This Week In Houseplants

Spring growth and decor advice required

It’s finally warm enough to put plants back in my hall!

Ok, full disclosure, it’s 100% NOT really warm enough BUT it’s getting too warm in my living room for my peace lily and this rattlesnake calathea (yeah, she’s got…issues) and I want to make this space pretty. I have a very pretty lamp from Next bt I’m not really sure what else to add (obvs more plants but do we think a plant stand? If anyone has any thoughts I’m all ears. I have zero eye for home decor.

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New video:

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This room is north facing BUT as you can see in the mirror there’s a huge window opposite the plants so light won’t be an issue.

Peep some more lovely artex! We laugh so we don’t cry.

That’s artex over exposed brick (is it still exposed brick if it’s been artexed over?) that would have looked lovely.

It’s fine.

Spring has definitely sprung and though we’re definitely due a few more frosts my plants are on their growing A-game. The Florida ghost is adding a THIRD leaf to her collection:

Smaug is throwing out leaves left, right and centre. Only time will tell if he enjoys growing up the wall. Admittedly he looks very sad and sparse at the mo, but trust me, it's looks better than the mess of vines that was there before.

Hoya kerrii ALWAYS peaks too soon when it comes to growing. I get so many leaves in spring and then inevitably she’ll be like ‘wait no, that’s too many, I’m done’ and I’m like ‘it’s four leave and it’s early May’ and she’s like ‘…and I’m done’.

These two have sprouted this week! Cute!

Pink new growth!

P. verrucosum is another that likes to go too hard too soon when it comes to new growth. We just enjoy it while it lasts.

(Also I tried to link to Verrucosum care guide, but…I don’t have one. I’ll write one. They’re medium-easy care but can be tricky to prop.)

If all these buds bloom that’s gonna be a spectacular show. I’ll keep you posted.

I cut my Rhaphidophora decursiva back HARD because apparently it’s a crawler? Has anyone heard this? The cuttings are propping in water and the remaining stems have done this. It’s pretty common for a load of nodes to sprout but usually one dominant one will win out and the others will all shrivel back.

It would be cool if I got multiple growth points though.

Yeah, I thought this was a wooden toggle that fell into my P. silver sword pot. Twas an elephant hawkmoth pupae. It wiggled. I froze in fear. Now it’s my child.

I am anxiously awaiting the birth of my winged, furry friend. I have a pic on my camera roll of an elephant hawk moth caterpillar in my garden last year - imagine if it’s the same fella that hibernated in my plant pot.

Just to put the fear of god in everyone, this plant pot has never been outside. It has, however, been next to the back door. In summer Dave often has that door open when he’s tending to his tropical fish, so it’s no mystery how it got in.

EXCITING NEWS

And potentially sad news:

So I had a draft of this written this morning and the moth emerged a couple of hours ago! Alas, it’s too early really and there’s not going to be much food for it (and it’ll be too cold) but I put it in our flower bed of pansies and crossed our fingers. I did briefly consider keeping it in the house but we have no food for it and it would 100% end up in a fish tank - the postion of the lights would be like a landing strip for it.

In other news: how gorgeous is this house? I know they’re not the traditional houseplants but I LOVE them.

Have an awesome week!