Hi Folks I have been down the garden centre again buying more plants, its so addictive and I can't help myself, I love my new hobby and I wish I had a bigger flat so I could have even more plants Today I brought a small Schefflera (Umbrella Tree), I also have a medium size Dracaena Marginata and a small Calathea. I have been doing some research on these plants and it seems they all like roughly the same conditions and care, high humidity and a bright but shady location so I have decided to group them together. I think they look really nice together and from what I have read grouping plants together like this helps to keep the humidity up. As you can see I have put the 2 smaller plants onto pebble trays to try and help with the humidity, all these plants need regular misting so having them all together makes it a bit easier. I think the display needs another smaller plant sat inbetween the Schefflera and the Calathea. The display is to the right of my east facing window and although its a bright spot it receives no direct sunlight. I was wondering if any of you guys could recommend a small plant that would look good with the 3 plants already in the display which would like the same kind of conditions, shady and likes a bit of humidity. Below is a picture of the display Many Thanks Jakk
One quick question I forgot to ask I made my pebble trays out of some coarse agricultural grit I had kicking around, is this ok to use or would I be better off getting some bigger pebbles in there?, I guess if nothing else it would look better with maybe some nice green coloured round pebbles in the tray. Many Thanks Jakk
Just a thought, but something that trails like Hoya Carnosa,or one of the many small leaf philodendrons. barb
Hi Barbera and thanks for the reply. I think a trailing plant would be a great idea, I am gonna do some internet research on the Hoyas and Philodendrons now. Many Thanks Jakk
It doesn't really matter what kind of stones you use as long as the bottom of the pot doesn't touch the water:) The green pebbles sound nice though. I kinda like the tumbled glass too which comes in many colors. Also looks good at the bottom of a clear vase with plants growing in water.
I have just been having a look at the Hoya Carnosa's on the internet and I really like the look of them, it would be nice to have something that flowers in the display too. I have seen a nice small one on ebay, I have attached a photo of the actual plant that is being sold. I have read on the internet that it a fast growing plant and its stems can reach 15ft, I obviously dont want it to get that big, if I kept it in small pot how long would stems get? Sorry if that is a daft question, I am new to houseplants, I have only been collecting them for 2 months and I have never grown anything before that. Many Thanks Jakk
Thanks for the reply Bluewing, I think I am going to go to the garden centre tomorrow and look for something a little nicer, maybe have a look at some tumbled glass too. I have to say I have a hygrometer which I had sat near the Calathea when it was on its own it was reading 30% RH, now I have all these 3 plants together and 2 pebble trays it has made a big difference to the humidity around the plants, its reading 48% RH at the moment.
i'll third, or is it fourth, now, the suggestion of a trailing plant in the center!! pothos, hoya, philodendron would all be good choices. also, arrowhead vine. and even peperomia. i have one that has a viney-type growth pattern. don't know the name of it, though. has green leaves, pointed, with white edges. very pretty. size of pebbles and/or quantity doesn't matter. you just need to keep the containers above the water line.
You can snip back the size of the plant if it gets too long for your taste by cutting the stems back to another pair of leaves and rooting the cuttings. Just don’t take off all the spurs (flower buds) if you see any along " bare stems". The spurs look like little microphones:>) That's where the flowers will come back each year. A couple of hanging hoyas I have always (not carnosa) grows very long bare stems, like whips they are, that go all over the place, and I end up cutting a few wild ones back, otherwise, they want to wrap around other plants and plant hangers, making it almost impossible to water and turn them. I don't think you would have to worry about any of that for a while though.
Thanks for all tha advise folks, after looking at all the species suggested I think I am gonna go for the Hoya, I like the idea of a flowering plant and also I like the sound of the scent the hoya gives off. I am currently bidding for that little plant on ebay, hopefully no one else is interested in it. Thanks for the advise on pruning the hoyas Bluewing, that will come in very usefull when it gets too big. Many Thanks Jakk
Hi Folks I went to the garden centre today to look for some nice stones for my pebble trays and I came home with what I think is a Hedera (English Ivy) The plant wasn't labeled but looking in my houseplant book and on the net the nearest I can find is Hedera Helix Glacier and it seem this little trailing plant likes simular conditions and location to my other 3 plants in the group. I am still going to buy that little Hoya plant as I really like the look of those but as its only very small I thought I would get someting else to put with the group while I grow the hoya out. Once the Hoya is big enough to go with the rest I will find a new home for the ivy. As you can see from the photos I also found some nice green coloured tumbled glass for my pebble trays too which I think looks much nicer than the grit I had in there before, cheers for nod on that Bluewing. So thats it, my first attempt at grouping some plants together, I am really happy with it, I had them dotted all over the room but I think they deffinatly look nicer as a group Many Thanks Jakk
