The complete houseplant survival manual : essential know-how for keeping (not killing) more than 160 indoor plants

725 Pages·2005·21.41 MB·English

by  Pleasant

THE COMPLETE HOUSEPLANT SURVIVAL
MANUAL

THE COMPLETE HOUSEPLANT
SURVIVAL MANUAL
ESSENTIAL KNOW-HOW FOR KEEPING (NOT KILLING!) MORE THAN 160 INDOOR PLANTS
BARBARA PLEASANT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROSEMARY KAUTZKY
The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.
EDITED BY Gwen Steege TECHNICAL EDIT AND PLANT KEY BY Elizabeth P. Stell ART
DIRECTION AND COVER DESIGN BY Kent Lew TEXT DESIGN AND PRODUCTION BY
Vertigo Design and Cynthia McFarland PRODUCTION ASSISTANCE BY Jessica
Armstrong and Jennifer Jepson Smith COVER AND INTERIOR PHOTOGRAPHS ©
Rosemary Kautzky, except for those on pages 110, 111, and 192
©MACORE, Inc.
ILLUSTRATIONS © Christine Erikson INDEXED BY Stepping Stones Indexing
Services Text © 2005 by Barbara Pleasant All rights reserved. No part of this
book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher,
except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations
in a review with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means — electronic, mechanical, photo copying, recording, or other —
without written permission from the publisher.
The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our
knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the
author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in
connection with the use of this information. For additional information please
contact Storey Publishing, 210 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA 01247.
Storey books are available for special premium and promotional uses and for
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Pleasant, Barbara.
The complete houseplant survival manual / by Barbara Pleasant ; photography
by Rosemary Kautzky.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-58017-569-2
1. House plants. I. Title.
SB419.P573 2005
635.9’65—dc22
2005014205
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
HOW HOUSEPLANTS EARN THEIR KEEP
PLANT IDENTIFICATION GUIDE
PART ONE
BLOOMING HOUSEPLANTS
PART TWO
FOLIAGE HOUSEPLANTS
PART THREE
HOUSEPLANT CARE
APPENDICES
GLOSSARY OF HOUSEPLANT TERMS
RESOURCES FOR HOUSEPLANT LOVERS
BOTANICAL NAME/COMMON NAME CROSS REFERENCE
INDEX
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
HOW HOUSEPLANTS EARN THEIR KEEP
For the past two centuries, mankind has been playing with houseplants as if
they were pretty toys. We have appreciated their beauty and suspected their
power to enrich our lives, yet we are only now learning how they also can foster
something everyone wants: to feel happy. The science of happiness is still in its
infancy, but houseplants, it seems, have been doling out doses of happiness for a
long time. And, with the increasing availability of bright blooming houseplants
(which get the highest smile ratings), more and more people are discovering the
joys to be found in indoor gardening.
We hope you are one of these people. This book is designed to meet the needs
of houseplant growers of all skill levels, from newbies, who often feel a bit
anxious about doing the wrong thing and causing their plant to suffer, to
experienced plant keepers, who sometimes want to know more about a plant’s
background and superior forms that might be available. The plant profiles in
Parts 1 and 2 describe how to care for 150 beautiful blooming and foliage
houseplants, including many selections that have entered retail markets only in
the last ten years. General information on houseplant care is covered,
encyclopedia style, in Part 3.
Before we jump into that green world, a short review of how houseplants
came to be is in order, as well as an inventory of the benefits they bring to the
people who grow them. When it comes to houseplants, history, healing arts,
environmental sciences, and interior design intertwine in unique and life-
enhancing ways. Expanding your awareness of what houseplants can do will
give you a new appreciation for indoor plants wherever you are lucky enough to
encounter them — from the waiting room at your dentist’s office to your own
kitchen windowsill.
A Brief History of Houseplants
When did people begin keeping indoor plants? It wasn’t so long ago, because
people had neither plants nor hospitable indoor environments until modern
times. The forerunners to houseplants were medicinal herbs, which monasteries
and apothecaries struggled to keep alive in dim, drafty indoor spaces when
protected courtyards would not do. The advent of glass windows (which began
appearing in Europe in the late 1600s but were not commonplace for another 200
years) were quickly followed by the culture of citrus fruits — the first plants to
be widely grown “under glass” in early conservatories. But it was not until plant
exploration boomed in the nineteenth century, coupled with the increased
availability of window glass, that people had real choices in houseplants and
availability of window glass, that people had real choices in houseplants and
suitable environments in which to grow them. Blown-glass tableware, and even
stained glass, predate clear window glass by several hundred years, because
forming molten glass into a flat surface is much trickier than creating small
pieces or variously shaped bubbles. It’s interesting to imagine the excitement
people felt when window glass made it possible to enjoy indoor light year-round
— a huge change from pulling closed dark shutters every time a cold wind blew.
The next step was to see if plants could also make use of light that came through
wavy glass windows.
Social changes supported the move to grow plants indoors. During the
Victorian era (1837 to the early 1900s), a nicely kept formal parlor became a
symbol of middle-class respectability, and a proper parlor included plants. Many
of these plants remain popular today because of their ability to adapt to low light
— aspidistra, sanseveria, ferns, and palms. Geraniums also became a fashion
craze, and small terrariums planted with tiny tropicals provided the middle class
with miniature versions of the glassed-in conservatories kept by the rich. In
1936, George Orwell used the aspidistra as a symbol for the English middle
class’s preoccupation with propriety in his comic novel Keep the Aspidistra
Flying.