This Swiss Cheese Plant Has No New Holes
QUESTION: I have a Swiss cheese plant that’s been growing beautifully, but none of the new leaves has developed holes. Is there some secret method I can use to make the leaves split like they do in their natural habitat?
ANSWER: The Swiss cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa) is a highly dependable houseplant, an easy-to-care-for climber with long aerial roots and large, thick leathery leaves perforated by oblong holes.
The evolution of perforated and split-leaf plants is interesting. Because they climb and are subject to everything from breezes to high winds in their native habitats--usually tropical forests--they’ve developed the holes to keep them from blowing off the stems, just as you see flags and hanging signs with holes in them.
The ideal conditions for this plant are filtered eastern sunlight and a good watering as soon as the soil dries out. When new leaves fail to develop holes, move the plant into a brighter location and begin feeding it once a week during spring and summer with a good liquid plant food.
Incidentally, under ideal conditions the Swiss cheese plant will produce an edible fruit that smells and tastes somewhat like pineapple (hence deliciosa), so you can have fruit and cheese for the same price.
How to Rescue Last Year’s Poinsettias
Q: Last year I decided to keep my Christmas poinsettias and try to get them to rebloom this coming holiday season. I kept them in a bright sunny window, watered them when they were dry, and after some mid-spring leaf-droppage, the foliage has come back lush and green. What do I do now?
A: Starting now, place your poinsettia plants in a closet or similar dark spot for 8 to 10 hours, then bring them out to their sunny window during the day, then put them back in the closet for the night, then bring them out, and so forth.
Continue this process for 6 to 8 weeks, and by the middle of December those green bracts should have turned into whatever color they were when you bought them, or at least a reasonable facsimile.
Shop Carefully for That Boston Fern
Q: I want to buy a Boston fern to hang in my bathroom. My question: How much should a nice Boston fern cost?
A: It depends on the size of the plant and where you buy it. A Boston fern (or almost any green plant, for that matter) in a 4-inch pot should run about $3 to $4. A plant in a six-inch pot will be a decent value at around $10 to $15, and a plant in an eight-inch pot will run you around $20 to $25.
Another factor is the growing time involved in getting that plant to market. As in any other business, time is money, so for instance, a Kentia palm, which takes a couple of years to reach market size, will cost much more than an Areca palm which can be grown to market size outdoors in a couple of months.) Finally and obviously, a Boston fern at a large nursery, discount store or supermarket is going to be much less expensive than the “same” plant at a fancy Westside flower shop. Just make sure the fern you buy is full, lush, green, and healthy, because a sick plant is no bargain at any price.
Pruning Shears Can Save Dracena Marginata
Q: I am the embarrassed owner of the most miserable looking Dracena marginata in L.A.: Three 6-foot stalks in a 14-inch pot, each with a sad little tuft of leaves at the top. I don’t want to throw this plant out because it is still alive, producing new growth at the top on a regular basis, but it is so ugly. Is there anything I can do to make this marginata beautiful again?
A: Just take a pruning shears and cut each stalk down to about two feet from the top of the soil, leaving you with three two-foot-tall stalks in the pot and three four-foot stalks in your hand. Transplant the three short stalks into an 8- or 10-inch pot, continue to cultivate (eastern or northern exposure, water when the soil is dry), and they will all produce new growth from the sides and eventually be the living sculptures you want them to be.
As for the stalks you pruned, you can either discard them or cut them into little 6-inch logs and root each log in water. Who knows? You might wind up with a veritable forest of lovely Dracenas from those three ugly stalks.
‘Winterizing’ House Plants Is Easy
Q: With winter around the corner, is there anything I should do for my houseplants?
A: There are several steps to take in order to properly “winterize” your houseplants: Clean them thoroughly to remove all the dust and dirt that’s bound to have accumulated on the foliage during the summer; cut back vining plants such as wandering Jew, creeping Charley, or Swedish ivy; humidity will be important now that you’ll be turning on your heat, so keep your plants on pebble trays and mist at least a couple of times a week. Cut back on watering and cut out feeding until mid-March. Don’t expect a lot of growth during the upcoming darker and shorter days. Houseplants, like their outdoor brothers and sisters, go dormant or at least slow down, during the winter.
