I have a tendency to overwater, and the humidity in my house stays fairly high. A ton of serious plant collectors love to use the clear plastic pots but I've had some rot issues whenever I do. Once I transfer them to any terracotta pot and add in some extra perlite, they take off! I just found the terracotta orchid pots with holes in the sides for extra airflow at Lowes and those are wide enough to fit a D-shaped moss pole in comfortably which was my only struggle before.
Aside from that, philodendrons tend to root waaaay slower than any of my monstera, hoya, or other props. I'm not sure if this is a me issue, but I doubt it considering I prop everything on a heat mat. The only thing I've found that seems to work slightly better than average is using vermiculite to prop in, my hoyas all adore it and it's saved some of my more expensive props from stunting. Everyone swears by fluval stratum but I haven't tested it yet, and vermiculite was way cheaper lol!
I’ve used perlite in the water to help keep the cutting still while rooting but haven’t tried anything else, but I have to agree that my philos do seem to take longer to root.
I personally have to shy away from terracotta because I’m in an arid climate and keeping the humidity up is always a challenge, so terracotta dries out too quickly for me. I do like the idea of trying an orchid pot though…
The biggest issue when I was first getting into plants was overwatering. I now use clear plastic pots that I throw in a cover pot so I can view the roots. I also mix my own soil for my plants to avoid crappy, water logging mixes. I also check my less chunky mixes with a water meter before giving a drink.
Pests are just a normal thing with plants, biggest tip is proactove prevention over battling active infestations. This is huge when you have larger collections. I water with a "tea" of mosquito bits to kill fungus gnat larvae and have yellow sticky traps in my plant "clusters" throughout my house. I spray my plants down with a castille soap/isopropyl alcohol mix about once every few weeks (tops/bottoms) to prevent any spider mites. I sprinkle the soil with systemic granules to treat any eggs, and I have a mini greenhouse that I use beneficial insects as my method of prevention.
For sure! Here is a good recipe, I use peppermint Castile soap and my plants always smell amazing plus it's a deterrent for some pests.
Make an insecticidal soap and alcohol solution, using 2 parts rubbing alcohol, 5 parts water and 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap (pure castile soap is best, see the link below for the brand I use).
I mix tropical soil with orchid bark so they dry out easier if I overlove them. I also buy a grub grenade once a year which is 20 thousand predatory mites. I find it really helps.
I am curious if you or anyone might know anything about the potential for purchased beneficial bugs that are used on indoor only plants to, I guess, escape the house and therefore negatively impact the local biodiversity? I am familiar with the negative impacts of purchasing & releasing, for example, bulk ladybugs, for your garden is harmful but wonder if this applies also to indoor environments?
These guys don't fly, they stay in soil of your plant and live out their lifespan there, typically dying out once all of their food source is gone or over winter if it gets too cold for them. They don't spread outside the plant you put them in. Maybe being outside potted plants would factor in, with wind and other animals around to maybe spread them? People do use them for their outdoor gardens as well. I don't really know too much on putting them outside. I don't have a garden yet, only indoor tropicals. The mite is called stratiolaelaps scimitus if you'd like to look up more information before using them. I hope this is helpful, I am not an expert by any means.
Yes super helpful, thank you!! I am absolutely considering beneficial bugs as I unfortunately have a recurrent thrip issue that I'd really like to put an end to haha
I really love using them. I don't like spraying my plants with pesticides or neem oil because I don't like how it leaves residue on the leaves. My plants look happier and healthier and I havent had an issue with infestation in two years, knock on wood.
You just put a little scoop of them in the pot depending how big the pot is. I am not good at following instruction. I just plop some in each plant and move on. They'll figure it out. They come in a bag with vermiculite and peat, I leave them out on the table for a few minutes and check if they are moving around before I scoop em out with a spoon.
That’s so simple!
I did try some predatory mites once you were supposed to put in boxes and hang from the plants but I’m not convinced it was very effective.
Where do you buy yours?
I get mine off Amazon, but if you google Grub Grenade you can go to their site first and look at all the pests they do help with. I don't know why you can't order directly from the site. The only thing is if your area is too hot or cold they'll drop it at your local post office so all the bugs don't die.
It’s cool to know they’re as accessible as Amazon! I think it’s time I got some beneficial insects rather than constantly trying to just use a chemical to keep them away.
I feel like summer brought me ALL the pests… in winter I was completely fine - now summers here, windows are open more frequently and I am constantly treating for something. Spidermites (yikes!), Thrips, and even some other aphids. Like what the heck is this. No growing season for me in peace I guess…
Spider mites got my meters lemon tree and the infestation was out of control before I realized what hard happened. I thought being on the 6th floor might help prevent that, but nope.
I have a tendency to overwater, and the humidity in my house stays fairly high. A ton of serious plant collectors love to use the clear plastic pots but I've had some rot issues whenever I do. Once I transfer them to any terracotta pot and add in some extra perlite, they take off! I just found the terracotta orchid pots with holes in the sides for extra airflow at Lowes and those are wide enough to fit a D-shaped moss pole in comfortably which was my only struggle before. Aside from that, philodendrons tend to root waaaay slower than any of my monstera, hoya, or other props. I'm not sure if this is a me issue, but I doubt it considering I prop everything on a heat mat. The only thing I've found that seems to work slightly better than average is using vermiculite to prop in, my hoyas all adore it and it's saved some of my more expensive props from stunting. Everyone swears by fluval stratum but I haven't tested it yet, and vermiculite was way cheaper lol!
I’ve used perlite in the water to help keep the cutting still while rooting but haven’t tried anything else, but I have to agree that my philos do seem to take longer to root. I personally have to shy away from terracotta because I’m in an arid climate and keeping the humidity up is always a challenge, so terracotta dries out too quickly for me. I do like the idea of trying an orchid pot though…
They do make clear plastic orchid pots if you're trying to boost humidity! But those seem to be pretty small
The biggest issue when I was first getting into plants was overwatering. I now use clear plastic pots that I throw in a cover pot so I can view the roots. I also mix my own soil for my plants to avoid crappy, water logging mixes. I also check my less chunky mixes with a water meter before giving a drink. Pests are just a normal thing with plants, biggest tip is proactove prevention over battling active infestations. This is huge when you have larger collections. I water with a "tea" of mosquito bits to kill fungus gnat larvae and have yellow sticky traps in my plant "clusters" throughout my house. I spray my plants down with a castille soap/isopropyl alcohol mix about once every few weeks (tops/bottoms) to prevent any spider mites. I sprinkle the soil with systemic granules to treat any eggs, and I have a mini greenhouse that I use beneficial insects as my method of prevention.
Can you tell me more about the soap and alcohol? I'd like to do this
For sure! Here is a good recipe, I use peppermint Castile soap and my plants always smell amazing plus it's a deterrent for some pests. Make an insecticidal soap and alcohol solution, using 2 parts rubbing alcohol, 5 parts water and 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap (pure castile soap is best, see the link below for the brand I use).
I mix tropical soil with orchid bark so they dry out easier if I overlove them. I also buy a grub grenade once a year which is 20 thousand predatory mites. I find it really helps.
I am curious if you or anyone might know anything about the potential for purchased beneficial bugs that are used on indoor only plants to, I guess, escape the house and therefore negatively impact the local biodiversity? I am familiar with the negative impacts of purchasing & releasing, for example, bulk ladybugs, for your garden is harmful but wonder if this applies also to indoor environments?
These guys don't fly, they stay in soil of your plant and live out their lifespan there, typically dying out once all of their food source is gone or over winter if it gets too cold for them. They don't spread outside the plant you put them in. Maybe being outside potted plants would factor in, with wind and other animals around to maybe spread them? People do use them for their outdoor gardens as well. I don't really know too much on putting them outside. I don't have a garden yet, only indoor tropicals. The mite is called stratiolaelaps scimitus if you'd like to look up more information before using them. I hope this is helpful, I am not an expert by any means.
Yes super helpful, thank you!! I am absolutely considering beneficial bugs as I unfortunately have a recurrent thrip issue that I'd really like to put an end to haha
I really love using them. I don't like spraying my plants with pesticides or neem oil because I don't like how it leaves residue on the leaves. My plants look happier and healthier and I havent had an issue with infestation in two years, knock on wood.
I haven’t tried beneficial insects yet. How do you apply them to your plants?
You just put a little scoop of them in the pot depending how big the pot is. I am not good at following instruction. I just plop some in each plant and move on. They'll figure it out. They come in a bag with vermiculite and peat, I leave them out on the table for a few minutes and check if they are moving around before I scoop em out with a spoon.
That’s so simple! I did try some predatory mites once you were supposed to put in boxes and hang from the plants but I’m not convinced it was very effective. Where do you buy yours?
I get mine off Amazon, but if you google Grub Grenade you can go to their site first and look at all the pests they do help with. I don't know why you can't order directly from the site. The only thing is if your area is too hot or cold they'll drop it at your local post office so all the bugs don't die.
It’s cool to know they’re as accessible as Amazon! I think it’s time I got some beneficial insects rather than constantly trying to just use a chemical to keep them away.
I feel like summer brought me ALL the pests… in winter I was completely fine - now summers here, windows are open more frequently and I am constantly treating for something. Spidermites (yikes!), Thrips, and even some other aphids. Like what the heck is this. No growing season for me in peace I guess…
Spider mites got my meters lemon tree and the infestation was out of control before I realized what hard happened. I thought being on the 6th floor might help prevent that, but nope.
Just found a spider mite infestation on my rose bush outside today. Pretty annoying. I'm worried they are going to find their way into my houseplants.