For indoor gardeners, a little effort will go a long way

Every year as garden writers across the land transition into the indoor growing season, there is a rash of columns with titles like "The Five Easiest Houseplants to Grow" or "Five Houseplants That Thrive on Neglect." You have undoubtedly come across your share this fall.

You all know the list: philodendron, spider plant, aloe, jade, dracaena, mother-in-law's tongue, kalanchoe, pathos, English Ivy, oxalis and echeveria. I am sure if I thought a bit more about it that I could come up with another half dozen, at least.

[Here's why you should be growing plants indoors this winter]

Surely, it is a good thing for all Alaskans to be able to have houseplants and if the only way you can do so is to fall back on the really, really, really easy ones to grow, go right ahead. Just realize that with a tiny bit of effort, you could do so much better.

Take the epiphyliums, the same family of plants that includes those so called "holiday cacti" (Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter cacti). There are hundreds of varieties of kalanchoe that produce some of the most spectacular, not to mention biggest, flowers you can grow indoors. Each and every one would make the list of houseplants that thrive on neglect except for the fact that they won't bloom if you don't provide them with the proper number of hours of light (or darkness) and a drop in temperature at night. Neither is hard to provide, but they do take some effort, so you don't find them on the lists. That is a shame.

Amaryllis would be on the list too, except for the fact that you really need to give these bulb plants a dormant period in a cool area to get the plant to re-bloom. The effort is mostly in exercising your memory: remembering that you put your plant into storage and need to get it out. The results are, again, guaranteed blooms and some of the biggest you can grow. And the effort is not great.

Orchids too, would be on the easiest-to-grow list, but for the need for a 10-degree drop in temperature at night to induce blooming. In addition, you have to water the air roots that stick out of the pot so that they can soak up the moisture. There is a tremendous amount of mystery surrounding growing orchids, but there is not really much of an effort required to be successful — just enough to keep these worthy plants off the five-easiest lists. Again, this is a shame.

You never see cacti on these lists. The only extra effort with these is in repotting, which can obviously be tricky (make a newspaper strap to hold the plant). Pelargonium (aka "geraniums," both regular and scented) too, are never on the list. Yet they were among the earliest houseplants and will even bloom in the middle of the winter. Yes, you have to prune them back to keep them from getting leggy, but that isn't much work at all.

And, what about papyrus? You put it in water and it just grows. Why could be easier? The effort here is in finding a plant and so it isn't on everyone's easy-to-grow houseplant list. Still, once you get one, nothing is easier to grow. I would put crown of thorns into the same category: hard to find, but a really easy and great houseplant once you do.

Norfolk Island pines require a bit of humidity, and if it isn't provided they will lose bottom limbs. Perhaps this is why these are not on anyone's list. Getting the humidity right does take some effort in many Alaska homes. Still, once that is provided, you get a great, and sometimes big, houseplant. I put Boston ferns in this category as well. Easy, once you get the humidity up.

I had a lantana that I grew from a cutting taken in Florida from my mother-in-law. It survived for more than 20 years indoors in Alaska and flowered all the time. All I had to do was make sure it got enough heat and learn how to win the battle against white fliesb which really favor these plants. Once done, we had a real winner and you will too.

Hey, I almost forgot hoyas. The effort there is to keep them happy in a small pot so they get root-bound. Not a lot of work there!

The point I am trying to make is that there are lots of plants that require no effort to maintain, sure, but what fun is that? Sticking to these might make you a successful houseplant owner, but what fun is there in just taking a plant home and letting it grow. Step up your game just a tiny bit and you can really increase your range when it comes to indoor growing. Do a bit of work. What the heck! You are a gardener (or homardener).

Jeff’s Alaska Garden Calendar

Watering: Now that the heat in on in the house, adjust your watering patterns.

Bug watch: Keep a sharp eye out for critters on your plants. Get them now and you will succeed. Let them get a foothold and you won't.

No to bird feeders: The recent bear mauling in Seward is a good reminder that the bears are are still awake and you should not fill bird feeders yet.

Nurseries: Visit your favorites if they are still open. Support them and they will support you.

Poinsettias: If you are going to try and force yours, start now: 13 hours of total and complete darkness every night.