Cacti...Some like it Dry

Saturday, January 13, 2007 03:44 AM

Cacti and succulents are a great group of indoor houseplants for those people who enjoy having plants in the home but tend to forget to water them on a regular basis. Many are native to the desert or semi-desert areas of the world where temperatures are warm and moisture is irregular and not often and so these do well in the home environment if given enough exposure to light.

A favorite succulent for many is the ’Kalanchoe blossfeldiana’. (shown at left)

It is a succulent that is grown for both its foliage and its flowers. The fleshy oval leaves are shiny green with a tinge of red depending on the amount of sun they get. The flowers are grown in clusters that rise above the foliage and last for many weeks. They come in colors of pink, white, red, yellow and orange. The plant grows best in a south window where it will receive lots of light. Water the plant thoroughly when the soil surface becomes dry. After they have finished blooming prune the tops and place it in a shady corner for a few weeks and allow the soil to go almost dry. After the fourth week place the plant in a well lit area, water normally and hopefully it will come back into bloom again.

The Jade Plant (Crassula argentea) is another very popular houseplant. They are a compact plant with a tree like shape. It has a short thick trunk and the branching limbs are thick. The fleshy leaves are thick, shiny and oblong in shape and are green but will get a tinge of red if exposed to a lot of light. Water only when the soil is dry to the touch and then give it a thorough watering. It requires very little maintenance, only the occasional pruning to keep the plants shape.

The Aloe Vera or more commonly known as the ’Medicine Plant’ is known for its healing abilities. It is a stem less plant with green thick green leaves. Inside the leaves is a clear gel liquid that when placed on the skin gives a cooling sensation and so is used for healing skin problems. It can be found in many skin products and is used to relieve itching, swelling, insect bites, sunburn and minor burns. The gel can be extracted directly from the plant by cutting a small lengthwise slit in the leaf and extracting a small amount of the gel from the plant which is then placed directly on the skin. By slitting the leave of the plant rather than cutting it you retain the shape of the leaf.

Another type of succulent that make good houseplants are the ’Sedums’. They tend to be low growing with fleshy leaves. A couple of the more common ones are those that are used as hanging plants. The ’Donkeys Tail’ is a slow growing plant that has blue green leaves that are oval shaped and ½ to 1 inch long. The trailing stems are covered with clusters of these leaves making it look like a braided rope. ’String of Pearls’ is another plant that has a different appearance than many other plants. It has hanging stems with ½ inch small green spherical leaves that look like beads which hang of the stems making it look like a sting of pearls. Both of these plants do best in a south window and only need to be watered thoroughly when the top ½ inch of the soil is dry. They both also propagate easily with cuttings and require very little maintenance with the occasional repotting every 3-4 years.

So, if you enjoy houseplants but not the work involved with them, cactus and succulents would be the ideal group of plants for you.

-Jos

Jos Van Hage operates two Art Knapp Garden Centres in the Prince George area: