This Week In Houseplants

Let's grow some Monstera from seed!

Apologies for missing last week, I was ill. Just a cold but a nasty one that can only be remedied by sleeping for 23 hours a single day. I did my exam on the Friday but can’t really remember it so…good luck to me? 🫠

Growing Monstera from seed

I got my paws on some Monstera seeds from Chiltern Seeds for the very reasonable price of £4.25. I got two packets because it seemed like a safer bet. Twelve seeds in all.

They look like this:

'Tauerii' is apparently a dwarf form but we'll see

I googled how to germinate and the general consensus was to put them in soil and wait. They’re in a little propagator (which is a fancy way of describing a plastic tray with a plastic hat):

The soil is just houseplant mix (Westlands) and perlite, about 50:50. I watered the soil with nutrient water and it’s sat in a south-facing window. According to the internet I have to remove the top daily for fresh air.

I’ll keep you posted.

Attempting to train my Philodendron Golden dragon

NB - My P. Golden Dragon will henceforth be referred to as Smaug.

Smaug has always growth happily and quickly in any condition. He has never in his life given one single fuck.

And I love that about him. But what I HATE is his growth pattern. Or lack thereof. Look:

He’s a few feet from a MASSIVE south-facing window (you can see it in the reflection in the lamp), gets fed and watered regularly. I don’t know why he’s like this, but he is

I rearrange the stems and chop and prop SO REGULARLY and he just goes back to this…can we even call it a shape?

Anyway, as you can see from the top right, I’m trying something different. I’ve stuck some hooks to the wall and I’m going to see how that goes. I’ll add more hooks over time until all his vines have somewhere to go.

This room will be the second last we renovate because we’re doing upstairs first so I hope his penchant for contrariness will prompt him to grow huge and beautiful in the next few years so it’ll be a real pita to get him of the wall to redecorate.

I’m having a similar issue with my Florida green. It has a similar leggy growth pattern so I’m going to see if she’ll cling to the wall in my office.

This is actually not the worst artex in the house.

I’ve found with Florida green that, as they size up, their petioles and internodal spaces grow longer, so a wall is perhaps a better option than a moss pole.

I’ve also found that hybrid philos aren’t very good at growing aerial roots (especially if there’s a self-header in their genes) so hooks will be necessary BUT that will make it easier to move them in future.

Repotting my ZZ plant in the biggest pot ever

I used to have two ZZ plants but I wanted to consolidate them into one pot. Since I’m an underwaterer by nature I went to for a pot that’s definitely too big but they’re chill plants so it’ll be ok.

DO excuse my washing and Stitch sitting in a bowl of coir

Look at that new growth:

I tend to fill big pots like this like a would a new raised bed - as cheaply as possible.

Half of the pot is filled with cheap soil designed for outdoor use. It holds a TONNE of water. Then I added a layer of leca that will control the amount of moisture that gets from that bottom layer to the roots. The mix the roots are actually sat in is a mix of coir and leca. I might add perlite over time if it stays too wet.

I didn’t bother adding nutrients like worm castings because the bottom layer will be nutrient dense.

As for lighting, it’s about six feet from both a north and south facing window in a warm room. The light volume is high but intensity is low/medium - i.e. it won’t be in the shade at all whilst the sun is up but I don’t think it’ll ever really get direct light.

Peace Lily in Water

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was growing a peace lily in water so here’s an update:

She’s good! The roots are coming on well and there’s no rot. The stems looks like spring onions 😂 and I love that for them.

I appreciate that it’s hardly aesthetically pleasing at the moment but I’ll raise the water over time as the roots grow.

I’m not sure what the fibrous layer is, but I’m sure it has a purpose. The dark colour is mostly old soil, but I don’t want to scrub it so fiercely I damage it.

There are some new shoots starting which is exciting. You can see one on the picture - it’s the thing that looks like a root but is cleaner.

Big news for my Philodendron Pink Princess

She grew a leaf BY HERSELF and it unfurled without needing help.

You can see the one on the right got stuck, needed help, and my big fat fingers ruined everything for everyone. The one directly to the left is, sure, still unfurling but she’s free of the cataphyll, which is the tricky part for PPP.

There was a hairy moment when it all went a bit ugly-sister-trying-on-a-shoe*

…But we got out unscathed.

Terrarium update

NEW LEAF ON THE OBLIQUA

Beautiful.

Also, the begonia looks 👌

Have an awesome week!

*For those unfamiliar: