Need to trim off the dead bit but it flowered well this year.

Kow

My orchid says uuurrgh...

Unlikely

That's just sticks.

equinox_code

You get that from Wish?

My local plant shop sells these orchids

I don't think flowers fit the look i'm going for with my room but i do really like these leaves

Nina

Got some questions as I clearly suck at growing things.

We have this whiskey barrel thing filled with concrete and a pole:

And I wanted to plant some things in there. It does receive sun for most of the day, although there are some more shaded moments now the sun is low.

What would go in there nicely? I was thinking succulents or cactus? It can't be anything that has roots that will go too deep.

That was Question 1.

Question 2 is related to this stretch of land that I can do with what I want:

Everything in the back is pretty much dying (lavender, tomatillos, basil, jalapeno, arbol chillies), the tomatoes are kinda holding on but the wind is rough on them, lots of dead leaves, but there's also new ones coming.
Then it's mainly herbs and nasturtiums. None of them are really dying, but none of them are really growing either.

So I'm thinking of putting most of the herbs back in pots (will also make it easier to take them with me when we move again) and rethink my little stretch. It's way more shady in winter than expected, doesn't really get any sun now near ground level. You can just see some leaves catching sun of the trees that were there already.

Was thinking of putting some more bush / flower things there instead of edible things. Since most of the edible things have been eaten by rabbits or squirrels anyway. What would be good for that area? It doesn't really get below 0 here at night, but there will be a few nights that are close, so I expect waiting till spring will be better anyway?

I'm gonna go to the garden center end of the week, to pick up some Christmas looking plants for inside, so anything that I can grab for outside as well is a nice bonus.

yourfavouriteuncle

Q1. Firstly doesn’t that barrel fill up with water when it rains? If so then cactus and/or succulents probably aren’t the best bet. As ever with you though I’m not quite sure of the weather and climate out there. If it never rains then something like that should be fine.

Q2. It certainly looks a bit like the plants aren’t getting enough direct sunlight and the best bit of advice i could give is to put the right plant in the right place. Strangely people like to pretend that their gardens are in full sun all year round and then wonder why their plants always end up looking so shitty. I’m not sure how things work out in California but nurseries tend to be better stocked and staffed by more informed people than garden centres so you’d stand more chance of getting good stuff that suits your location from somewhere like that. If you’ve only access to a garden centre then have a look on the label of any plants you like and look for ones that will thrive in part sun. I’m going to have a bit of a read up now on horticulture out in the states and see if i cant offer you something a little more specific with plant choices and the like. Would be a bit pointless me recommending plants for an English setting that are stupidly hard to come by out there.

Nina

yourfavouriteuncle wrote:

Q1. Firstly doesn’t that barrel fill up with water when it rains? If so then cactus and/or succulents probably aren’t the best bet. As ever with you though I’m not quite sure of the weather and climate out there. If it never rains then something like that should be fine.

Yeah the rain here is not much to talk about. We will get some, but B was gonna drill a few holes in there for drainage anyway.

yourfavouriteuncle wrote:

Q2. It certainly looks a bit like the plants aren’t getting enough direct sunlight and the best bit of advice i could give is to put the right plant in the right place. Strangely people like to pretend that their gardens are in full sun all year round and then wonder why their plants always end up looking so shitty. I’m not sure how things work out in California but nurseries tend to be better stocked and staffed by more informed people than garden centres so you’d stand more chance of getting good stuff that suits your location from somewhere like that. If you’ve only access to a garden centre then have a look on the label of any plants you like and look for ones that will thrive in part sun. I’m going to have a bit of a read up now on horticulture out in the states and see if i cant offer you something a little more specific with plant choices and the like. Would be a bit pointless me recommending plants for an English setting that are stupidly hard to come by out there.

Yeah I really didn't think the sunlight thing through very well. We moved in end of July, so this is the first time I'm seeing how the sun goes. Could have predicted it if I actually thought about it.

This is the greenery I can go to. It's a bit hit and miss with the helpfulness of people there, some of them had quite a "but you should know this" vibe in their answers. It was pretty busy so maybe it was just that.
I'm in zone 10a according to the newest map (2012), 9b according to the 1990 map according to the second google hit I clicked on. If that helps.
I was hoping to get something that would attract birds / bees, but might have enough ground cover for the lizards to hide.
Really appreciate you wanting to have a look. I enjoy working in the garden, but feel very clueless about it all.

The soil here is also pretty shit, according to the neigbours and anyone you ask about it.

edit, o I see the nursery site shows what's good to grow per zipcode, it' 92691 if you're interested in having a look.

yourfavouriteuncle

I’m just about heading to bed right now but if I get time over the next few days I’ll have a look through what you can grow and what you should be able to easily get. How long is the bed/border just out of interest?

Nina

No hurry, appreciate the thought already!

It's 24 feet from the back towards the first tree you see there, with the light next to it (so about 7.3 meters) and then it's closing in on 30 all the way to the end, but the plant I have there is doing ok and was thinking of getting a second one (this one was actually recommended by a nursery person)
It's about 2,5 feet deep, so 75 cm's. There's a concrete ridge against the wall that's not completely straight.

Was also looking online a bit, but please don't recommend $400,- + plants! It's very likely we won't be here for more than 2 years, and while I don't mind spending a little to entertain myself in the garden for that time, I'm not looking to make us broke.

ShabbyMcCrabby

Orchid doing well! Is it the style of orchid that defines how tall it grows or am I supposed to do something to get it to be tall?

Garden is doing well too. Have had a few days of sunshine and rain so it's been cool to see how quick stuff can grow. Especially the beans.

Made the first time grower error of planting the beans too far away from the trellis and with the trellis leaning back as I thought it would make it more stable and reduce the risk of it falling forward but it means I have to do a lot of tendril guidance each day.

yourfavouriteuncle

That orchid is beautiful.

Lord_Griff

Unlikely wrote:

I used to have a bonsai tree. Used to.

I also had a Bonsai tree.

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