The Money Plant - A Perfect Mothers Day Gift!

Advantages: Incredibly Easy To Grow
Disadvantages: Quite Susceptible To Bugs

...With Mothers Day only a few days away I would have normally been wondering what to buy my Mother, since she seems to have everything, and no matter what I end up buying although I know that she will be grateful it will probably end up being relegated to the back of a cupboard. However this year I have planned early and this year I intend to give her a Jade Plant. I have had a Jade Plant of my own for about four years now and over this time it has grown quite large. The inspiration for the gift came from a passing comment that my Mother made when she visited me a couple of months ago. Initially I had decided to take a cutting from my own Plant and nurture it until it was large enough to give to her but then I realised that it would make an ideal gift for Mother Day for the woman who has everything. WHY THE JADE PLANT? I thought...

micksheff 21.03.2006 · Read review
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Review of Money plant

Perfumed plant for the garden

Advantages: smell sweet look good
Disadvantages: none

...Sweet pea Lathyrus odoratus I am thinking of sowing some sweet peas in the garden soon. I can put the seeds in the soil in the end of September early October. I could wait till April to sow but if I sow now they will flower earlier. The plants tend to be stronger too. I will probably start mine off in a pot then I know where the seeds are but you could put them straight into the garden soil. I shall put the pots in a cold frame. They will be easier to protect against the slugs, snails mice and birds who love them to eat I shall plant them in the growing place in March April time. Sweet peas sweet smell pretty, climbing up fences or trellises. The cut flowers look good in flower decorations or in a summer bride's bouquet I might grow some along side some runner beans up a wigwam in the veggie patch. Sweet peas need...

mumsymary 06.09.2006 · Read review
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Review of Sweet Pea (plant)

The Aluminium Plant

Advantages: Quite Easy To Grow
Disadvantages: Toxic Leaves

...The Aluminium Plant is a fairly common House Plant although many people that are familiar with this Plant will probably not recognise it from its name. I have had one of these Plants sat on my Kitchen Windowsill for the past couple of years, but I only recently discovered exactly what it was. These Plants are native to Vietnam but can be grown indoors in the UK without too much tender loving care. They are grown because of their attractive foliage. The leaves are long and elongated, they are dark-green with a shiny, glossy appearance, but their most striking feature is that these leaves are covered in silver blotches and streaks. It is these silver markings, that resemble Aluminium, from where the Plant derives its common English name. It's Latin or Botanical name is Pilea cadierei. These Plants grow in the form of a shrubby clump...

micksheff 24.01.2007 · Read review
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Review of Aluminium Plant

A House Plant For Beginners!

Advantages: Very Litle Maintenance
Disadvantages: Can Quickly Take Over

...I have never been one to have to too many House Plants in my home, partly because I tend to forget to water them for weeks on end and also because my two Cats like to destroy them. One type of Plant that I have always had however are Spider Plants or to give them their correct Latin name Chlorophytum (or Chlorophyta in the plural). These Plants may not produce beautiful Flowers like many other House Plants but they do add a little bit of colour to my home and more importantly they seem to thrive on neglect. Spider Plants are Indoor Plants that need plenty of daylight but they shouldn't be placed in direct sunlight. I used to keep my oldest Plant on a Window ledge until I noticed that the tips of the edge of the leaves were beginning to get scorched and were turning brown. I now have it proudly displayed on top of a low Cabinet...

micksheff 14.01.2007 · Read review
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Review of Spider Plants

The versatile summer plant

Advantages: varying colours and sizes , deifferent species
Disadvantages: prone to greenfly

...I love to potter around in the garden . While not a novice by any means , I am no Alan Titmarsh , but for the benefit of the Ciao brigade , I thought I would complete a few reviews on my favourite garden plants.....so here goes with choice number 1 - The Dahlia - a bit late in the season , but hey blame ciao for the time it took to get the subject listed . Brief History : The Dahlia family originate from Mexico , and were first introduced into Europe ( actually the Botanical Gardens of Madrid , Spain ) towards the end of the eighteenth century , with three species introduced namely Dahia pinnata , Dahlia rosea and Dahlia coccinea . The name Dahlia was given to the plant in honour of a Swedish scientist turned enviromentalist by the name of Andreas Dahl , by botanist Abbe Caranille , whose authorative work " Icones et...

CaptainKidd 12.10.2004 · Read review
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Review of Dahlia Plant

KILLER PLANTS IN YOUR GARDEN

Advantages: Medicinal benefits from the oil
Disadvantages: The seed pods can kill

...Beware of the Castor oil Plant. Just one seed will kill a small child. It is best not to even keep the plant as a houseplant as the leaves are also slightly toxic. So if you have a castor oil plant in your house or garden and small children visit you are best to give it away. The plant is listed as poisonous with The Royal Horticultural Society Children are naturally curious so don't expect them not to taste different leaves even if they have been told not to. It is part of a young childs curiosity to explore new textures and tastes so nibbling at plants in the garden is quite normal. My own son ended up in hospital due to eating a few deadly nightshade berries which were growing in our hedge so this will explain why I really think any dangerous plants are removed before it is TOO LATE. If you do have this plant in your garden...

COOOEEE 07.05.2002 (08.08.2006) · Read review
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Review of Castor oil Plant

A Plant called Spider

Advantages: A sturdy, fuss-free and versatile plant which is easily propogated.
Disadvantages: Flowers are uninspiring.

...Seventeen years ago this month my husband?s Aunt died. She was a dear lady and her plants were her pride and joy. As we cleared her house I packed as many as I could into the car and brought them home with us. Spider, as he became known, went into the conservatory. Well, it?s not exactly a conservatory, more a sort of lean-too veranda, but ?conservatory? has a rather more elegant ring to it, don?t you think? Well, Spider came in for some healthy neglect pretty well straight away when I spent much of the following months in hospital and it was spring before he got more than the occasional sip of water. He?s a survivor, though and he came through it all. Spider plants, or Chlorophytum, to give them their correct name have been grown indoors for over two hundred years. There?s a good reason for this ? they?re not a fussy plant...

SueMagee 15.09.2001 · Read review
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Review of Spider Plants

For Healthy looking indoor plants...

Advantages: It is very effective in controling pests..
Disadvantages: Can have some minor irritations if one comes into direct contact with the spray..

...ABOUT INDOOR PLANTS Houseplants are popular indoor decorations.Attractive and constantly changing, they add a softness of line and nature indoors..It adds that special something to a room... House Plants add more than beauty and personality to a room - they can actually make your home healthier!! Many, if not most of the materials used to build our homes and offices are loaded with chemicals that are known to cause a variety of health problems in people, including cancer...and house plants are known to offset these toxic effects.. The ideal location of a plant for decoration may not be the ideal spot for plant growth. Lack of adequate light is the most common factor limiting the growth of plants in many areas of ones home. Improper watering is another major cause of most house plant problems.Both under and over watering can...

kiran8 02.09.2008 (15.09.2008) · Read review
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Review of Baby Bio Indoor Plant Spray

An easy plant to grow

Advantages: Needs little care
Disadvantages: None

...You may have a sempervivum on your rockerty , You might call it a house leek. This range of plants belong to the family Crassulaceae I was at my dads yesterday and noticed he had several.A good way for you to identify one is that the succlant leaves grow in rosetes a mature sempervivum has many of these rosettes.The rosettes grow low on the garden The leaves that make up these rosettes can be green , yellow or red . This species has flowers but after a rosette has produced a flower it dies , however this is not before one or more new rosettes of leaves have been made. A common name for a Sempervivum is hens and chicks, the chicks being the new rosettes. The flowers are small and starshaped having 8 to 16 petals, The flowers are usually a pink colour, the leaf rosettes do not produice flowers everyyear . These plants are...

mumsymary 22.04.2007 · Read review
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Review of Alpine Plant Sempervivums

Such an easy and rewarding house plant

Advantages: With minimal care it will grow and look great
Disadvantages: It grows very fast

...Money plants are quite distinctive with their thick stalks, tree-like growth and fat, fleshy leaves that feel waxy to the touch. The visual appeal is not universal, some people remark how ugly it is while others say how nice it looks. I wasn't too conviced either way, I only tried to grow one since it was given to me as a present, but the little pot with three short twigs in it quickly turned in to one of my favourite house plants. Like most succulents their requirements are undemanding and the range of environments they can live in wide. As natives to hot dry climates they handle the artificial indoor environment easily. The thick fleshy leaves store water, thus the plant is not dependant on perfect watering to keep it green and healthy. Humidity is not important either, if they can survive growing in South Africa then they...

Oktober84 24.06.2005 · Read review
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Review of Money plant