Mug a Palm

Click to enlarge. Feeling stressed or even hostile? Boss, spouse, or a friend got to you? Mug a palm and you’ll likely feel a lot better. Better yet, mug two palms. Keep one and give one to the “mugger.” Help heal Black Thumb Syndrome (BTS)…and muggers.

Even I have been impressed with the healthy growth rate of these Parlor Palms (Chamaedorea elegans). They live in clear plastic party cups concealed inside the coffee mugs. No!—there is no need for a drain hole with this method. Just be sure to measure the water you add.

The two in the left row (brown and green striped) were just installed. I planted the other three in February 2006. They have just about doubled in size—without repotting! This is yet another testimonial to the benefits of sub-irrigation coupled with adequate light.

No messy saucers…no fungus gnats…just happy little palms and hopefully you will be as well.

Read more about how to do it here...and here.

My How You've Grown

Click to enlarge. This little Parlor Palm pal has been living happily in a set of 10 ounce party cups inside this coffee cup for the past nine months.

Click to enlarge. This is how it looked nine months ago in February 2006. Oh my how it has grown. Quite a change isn't it?

Note the empty cup in the middle. Once a week I add about 5 ounces of water to it. Note also that it is a clear cup so you can see the status of the entire soil and root system at a glance. Make sense doesn’t it.

I then insert the palm, which has been growing in a cup of the same size. The water rises by capillary action through holes in the bottom. Incidentally, the measured amount of water never rises to the top, which eliminates any possibility of annoying fungus gnats. The soil surface is always dry!

The even distribution of water through the soil is close to perfection. There are no dry pockets. The soil mass is analogous to a perfectly baked cake. Further, the soil does not compact due to the gravitational pressure of water flowing from the top. Capillary action is gentler than a spring shower.

The party cup palm lives inside the ceramic coffee mug. It sure looks a lot better than those utilitarian plastic grower pots that come with the plant. It blows me away that so many gardeners keep these rather homely looking plants inside their homes.

I think you would agree that you do not need a so-called “green thumb” to care for this little guy using this very simple sub-irrigation method. You don’t need to be a “gardener.” You can just be one of the estimated 250 million ordinary Americans who are not gardeners or gifted green thumbs.

If you think you have a black thumb, think again. Then try what you read here and tell a friend. Help end Black Thumb Syndrome (BTS) forever.

Read more about Simple Sub-irrigation 101.

Meet Treeson

Click to enlarge. Treeson is 5 inches of vinyl cuteness. He was born in the creative mind of Bubi Au Yeung a Hong Kong illustrator. Read the story of “Treeson & Ren.”

Andy Woo (aka Wookie) of Crazy Label in Hong Kong brought Treeson into vinyl reality. Uncle Greenscaper thinks he would make the perfect symbol for saving trees whether they are in a forest, your work place, or home. You’ll be seeing a lot more of Treeson in future photos. In the meantime you can see many more photos of Treeson on Flickr.

Treeson knows that archaic drench and drain top watering used by so many outdoor gardeners and horticulturists kills too many indoor trees. It may be a good way to water outdoor plants but it is simply a bad idea for year-round indoor plants.

The little Ficus benjamina trees in this photo are growing in expanded clay pebbles inside soup bowls. This will shock “houseplant” gardeners but there are no drain holes, no need for saucers. This method is most widely known as hydroculture but it is really a sub-irrigation technique. Sub-irrigation using an artificial soil mix works just as well.

As it says on the top of the box that Treeson arrived in, “Do Not Kill Tree!” First and foremost, give it light and then sub-irrigate to keep it alive and well.

The Go-To Plant

Click to enlarge.

go-to (gō'tū')
adj.
Being a player on an athletic team who is relied upon to make important plays, especially in clutch situations: the team's go-to receiver.

The plant in the interior plantscaping business most likely to be named the “go-to plant” is Pothos (botanical name Epipremnum aureum or Scindapsus aureum). Interiorscapers may get tired of it but they know that Pothos is an attractive and durable member of the team, with outstanding ability to tolerate low light conditions (25 foot candles and above).

Pothos would definitely get my vote as the go-to plant for those who are new to indoor plants. Incidentally, it is often confused with Heartleaf Philodendrons (Philodendron scandens and Philodendron Brasil).

The Pothos in the photo are cuttings about three weeks old. The vase is actually a recycled plastic snack container from Costco (UTZ Pub Mix Click on the photo to enlarge). It looks like crystal glass on my desk.

Once you root the cuttings, you can easily replant them in expanded clay pebbles (hydroculture) or potting mix watered by measured sub-irrigation. To use a popular expression you're good to go.

Click to enlarge. Started as cuttings in water.

Click to enlarge. Also started as cuttings in water.