No Excuse Plant Care - Everyone Has A Green Thumb

By: Brad Lelliot

House plants are just like people, it's always easier and much better for all involved to prevent disease than cure the patient. Complete volumes of technical books have been written with studies focused on plant diseases and insects.

If you venture into the world of indoor house plants the amount, which fall prey to death by disease is small when compared to the "disease of neglect" or lack of correct plant care information when caring for many varieties of plants. This article serves as a basic guidepost on the road to success with your indoor house plants.

Two types of plant neglect cause failure with indoor plants. Neglect or total lack of plant knowledge causing over care and the other is the total disregard in paying any attention to the plants in the house. Now I've purposely neglected plants being tested to see how tough they were. In fact, this neglect helped discover weakness in producing the houseplant commercially.

To succeed with plants indoors it's important to provide them an environment and atmosphere for them to flourish. This means providing water, light, and pruning as needed, and overall, good living conditions which include the correct pot size for the plant. These living conditions also include temperatures the plant thrives in, humidity, and a place the plant can establish itself indoors.

Houseplants found in most garden centers are not like kids; they don't need daily monitoring and supervision. Indoor foliage varieties requiring minimal care and weeks between watering include Aglaonemas of which many new varieties have been introduced, Bromeliads with many choices as well, Sansevieria, cactus and succulents all make up a diverse but quick shopping list.

However, most plants you'll have in your home will need some degree of care. Care which is easy, inexpensive to give, and pays enormous dividends in both looks and the enjoyment plants can give.

A little education goes a long way with houseplants. Often times plant failure occurs simply from the fact the plant may not be suited to the environment. For example, a Ficus tree without enough light is doomed to failure. It will always look thin and weak. Yet a Dracaena fragrans will thrive or better yet a Kentia Palm will survive with only reflected light. Some plants may demand a south facing window to capture as much light as possible.

Most indoor plants to survive, can adapt to a wide variety of growing conditions and environments. Today's modern home may include more technology advances but was not designed for house plants. Builders and architects incorporated modern conveniences and may have included some plant shelves but did not take into account the light needed to keep the plants alive! Even if your house was not designed for plants, a cactus and fern can still call the same room home. However, for that to happen plant selection must be taken into account and combined with the environment to make the best match for both room and plant. That's the easiest way to bring out the green thumb hiding inside of everyone.

Article Source: http://www.retirementlivingarticledirectory.com

The wide variety of house plants can be enjoyed by everyone. Learning how to care for house plants is child's play and you can get started at anytime.

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