[New shoot]

Anyone else got the Readybrek glow this evening? This was my haul from the allotment today - leeks and rainbow chard



Sorry piccie is a bit dark - as you can see the rain had started lashing down by that point 

[Yorkie]

I congratulate you, particularly on that very fine orchid 

[New shoot]

That's a rescue case from work  I'm trying to overcome my fear of houseplants. I can usually get anything to grow outside, but black thumbs when it comes to plants inside 

[Yorkie]

 

I have lots of Christmas cacti plants and a lemon scented geranium.

All thrive on neglect and very little water.  I do try to kill off the geranium but mum visits every few months and gives it some more water 

I don't try anything more complicated as I, too, have no green inclinations indoors really!

[New shoot]

I have a spider plant with many babies that seems almost indestructable if you want a few to grow on Yorkie.

It's a back to front one - white stripes on the outside of the leaves and green in the middle - instead of the usual way round. Was given to me by our houseplant lady with the words ' if you can kill that I give up'   

[sunshineband]

Guess what New Shoot -- I have just this minute mentioned you in a post for a thread about potato onions, gone back to 'new posts' and your was top of the list.

That's quite a coincidence in my book 

PS the orchid does look fab.

[New shoot]

Thanks Sunshineband - Ive posted back so sion can get some potato onions to try. 

The orchid has been in flower for about 3 months now. I'd recommend them to any houseplant phobic. I am seriously death to all houseplants so if I can grow it anyone can    I am a philistine but I was so in love with my beautiful rainbow chard it only got in the pic as a needed to point the phone up at the window to get enough light     

[sunshineband]

You can keep that orchid going for ages yet, and when it seems to have no more little buds growing at the end of the shoot, cut the main stem off down to the next leaf scale thingy and it should grow a new flower shoot out from here 

The odd splash of tomato fertiliser will help it along --- just a little bit mind every few weeks (or you could buy posh orchid fertiliser  )

You might have known this though -- you did mention being a bit of a (previous  ) housle plants phobic 

[Yorkie]

I have a spider plant with many babies that seems almost indestructable if you want a few to grow on Yorkie.

It's a back to front one - white stripes on the outside of the leaves and green in the middle - instead of the usual way round. Was given to me by our houseplant lady with the words ' if you can kill that I give up'   

 

Thanks but no thanks.

I spent my first year at Uni stopping one housemate deliberately killing another's spider plants (with her permission! - they survive very well when dropped from a 4th floor balcony  )

I reckon that's my services to spider plants done for the lifetime 

[hillbilly]

That's a rescue case from work  I'm trying to overcome my fear of houseplants. I can usually get anything to grow outside, but black thumbs when it comes to plants inside 

So glad someone else has this problem  . I even killed the aspidistra! The spider plant is carrying on stoically, though  .
(PS The leeks and chard look good as well as the orchid!)

[New shoot]

I repotted my spider plant Hillbilly and it has gone mad. If it gets much bigger I may have to have a cull of the babies. Like Yorkie I am squeemish about killing perfectly healthy plants, but there are limits 

Thanks for the orchid advice Sunshineband.  My other moth orchid - a white one - has only 1 flower left but is growing a new flower stem from the base of the plant. I dunk it once a week in tepid water (a la houseplant lady's instructions) and I have a wizzy spray feed you apply to the leaves and aerial roots weekly which seems to keep it happy. Do you think if I cut the old stem down I'll get 2 lots of flowers, or is that just being greedy