Plant Profile - Lipstick Plant

The lipstick plant (Aeschynanthus radicans) is an unusual plant that you don't normally find among the common plants in garden centers. 

I'm not sure why it's not more commonly sold, it's an easy to care for blooming plant that makes a fantastic houseplant.







The blooms on this plant are very unique; as they open, they resemble a tube of lipstick - hence the common name of this plant.  

Bloom looks like a tube of lipstick

The lipstick plant prefers bright, indirect sunlight. Mine thrives near a south facing window in my living room, where it gets filtered sunlight all year long.

It prefers to have it's soil kept on the dry side; ideally the soil should stay lightly moist and not completely dried out. However, it is tolerant of the soil drying out between waterings. 

If left dried out for too long, the leaves will start to turn brown and drop off. It's best to water it less in the winter than in the summer. Be certain to always check the soil before you water it to avoid overwatering. This plant likes high humidity, so a bathroom or kitchen would make a great home.

Blooms just starting to open

The lipstick plant generally blooms during the late summer and early fall. 

Mine continues to blooms on and off all winter. 

In mid to late summer, I fertilize it with time release fertilizer granules for flowering plants. 

It will bloom better if it's root bound. Allow the plant to have a rest period once it's done blooming.

Here are a few more tips to help you get the most from your lipstick plant:

• If you put this plant outside during the summer, it's best to keep it out of direct sun, which can burn the foliage.
• Generally, the plant will not need to be trimmed; but if you must trim it, the best time to do so is right after it's done blooming.
• This plant looks beautiful in a hanging basket, or cascading on a pillar or shelf.
  
• Do not overwater this plant!
• It's fairly easy to propagate a lipstick plant by taking hard wood cuttings and placing them in a propagation box for several weeks

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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2010 Garden Reflection

It's cold outside here in Minnesota and starting to feel like winter. Now that all of my fall chores are done and everything is ready for the winter, I finally have time to relax and reflect on this years gardens

Tropical garden (front) and perennial garden (back)

I like to think of gardening as a learning experience.

Every time I make a mistake, I learn from it and try to be better the next summer.

I know that some things are in my control and others are not.

Each year the gardens will be different, even if I was able to do things exactly the same way.

Center perennial garden

So, this time of year, I like to take some time to think about the things that worked well in my garden this summer, and the things that didn't work so well...



What Worked Well:

• Keeping the gardens tidy by cleaning up as plants became overgrown. The gardens looked much nicer and it made my fall garden cleanup easier too.

• Amending the soil with compost!! The more I compost, the more I reap the rewards!

• Creating a large compost bin rather than two smaller ones. It was much easier to turn the compost and the compost seemed to break down faster. 

• Growing cucumbers on a trellis was great, next year I'll do that with all of them!

• Adding 1500 ladybugs to my yard was worth the effort!! I noticed I had less pests in the gardens this summer.

• Planting the peas early (April 15th), and in partial shade. I had the best pea harvest ever this year. In previous years, I planted them way too late, they hate hot weather.

• Creating a dedicated area for my annuals rather than trying to cram them all into the perennial gardens. I always start a lot of annuals from seed and having a dedicated annual garden took the stress out of trying to figure out where to plant them all.

 

Large perennial garden

What Didn't Work So Well:

• I started a bunch of kinds of peppers from seed and ended up planting them all, and they were way too close together. I think this had a negative impact on my pepper crop. Next year I will thin out the seedlings better.

• Tomatoes from seed. This is the second year I've tried growing my tomatoes from seed and I haven't had great results. Our growing season is too short to start tomatoes from seed. Next year I will spend the money on tomato plants in the spring rather than starting them from seed again.

• Broccoli and cauliflower. Although I had a decent broccoli harvest this year, it wasn't the best. Also, I didn't get any mature heads of cauliflower this year. I think I made the same mistake as I did with the peppers, I planted too many seedlings and they were too close together. Next year I will thin them out more

• Cold Frame. I built a cold frame a few years back and I still can't figure out how to use it. I tried using it again this spring and fried the plants again. This winter I plan to do more research on the proper way to use a cold frame. I'll give it one more year and if I can't figure it out, I will get rid of it.

Vegetable garden

All in all, I am happy with the way the gardens performed this summer. I'm glad that my list of successes is longer than the list of things I need to try differently for next year. Please feel free to give me some advice and/or share your successes and areas for improvement in your gardens this year.

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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Where Do Houseplant Pests Come From?

Succulents on window ledge

If you're like me and have a bunch of plants that you overwinter indoors, then you've probably already had to deal with pests on some of your plants.

You could have a plant for several years and never notice any pests on it, only to notice one day that it's completely infested with spider mites or mealy bugs, which seem to have appeared from nowhere.

But where do they come from?

One obvious place that pests can get onto your houseplants is from putting your plants outside in the summer.

But this isn't the only way that houseplants can become infested. Even if all of your houseplants stay inside year round, they can still have pest problems.

So where do they come from?

There are several ways houseplant pests can get into your house and onto your houseplants...

Fruits and Vegetables: This summer, I harvested some peppers from the garden and there were still a few leaves attached to the stems. After I brought them into the house, I noticed there were aphids on the leaves. I immediately killed them, hopefully I got them all and they won't show up on my nearby houseplants.

Earlier this spring, I noticed mealy bugs on the bottom of a bunch of bananas I bought at the grocery store. The bananas were sitting on the counter for a few days, I hope none of them left the bananas before I discovered them! Now I check all of the bananas before I bring home.

Doors and Windows: Houseplant pests, like soil gnats and spider mites can easily come through the screens of open windows in the summer.

Potting Soil: Some houseplant pests lay their eggs in potting soil.

Bags of potting soil

I've seen soil gnats flying around bags of potting soil at garden centers.

To keep your potting soil pest free, store it in an air tight container.

Pests can't live long without oxygen.

New Plants: Another common source of houseplant pests is bringing a new plant home. No matter where you find your plant, be sure to closely inspect it before you purchase it. Keep all new plants in isolation for a few weeks before allowing them close to your other plants.

Cut Flowers: Cut flowers is another possible carrier of pests. I bring cut flowers in from the garden throughout the summer, and have noticed aphids on them before.

Other Bugs: It sounds crazy, but bugs like ants are known to bring sap sucking pests like aphids and mealy bugs to a plant. The ants like to harvest the sweet dew that is created when these pests feast on your plants. Yuck! Make sure to keep an eye out for ants in your house.

Unfortunately these tiny pests are everywhere. So next time you wonder "how did this plant get bugs?" Think of all the ways this could have happened.

Pin It

Winterizing The Ponds

This weekend, I was busy winterizing my ponds. The water was starting to freeze which made the job a bit harder, but I got it done. 

Pond full of leaves

I have two small ponds on my property, both of them have hardy plants and goldfish living in them.



I leave both the plants and the fish in the ponds year round, which is much easier than overwintering them in the house.

Water Lily ready for dormancy

Every year, the fish and plants hibernate and survive the winter, but there are steps I need to take each fall to ensure they will live through our long winters.

The first thing I do is remove the pots containing the plants and cut the foliage on the plants all the way down to the root ball.

Dredging the pond, are any fish in there?

Next, I dredge the whole pond to remove as many of the leaves and other debris as I can.

This is an important step because as leaves and debris breakdown, they produce gases that can build up in the pond and kill the fish during the winter.

Be sure to closely inspect the contents of the net so as not to compost any of the fish.

Once I get most of the debris out of the pond, I put the plants on the bottom in the deepest part of the pond. Then I turn off the pump and remove the parts that stick above the water surface (so they won't get damaged by the ice) and leave the pump sitting on bottom.

Heater in pond

As a last step, I put my floating pond heater in the water. It's very important to keep a hole open in the ice during the winter.

Keeping an open area will allow the toxic gases to escape and oxygen to enter the pond water to keep the fish alive for the winter.

Keeping a hole in the ice will also prevent the pond from freezing to the bottom, which would kill both the plants and the fish.

Moving water will keep the pond from freezing over during the winter in mild climates; but here in MN, I need a heater for my ponds to keep a hole open in the ice.

Sometimes during extreme cold spells, the ponds will freeze over even with the heater. This is ok since it usually only lasts a few days and the hole will open up again.

Hole in ice and snow last January

Snow helps to keep the hole open since it adds a layer of insulation over the heater, keeping the water warmer during the winter.

If the pond has already frozen over, lay the heater on top of the ice, and eventually it will melt through and open a hole.

I learned the hard way to never pound on the ice to break open a hole because this could kill the fish (I killed three of my 4 year old fish one winter, I was so upset!!).

Fish swimming under the ice

Here is a picture of my fish swimming under a thin layer of ice.

Good night fish, see you next spring!

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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Repotting a Large Plant

This fall, I brought this large hibiscus tree inside to overwinter it in the house.

I am a softy when it comes to plants and I just can't bare letting them die by slowly freezing to death.

It was lush and beautiful and flowering profusely when I brought it in.




It was also very root bound and in desperate need of repotting...

but it was already too large for my house so I didn't want it to grow any larger.

Normally, when a potted plant becomes root bound, you would repot it into a larger pot.

Doing this will encourage the plant to grow larger.

But, if you have a plant that is already large and you don't it to grow any larger, there is a solution. You can trim the roots and repot it back into the same pot. This is what I chose to do with this hibiscus.

First I gave the foliage and branches of the plant a drastic trim.

Next, I used a knife to trim off a few inches all the way around the root ball.

Most of what I removed were small surface roots.

Then I filled the bottom of the pot with fresh potting soil and placed the root ball back in the pot.






Finally, I filled the rest of the pot with fresh potting soil and gave it a good drink of water.

Whew, now that that's done, the size of the plant is much more manageable, and I think I will be able to find a place for it to live during the long winter inside.


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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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November Blooms

Not many blooms here in November, and most of them are inside. Some of the other plants inside are starting to set buds now so hopefully I'll have more blooms in December.

Hibiscus

Brugmansia

Phlox (outside)

Stapelia nobilis

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.

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Plant Bulbs Now for Early Spring Blooms

This past weekend, I was busy adding some new spring blooming bulbs in my gardens.

Tulips and Daffodil

The past few years I have been focused on enhancing my perennial gardens and adding plants to give my gardens continuous blooms throughout the summer.



This past spring I realized that my gardens are very sparse on blooms in the spring, especially in the early in the spring.

Tulip

So this year I decided I needed more early spring blooming plants throughout my gardens; and fall is the perfect time to plant them.


For me, the hardest part about planting spring blooming bulbs is deciding where to put them.

Tulips

 I want to make sure they aren't all clumped together in one spot...but also not too scattered.

I also have to be careful not to plant them in a place where I'll dig them up during the summer by accident.

This is a difficult balance for me and I can get obsessive about it.

Daffodil

I know that I can always move them if I need to, but the task still takes much longer than it should.

It will be totally worth the stress once they start to grow after a long winter, just when I need them the most!





Here is a list of what I planted this year...

• Daffodils
• Fritillaria
• Allium
• Tulips
• Glory of Snow
• Hyacinths 'Gipsy Queen'
• Hyacinths 'Jan Bos'

I also managed to plant my garlic bulbs (which was much less stressful!). Don't forget, fall is the time to plant garlic for next year's harvest.

Have you been adding spring blooming bulbs to your gardens this fall? If so, what have you been planting?

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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Garden Project - Building a Raised Bed

One of our garden projects this past spring was to raise up the front half of our vegetable garden to level out the area. The main reason we did this was because that corner of our yard is very wet and mucky. At times it was so mucky that we couldn't walk in there in the spring or after a large amount of rainfall without losing a shoe in the mud.

Plus it's on a slight down-slope (the back being higher than the front) and the soil would erode away during heavy rainfall. It was obvious that we needed some kind of raised bed to solve these issues. 

Before picture

Here is a picture of the garden before we started our project... 






In addition, I wanted a raised area for my strawberries. I figured this would make them easier to contain.

Before raised strawberry bed

For the raised strawberry bed, we decided to use the same retaining wall block that we used around the adjacent pond (pond not shown in the picture).



For the front of the garden, we decided to put in a decorative boulder rock wall. Then fill in the spaces between the boulders with dirt to put in plants.

The first thing we did was bring in all the fill dirt. We figured this task would be much easier before putting in the block.

Supporting block done, starting to lay rock

Next we put down the first layer of block.

For added support and stability (and to save on cost), we put down a layer of inexpensive cinder blocks first.

Then we wrapped the cinder block with landscaping fabric.

Next, we laid down the boulders. This job was much like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. It took some time to fit the boulders together just right.

Once we were done with the structure of the wall, we filled the spaces between the boulders with black dirt. 

Rock done, starting on sides

Rock wall done and planted

In the cracks between the boulders, I planted a variety of succulent sedum plants that will eventually fill in the cracks and cascade over the boulders.


To give the sides of the garden a finished look, we simply covered the fabric-covered cinder block with retaining wall block caps.

 

As for the strawberry bed, we created a small area out of retaining wall block and filled it in with black dirt.

Strawberry bed done and planted

 
There are many reasons why you might decide to put in a raised bed for your garden. Maybe you have a wet area like ours, or extremely rocky soil. You might have an area with lots of tree roots or hard clay soil. Or maybe you want to make gardening easier on your back, or having a raised bed would help keep invasive weeds or grass out. You don't even need to be solving a problem, you might want one for purely aesthetic purposes.

As for materials to use, there are a ton of choices. You could pick materials based on cost or the style. Maybe you like the formal look that retaining wall block gives you. If cost is your driving factor, something like landscaping timbers would work great, or railroad ties. This decision is a personal one, I don't think that one material would be better over the other choices. The reason we decided on the rock wall was purely because we liked the look of it.

To help you make the tough decisions, I recommend that you go to your local garden center and look at the materials they have to offer. They will probably also have pictures of those materials used in various projects. 

Whatever you decide, have fun with it and enjoy your raised garden bed!

To Preen or Not to Preen

I have been using Preen in all of my gardens for the past few years. I first discovered Preen one spring when I was busy with life and neglected my gardens.

A few weeks after tilling and planting my vegetable garden that spring, it was completely overgrown with weeds. When I say overgrown, I mean the ground was totally covered in weeds that were several feet high. I couldn't see any dirt, or my vegetables for that matter.

My Vegetable Garden in Spring

That spring, I spent my entire 3 day Memorial weekend pulling weeds.

Three days just to rid my vegetable garden of weeds (oh, my back!!).

Ugh, it was terrible.

My dad is my gardening mentor and I remember thinking "Dad doesn't have any weeds" and feeling ashamed that I had neglected my gardens so much. So I asked my dad what to do, and he told me about Preen. The weeds in my gardens have been easy to maintain since I started using it.

But I have always wondered if it is truly safe to use in my vegetable garden. It says right on the label that it is safe to use in the vegetable garden. I have done some research on this and I have found many articles that say this chemical is probably not the best thing to use in the vegetable garden. The problem is that most of these articles are people's opinions. I haven't found anything conclusive about the safety of using this product in my vegetable garden.

My Vegetable Garden

I know the bottom line is that using a chemical in the soil of my vegetable garden is probably not a good idea.

I have been thinking about trying purely organic methods for a while now.

So, after writing this post and thinking more about this topic, I think I am going to start experimenting with other forms of weed control in my vegetable garden.

I would love to hear other peoples opinions on this topic. What do you do to control the weeds in your vegetable garden?

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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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Is My Plumeria Confused, Or is it Just Me?

I have a plumeria plant that I bought when I visited Hawaii almost 10 years ago. It was only about a foot tall when I got it, and it bloomed shortly after I brought it home (unfortunately I can't find the pictures I took when it bloomed). The blooms were beautiful and smelled wonderful! I was very excited and thought that getting the plumeria to bloom on a regular basis would be easy. 

Stem one, week one

Over the years, it has grown into a large plant, and I have had no luck getting it to come to full bloom again.

Stem one, week two

It started to bloom one summer a few years ago and I was so excited about it. But before the buds got very big, they shriveled up and fell off.

Well now it is starting to bloom again. I'm trying not to get excited. I am more confused than anything.



I'm confused because I thought that plumeria was a spring blooming plant, but now I'm not sure. I don't know the name of this particular species so I can't look it up, and I don't know much about plumerias in general.

Stem two, week one

I'll admit, I haven't put much effort into getting this plant to bloom, so I can't be disappointed that I've never had success since the first time. This is truly a treat!



Two of the stems on the plant have buds. I took pictures of both of them as soon as I discovered them, and a second picture today (one week later). I can definitely see the progress in the growth of the buds!

In the future, I am going to put more effort into getting this plant to bloom regularly.

But for now, I'm too afraid to even touch it. I'm afraid if I do something wrong, it will get mad at me and drop the buds again.

Stem two, week two

So I plan to ignore it, I won't move it or water it... but I will monitor the bloom progress daily. I will share the progress with all of you as the blooms start to open so keep your fingers crossed that the blooms open this time!

If you know about growing plumerias indoors in a pot, I would love some advice. Should I water and fertilize it now that it's starting to bloom? Or should I stick with my plan of ignoring it until the blooms open?


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If you have any questions about gardening, or ideas for a topic you'd like me to write a blog post about; please feel free to add a comment on any of my posts. You can also post something on my Facebook page.
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