MANAGEMENT OF HOUSE PLANTS

There are some general rules that will apply to taking care of all
plants in the house; then there are several groups, the different sorts
in which are handled more or less alike; and lastly there are the
individual requirements of the plants in the several groups to be
considered.

Information about all these varieties, as given in the usual way,
results in a more or less confusing mass of detail. It is for the
purpose of getting this information into as plain a form as possible
that the instructions in the first chapters of this book have been given
in such detail; and those instructions should be used in conjunction
with the following pages. The beginner cannot expect to fully comprehend
the suggestions given until the plain everyday operations of plant
growing have become familiar.

Much of what has been said in the previous pages has borne upon the
several points of managing plants successfully in the house. It will be
of use, however, to have those various suggestions brought together in
condensed form.

In the first place it must be remembered that at best it is hard to get
conditions in the living-room that will be suitable for the healthy
growth of plants. Every effort should be made to prepare a place for
them in which such conditions may be made as nearly ideal as possible:
plenty of light, evenly regulated temperature; moisture in the air.

For most house plants the temperature should be 50 to 55 at night and 65
to 75 during the day. An occasional night temperature of 45 or even 40
will not do great harm but if reached frequently will check the growth
of the plants.

Air should be given every day when the temperature of the room will not
be too greatly lowered thereby. Avoid direct drafts, as sudden chills
are apt to produce bad results. Even on very cold days, fresh air may be
let in indirectly, through a window open in an adjoining room or through
a hall. It is better, when possible, to give a little ventilation during
an hour or two, than to rush too sudden a lowering of the temperature by
trying to do it all in fifteen minutes.

The amount of water which should be given will depend both upon the
plant and upon the season. During the dull days of winter and during the
"resting season" of all plants, very little water will be required. It
should be given on bright mornings. During early fall and late spring,
when the pots or boxes dry out very rapidly, water in the evening. In
either case, however, withhold water until the soil is beginning to get
on the "dry side" and then water thoroughly. Water should be given until
it runs down through into the saucers but should not be allowed to
remain there.

Sometimes it will be beneficial to moisten the foliage of plants without
wetting the soil. Just after repotting and in fighting plant lice, red
spider and other insect enemies (see Chapter XVII) this treatment will
be necessary. A fine-rose spray on the watering-can may be used but a
rubber plant-sprinkler costing about sixty-five cents, will be very much
better, as with it the water will be applied in a finer spray with a
great deal more force and to either the upper or under surface of the
leaves--a point of great importance.

Plants growing in windows, where the light strikes them only, or mostly,
from one side, should be frequently turned to prevent their growing
one-sided.

Also do not hesitate to use knife, scissors and fingers in keeping them
symmetrical and shapely. One of the greatest mistakes that amateurs make
is in being afraid to cut an ungainly or half leafless branch. Instead
of injuring a plant, such pruning frequently is an actual benefit.

If neglected, dust will quickly gather on the leaves and clog their
pores, and as the plants have no way of breathing but through their
leaves, you can see what the result must be. Syringing, mentioned
above, will help. They should also be wiped clean with a soft dry cloth,
especially such plants as palms, rubbers, Rex begonias. Do _not_ use
olive oil or any other sticky substance on the cloth. Always remove at
once any broken, dead or diseased leaf or flower. Do not let flowering
plants go to seed: nothing else will so quickly bring the blooming
period to a close.

Do not try to force your plants into continuous growth. Almost without
exception they demand a period of rest, and if you do not allow them to
take it when nature suggests, they will take it themselves when you do
not want them to. The natural rest period is during the winter. During
this time a _very_ little water will do and no repotting or manuring
should be attempted.

It is, however, desirable in some cases, as with many of the flowering
plants, to change the season bloom, as we want their beauty during the
winter. In such cases they should be _made_ to rest during the summer,
by withholding water and keeping them disbudded.

Many beginners get the idea that as soon as any plant has filled its pot
with roots it must be immediately shifted to a larger one. While this is
as a rule true with small plants, being grown on, it is not at all true
of mature plants, especially those wanted to bloom in the house. When a
shift has been given, at the beginning of the growing period, no
further change should be necessary during the winter. It will, however,
be well, if not imperative, to furnish food in the form of liquid
manures when the soil in the pot has become filled with roots. It should
be applied from one to three times a week--the former being sufficient
for a plant showing ordinary growth.

All the animal manures, cow, horse, sheep, hen, etc.,--are good to use
in this way, but cow manure is the safest and best. Place three or four
inches of half-rotted manure in a galvanized iron pail, fill with water,
and after standing a few hours it will be ready for use. The pail can be
refilled. As long as the liquid becomes the color of weak tea it will be
strong enough to use. Give from a gill to a pint at each application to
a six-or eight-inch pot. The other manures should not be made quite so
strong. For liquid chemicals see page 19 or mix up the following: 5 lbs.
nitrate of soda, 3 of nitrate of potash and 2 of phosphate of ammonia,
and use 1 oz. of the mixture dissolved in five or six gallons of water.

REPOTTING

In the course of a week or two, if a plant is knocked out, the small
white roots may be seen coming through the ball of earth and beginning
to curl around the outside of it. The time for repotting the young
plants will have been reached when these roots have made a thick network
around the ball of earth, but before they become brown and woody; that
is, while they are still white and succulent--"working roots," as the
florists term them.

[Illustration: Potted cuttings ready for shifting to a larger pot. From
left to right, ivy geranium, snapdragon, geranium and dusty miller]

[Illustration: Some plants, like Rex begonia, will strike root from
their leaves if perforated with a knife into damp sand]

[Illustration: In all potted plants an important detail is the placing
of rough drainage material, such as broken pieces of pot, charcoal,
ashes, etc., at the bottom, to prevent moisture from settling in the
soil and souring it]

The shift, as a general rule, should be to a pot only one size larger,
that is, from a three to a four, or a four to a five.

Remove the plant from the old pot by holding the stem of the plant
between the index and middle finger of the left hand, and with the right
inverting the pot and rapping the edge of the rim sharply against the
edge of the bench or table.

Before putting the plant into the new pot, remove the top half inch of
soil and gently loosen up the lower half of the ball of roots, if it is
firmly matted.

Put soil in the bottom of the pot to such a depth that when the ball of
roots is covered with half an inch or so of new soil, the surface
thereof will still be about half an inch below the rim of the pot. Hold
the plant in place with the left hand, and with the right fill in around
it, making the soil firm as before. Water and care is the same as after
the first potting.

Pots four inches or over in size should be crocked to make certain of
sufficient drainage. The best material to use is broken charcoal, in
pieces one-half to an inch in diameter. Pieces of broken pots, cinders
or rough pebbles will do. Be sure that the drainage hole is not covered;
if pieces of pots are used, put the concave side down over the hole, as
illustrated facing page 41. The depth of the drainage material, or
crocking, will be from half an inch to three inches, according to the
size of the pot. Over this rough material put a little screenings, leaf
mould or sphagnum moss, to prevent the soil's washing down into it. Then
fill in with soil and pot in the regular way.

The time for repotting house plants is at the beginning of their growing
season. It varies, of course, with the different kinds. The great
majority, however, start into new growth in the spring and should be
repotted from the middle of March to the middle of May. Plants kept
through the winter for stock plants are usually started up and repotted
early in February to induce the abundant new growth that furnishes
cuttings. The method of repotting will depend on the nature of the
plant. Soft-wooded plants, like geraniums, are put in in the ordinary
way and firmed with the fingers. The palms do best with the new soil
more firmly packed about the old ball of roots. Hard-wooded plants with
very fine roots, like the azaleas, should have the soil rammed down
firmly about the old ball; for which purpose it is necessary to use a
blunt, flat piece of wood, of convenient size. In repotting such
plants, it is well to let the ball of roots soak several minutes in a
pail of water before putting into the new pot. If very densely matted,
make several holes in it with a spike, working it around, and leave the
soil a little lower at the center of the pot to induce the water to run
down through the root ball.

Plants that have been crocked in the old pots should have this material
removed, if possible, before going into their new quarters.

Plants in large pots often use up all the plant food available, and
where they cannot be given still larger pots become quite a problem.
They are usually handsome specimens which one does not like to lose.
Remove such a plant from its pot and carefully _wash_ all the soil from
the roots; clean the pot and carefully repot in fresh soil in the same
pot. The result will be extremely satisfactory.

Until one has become proficient in the art of potting, it will pay well
to practice with every plant and cutting that may be had. If you have
mistakes to make, make them with these, so that your favorite plants may
be handled safely.

STARTING PLANTS FROM CUTTINGS

While many plants are best started from seed, as described in the
preceding chapter, there are many which cannot be so reproduced;
especially named varieties which will not come true from seeds, but
revert to older and inferior types.

Also it very frequently happens that one has a choice plant of some sort
of which the seed is not to be obtained, and in this case also it
becomes necessary to reproduce the plant in some other way.

Where large numbers of plants are to be started, and they may be had
from seed, that is usually the best way in which to work up a supply:
but where only a few are wanted, as for house plants or use in a small
garden, propagation by cuttings is the quickest and most satisfactory
method. Practically all of the house plants, including most of those
which can be started from seed, may be increased in this way.

The matter of first importance, when starting plants by this system, is
to have strong, healthy cuttings of the right degree of hardiness. Take
your cuttings only from plants that are in full vigor, and growing
strongly. They should be taken from what is termed "new growth," that is
the terminal portions of shoots, which have not yet become old and hard.
The proper condition of the wood may be determined by the following
test: if the stem is bent between the fingers it should snap (like a
green bean); if it bends and doubles without breaking it is either too
old and will not readily root, or too soft and will be almost sure to
wilt or rot.

The cutting should be from two to four inches long, according to the
plant and variety to be propagated. It should be cut off slant-wise, as
this will assist in its being pushed firmly down into the cutting box.
It may be cut either near, or between a joint or eye--with the exception
of a few plants, noted later. The lower leaves should be taken off
clean; those remaining, if large, shortened back, as shown in the
illustration facing page 29. Then the plant will not be so likely to
wilt.

If the cuttings cannot be put in the propagating medium immediately
after being made; keep them in the shade, and if necessary sprinkle to
prevent wilting. I once obtained a batch of chrysanthemum cuttings from
a brother florist who said that they were so badly wilted that they
could never be rooted. I immersed them all in water for several hours,
which revived them, and had the satisfaction of rooting almost every
one.