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Your Pothos called. Whew! Glad we've got that problem solved.

Note the range of comments, including umbrage taken. Interesting!

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Thinking Outside the Pot

Third-grade girls hone their science skills at Victor school. Cool!

Excerpts

"They learn how to work as a team, to think outside the box," said Schmidt, who has run the program for the past six years.

The desire to do things a bit differently helps explain why he has had students experiment with hydroponics — growing plants in liquid with nutrients rather than in soil.

Schmidt likes to use the term "troubleshooting," in describing how the students learn the art of problem-solving in his class.

"It's what scientists do. They set out an idea and how to prove it," Schmidt said.

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Fungus Gnats

Fungus gnats are less than 1/8" in size but they cause more complaints from people than any other plant pest. That's because they're mobile and can encroach on human space. They're particularly annoying in food serving areas.

This current Q & A is just one example of the frequent articles I read about fungus gnats. The same stale advice is repeated over and over again.

Extension agents and gardening writers never mention sub-irrigation as a solution. You should know that if you use sub-irrigation as described on this blog, it is highly unlikely that you will ever see a fungus gnat. The reason is that the soil surface layer is always dry. There is no habitat for the propagation of fungus gnat larvae. It is that simple.

Fungus gnats in homes are nearly always associated with houseplants, particularly overwatered ones; they feed primarily on decaying or damaged roots. They are also commonly found in houseplants potted in soil that's high in organic matter such as peat. Fungus gnats rarely feed on healthy roots. They do not typically injure houseplants but are known to transfer some plant diseases.

To control fungus gnats, reduce the soil moisture, letting the surface dry between waterings. You can tell when your plant needs moisture by picking it up and feeling how heavy it is. With a little practice you can get a sense of when to water. Also, watch the color of the leaves. When most plants are ready to be watered, the foliage will be a bit dull and less lively. Don't let plants get so dry that they wilt.

This Google search on fungus gnats and indoor plants produced over 20,000 hits.

I searched on Google for Gardeners. The first search produced more than 120 hits.

The second search included the word subirrigation.

This time there were only about 36 hits, several of them links to this blog. Obviously, there is little understanding about subirrigation and its many benefits within the gardening community.

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NASA Aeroponics

Here’s some news from NASA about hydroponics/aeroponics. Nice to see NASA referenced in this way rather than yet another article about the exaggerated and misleading stuff about houseplants acting as air purifiers.

Rather than fault NASA it's more appropriate to attribute it to the overblown promotion of Dr. Bill Wolverton's findings by the interior landscaping industry.

Soil. Water. Say that plants don't need them and people may think you've traded your cow -- and your good sense -- for a handful of beans. But NASA-sponsored plant experiments prove that you don't need soil and lots of water to grow a beanstalk that would make Jack proud.

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A Creative Bean

So you think these are black pebbles? Guess again. They're black beans. I've never seen black pebbles this small. These are in perfect scale to the size of the plant. Cool! If you want to see them in greater detail, click on this Flickr link then the + All Sizes icon above the photo.

The beans idea came from Danny Seo, a guy with a very creative bean. He publishes the Simply Green blog. Check it out for many more creative ideas.

A key point to remember is that the surface stays dry with sub-irrigation using either potting soil or clay pebbles.

What a neat idea. I bought a whole collection of different colored beans. Look at this assortment.

popgadget blog

This is where I found the post about the Vege. What a neat blog. It's well worth exploring.

about popgadget

Technology magazines ignore women and women's magazines ignore technology. Popgadget is a lifestyle magazine that embraces technology as a regular and essential part of women's lives. We cover topics traditionally seen in women's magazines, such as health and fitness, beauty and fashion, home, family, and entertainment, but with a unique focus on the products and people that bring exciting innovations to those aspects of our lives. But if you're looking for a bikini-clad model straddling a Power Mac G5, you won't see it here.

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Aeroponic Connie

All right Connie! You go girl! Let’s hear it for a 77 year old who’s living the life of a pathfinder. No clay pots and saucers for Connie Lorraine.

She’s growing vegetables in her house in expanded clay pebbles under artificial lights. What’s more, she’s selling these aeroponic systems at trade shows. Here is her website.

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Home Hydroponics

Is this a peek into the future of hydroponics in the home? Read about it here on popgadget.

The Vege was designed by Teeravit Hanharutaivan, a Thai student, for the Electrolux Design Lab. Yes, it’s only a design prototype but put it in context of the highly popular Aerogarden.

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Houseplant Housewives

I’m on a Googling coffee break from watering plants in the lab and I read this . The thought came to me, not for the first time, that the advice I read from extension program horticulturists must assume that all houseplants are cared for by stay at home housewives. How 1950s is that?

Begin by moving them outdoors to a shady location for a few hours a day.

Do most urbanized modern day mothers (or fathers or singles) have time to be juggling houseplants around every few hours? Do they have time to check each plant daily instead of on a fixed schedule? Do they have time to mist their plants several times a day? Yadda, yadda, yadda...ad nauseum. Gimme a break!

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Memory Tree

Click to enlarge. I know from personal experience that nothing can replace a lost child. The pain of loss is eternal. This tree is meant to be symbolic of life rather than death. It may be a “Weeping Fig” but it grows and robustly lives on.

The tree symbolizes life and nurturing. Using simple technology and the scientific method it will live a lifetime and beyond. Follow simple steps and I guarantee it will. There is no need for a mythical green thumb, a drain hole, or a saucer. A child can care for it.

This is an embryonic idea to contribute something meaningful to the loved ones of those who perished in the senseless slaughter on the campus of Virginia Tech.

I would like to open it to the collective consciousness, the universe, and yes to an even higher level…the blogosphere. I exaggerate of course...but not by much.

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GreenScape Japan

GreenScape is another interesting looking store in Japan. You might quess that I like the store name. See the prior post about Plants•Plants. I like this name too...particularly when preceded by indoor.

It’s best to view the site in full screen. I used Google translation with limited success. Among other things, the pop-up windows don’t translate. Even with these shortcomings, it is an interesting site to visit.

I found it interesting to see the diversity of their products from GreenScape to ROBO KOBO. The store has obvious appeal to a wide age range and not just gardeners.

I'm wondering if we have any stores like these in the US, perhaps in New York. I've yet to find one in my travels over the web. If you know of one please let us all know.

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More Gardeners Watering Advice

This Google for Gardeners search displays information provided by university and other gardening sites about so-called "self-watering". It's really sub-irrigation but houseplant gardeners erroneously refer to it as self-watering. As previously posted, there is no such thing. Incorrect terminology aside, there are only 30 plus hits from this search with most of them demonstrating a poor knowledge of the subject.

Note that MrBrownThumb has added InsidePlantsLive.org to the Google for Gardeners search engine. Thanks MrBrownThumb. I’m sure your readers will thank you as well.

Here are prior posts that reference Google for Gardeners.

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Life, Mood, and Meaning

Clas Bergvall, an ethnologist in Sweden wrote what sounds like an interesting dissertation about indoor plants and their relationship to human life.

Although I have not read his dissertation, the PR portends a well thought out discussion of the meaning of plants in our indoor environments. It’s well worth reading the press release. I’d love to be there when Bergvall defends his dissertation on Friday, April 20, 2007.

Note the reference to “potted plants.” In Europe, plants in containers are most often referred to as potted plants or pot plants. I regularly search the term pot plants here in the U.S. As you might guess, most of the hits are about the other kind of pot rather than indoor or potted plants.

Also note that he did not attempt to justify houseplants based on supposed “air cleaning” powers.” Those looking for a sound bite and simplistic buzz publish this junk science widely. Unfortunately, there are those who really need air purification for medical reasons who may fall prey to these unsubstantiated claims.

The dissertation is in Swedish. I hope that one day there will be an English translation. I will query the publisher.

To most of us, it’s hard to imagine a home that has no plants at all. Why are plants so important? A new dissertation from Umeå University in Sweden provides insight into our relationship with potted plants in the home.

The dissertation Life, Mood, and Meaning deals with the relationship between humans and things, addressing the feelings of humans in relation to plants in the home. It shows how potted plants affect people’s way of viewing their lives, their identity, and their space.

Gardeners Watering Advice

The following Google for Gardeners searches display information provided by university and other gardening sites about how to water plants in buildings.

The first search reveals over 240 hits on the subject of watering. Virtually all of them are instructions to top water using the drench and drain method.

The results demonstrate how out of touch these sites are with the modern world of technology and environmentally green products and practices. Drench and drain watering is fine for outdoor plants but not for plants in buildings. It is bad for interior plants, interior environments and is a wasteful practice.

The second search is on the subject of sub-irrigation.

There are only 27 hits and many of them relate to greenhouse production and propagation rather than interior plant watering. The authors on these sites display how little they know about modern methods of interior plant care.

Following are the infrequent excerpts that even bother to mention sub-irrigation. None of them displays a working knowledge of the subject. The primary recommendation of all of them is to drench and drain. There must be a text somewhere that they all read and copy.

University of Minnesota Extension Program - Plants that don't need to dry a lot may thrive in "self-watering" containers that make use of reservoirs for sub-irrigation. These containers save time and labor, and can result in excellent growth due to the even supply of moisture they provide.

Colorado State U. Extension Program - Generally speaking, it's better to water plants from the top than it is to subirrigate. Subirrigation is the process of watering plants by placing pots in a shallow amount of water in a tray or saucer, and allowing the soil to draw water up from the bottom via wicking action. It's acceptable to periodically water subirrigated plants to leach soluble salts from the potting soil.

North Dakota State U. Extension Program - Sub-irrigation (watering from the bottom) is a very popular and acceptable watering method, especially for African Violets. Do not allow the pot to stand in water once the soil surface is wet. To prevent excessive accumulation of fertilizer salts flush the soil from above several times a year.

U of Illinois Extension Program - Another method is sub-irrigation. You can place the pot in a few inches of water in a sink or in a saucer. Remove the pot when the moisture has wicked upward through the soil, and it is evident at the top.

U of Arizona - Plastic pots are also easier to clean, more durable, lighter in weight, and generally less expensive than clay containers. Subirrigation (self-watering) containers usually consist of a double-walled pot with a water reservoir that is filled infrequently. When properly managed, they minimize moisture stress in interior plantings, and may reduce maintenance time and cost.

U of Minnesota Extension - If you'd like to minimize time spent watering your houseplants in the future, switch to "self-watering" or "sub-irrigation" containers when you repot. These containers feature large water reservoirs that allow moisture to wick gradually up into the soil as it's needed. It takes a little practice to figure out when to refill the reservoirs, but once you get the hang of it, you'll like the ease of using these pots. Don't put cacti or succulents in them, though – only plants that need more moist growing conditions.

Back Yard Gardener - Some plants are best irrigated by sub-irrigation, i.e. watering from the bottom up. This avoids splashing water on the leaves of sensitive plants. Simply place the pot in a shallow pan filled with tepid water and let the plant sit for 15 minutes to allow the root ball to be thoroughly wet. Take out and allow sufficient drainage.

Clear Glass Hydroculture Containers

Clear glass containers work for hydroculture but I’ve stopped using them for two reasons.

1. Algae – It is a continual maintenance chore to remove the plant, clean the pebbles and container to remove algae buildup. This is particularly true for high light requirement plants. Algae prosper in high light.

If the objective is to make interior plant care as maintenance free as possible cleaning algae is counter productive.

Incidentally, tinted clear glass significantly reduces algae formation

2. Availability of natural looking expanded clay pebbles – It appears that Hydroton now dominates the U.S. market. My local hydroponics store no longer carries the B’Cuzz Grow Rokz or a similar product.

The uniform ball shape and terracotta orange tint of Hydroton pebbles does not look natural to my eyes. Of course, it makes little or no difference to growers of tomatoes or pot. Incidentally, I see irregular, more natural looking clay pebbles (on the left) when I visit hydroculture websites in Europe.

A solution for decorative interior plants is to use opaque containers and install a ground cover such as polished pebbles or a vine like Ficus pumila (Creeping Fig). Or as mentioned previously use tinted glass containers.

What is an Indoor Plant?

The term houseplant is obviously a misnomer. In gardeners' terms an indoor plant probably isn’t what you think it is either.

in•door ( n dôr , -d r ) adj.
1. Of, situated in, or intended for use in the interior of a building: an indoor pool; indoor paint.
2. Carried on within doors: an indoor party; indoor gardening.

Here are the results of a Google for Gardeners search on indoor plants. These too have the gardeners’ elastic or dual definitions of the words indoor and outdoor.

Titles like Bringing Indoor Plants Outdoors and Indoor Plants - Moving Plants Indoors and Outdoors are rather amusing if you're interested in linguistics. If they are in fact indoor plants, why in the world would you put them outdoors?

I’ve also observed the plants that Flickerites tag as “indoor plants.” The majority of them are most likely not interior plants unless you mean a greenhouse. The preponderance of outdoor flowering plants is the biggest clue that they are not year round indoor plants.

There’s more to say about why it’s not a good idea to move high quality interior plants outdoors to other then a sheltered porch or patio that has sun protection. That will remain a topic for another day.

Earthstone

Wouldn’t it be cool if one day in the future we were growing our interior plants in a media made from recycled glass bottles? How green is that!

It’s a possibility if we can bypass the reactionary drench and drain gardening lobby.

The bottles are crushed and ground into an extremely soft powder. It’s so soft, it feels like flour. That’s because the average particle size of the “flour” is one-fifth the size of a human hair.

The flour is the main component (up to 99%) of Earthstone materials. Natural foaming agents and additives customize the material’s properties for different applications. Customization can create a material that is more or less abrasive, harder or softer, stronger but with controlled breakdown, or more or less porous.

The finished product probably needs to be a more natural earth tone color, but it's a good start.

Visit Earthstone to learn more.

What is a Houseplant?

Did you know that Google has a Custom Search Engine service? MrBrownThumb, a garden blogger used it to create a custom search engine for gardeners.

Search engine details

Search engine for Gardeners where dot coms are weeded out and sites, blogs and forums that share information we need are featured. Whether you garden on a windowsill or you have acreage Google For Gardeners is for you.

Google for Gardeners. searches 169 sites , including : www.calhortsociety.org, www.mediterraneangardensociety.org, www.huntington.org, www.cyclamen.org, www.fritillaria.org.uk

I used Google for Gardeners to help answer a number of questions about so-called houseplants, starting with “What is a houseplant?” Most of us would likely agree with these web definitions.

• any of a variety of plants grown indoors for decorative purposes
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

• A houseplant is a plant that is grown indoors in places such as a house or office. Houseplants are usually herbs and are mainly decorative.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houseplant

The Google for Gardeners search, however, revealed a very different meaning.

Encouraged by horticultural academics and gardeners, most so-called houseplants are moved outdoors in the spring and brought back inside to overwinter in the fall. They are as much outdoor plants as indoor plants.

"Around-the-house plants" would be a more real world name for them.

How can we define their care when we can’t even define what they are?

Search string Results
1 - 259 for outside OR outdoors houseplant OR houseplants OR "house plant" OR "house plants" OR "indoor plant" OR "indoor plants" OR "interior plant" OR "interior plants" OR "pot plant" OR "pot plants".

More answers from Google for Gardeners coming later this week. Come on back.