| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
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| Prayer Plant | 11/23/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I hope all is well. I have a Prayer Plant, the pretty red-and purple kind. It has been doing ...
A: Tamika, Prayer plants have root that are rhizomes ant in winter with the cooler temps and shorter ...
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| hope philodendron plant | 11/23/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I purchased a hope philodendron 1this past summer, it's been outside in a pot. The temperature has ...
A: Melissa, I assume that you live in a warmer climate if it is just now getting cool enough to take ...
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| thinning dracanea | 11/16/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: My 3 year old Dracaena fragrans, which is kept in indirect light outside, has recently stopped ...
A: Eva, You can cut it back but you have to figure out what the problem is first. It may be a watering ...
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| ficus tree | 11/15/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: picked this up and it's almost dead, the woman had it outside until it got cold here in minnesota. ...
A: Lissa, You don't have to cut anything back yet. Give it a couple of months and let it go. Once it ...
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| stephanotis | 11/14/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: In a resent letter you idenified that Stephaotis has a seed or fruit pod. Can you tell me; can you ...
A: Ree, Stephanotis, or Madagascan jasmine has the most wonderful starry white blooms and an ...
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| house plant | 11/14/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: i have a plant that has jagged edges and it curls as it grows. It also grows little ones on the ...
A: Lisa, The only plant I know that has babies on the edges of it's leaves is kalanchoe ...
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| Kumquat tree | 11/13/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I brought back from california to the washington state a kumquat tree and had it inside for over a 1 ...
A: Tad, The stickiness indicates it has insects, either scale, mealybugs or spider mites. These ...
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| identification | 11/13/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I don't at the moment have a photo but if you don't know from my description I'll try to get one. ...
A: Martha, The plant that comes to mind when reading yur description is Hoya carnosa, also known as ...
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| Maid of Orleans Jasmine | 11/7/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: My jasmine plant became heavily infected with scales. In order to try to save my plant I cut off ...
A: Maria, If you cut off all of the green off of the plant it will probably not regrow. Most of the ...
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| Yucca | 11/7/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have had yucca as house plants for years in London, England. Now in CA they are thriving in the ...
A: Jeannine, The sticy sap is callled honey dew and it is the excrement of insects that are attacking ...
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| calla lily | 11/6/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: i have a calla lily and the leaves keep going yellow the soil is only moist not wet,i keep cutting ...
A: Mark, Calla lilies are bulbs. It may have been blooming for some time before it was purchased for ...
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| Orange Tree's | 11/6/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: This is the second time I am attemting to have these tree's and they appear to be doing the same ...
A: Tammy, It sounds like the trees are getting too much water and not enough sun. To help you better I ...
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| Prune Desert Rose | 11/5/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I live in tropical country, Indonesia, and planted Adenium Obesum seeds two weeks ago. After a week, ...
A: Ari, As long as the seedlings are growing in full sun no pruning should be needed. The plants ...
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| kalanchoe plants | 11/4/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: What type of potting soil is the best to use when I replant my plant? I also have bad luck with ...
A: Maggie, Do not repot your kalanchoe until after April 1st when the days are getting longer. This ...
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| plant identification | 11/3/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I got a plant from my grandmother who has ahlzeimer's and would like to know what it is. It is ...
A: Chris, I have the same plant and have had it for 15 years and have not been able to identify it. I ...
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| dracaena ID and care | 11/3/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have a plant that I bought at an outdoor nursery that I believe is in the Dracaena family. It ...
A: Janice, Your plant is Common name: "Spikes" Latin name: Dracaena indivisa - synonym Cordyline ...
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| Jade Tree Fertilizer | 11/2/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have read all this information on jade trees. Everyone says use a general "Fertilizer". Is Miracle ...
A: Jeff, Miracle Grow is fine for Jade plants. It is a good general fertilizer. I use it on a monthly ...
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| sweet potatoe house plant | 11/2/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: After growing these beautiful plants all summer, I was cleaning out the containers and found these ...
A: Catherine, I wondered the same thing and when I checked on it I was told the taste lousy. Of ...
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| Ponytail Palm | 11/1/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: This was once a beautiful plant with a "full head of hair." We had to leave in the care of my DD ...
A: Kathy, I hope that window it is sitting next to faces south and the window covering is open all ...
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| Dracaena | 11/1/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I was told that you can keep dracaena through the winter by 'sticking them in a pot and bringing ...
A: Barbara, Dracaena are normally house plants that do not go outside. I need to know what type of ...
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| Ponytail Palm | 10/31/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: About 4 months ago , I bought a small Ponytail Palm plant. The plastic pot it was in was broken so ...
A: Carol, It will be fine until spring. If you want you can trim those roots that are coming out the ...
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| rhynchospermum jasminoides | 10/30/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I live in St louis missouri, and I just purchased the above plant from a local chain store. They ...
A: Jane, There are many varieties of jasmine and they are often confused. It could be that you have 2 ...
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| Ponytail Palm | 10/30/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have a ponytail palm and just re-poted it. within 1 week all the leaves had 'rotted?' off! there ...
A: Melissa, You should never repot any houseplant in the fall when the days are getting shorter. You ...
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| majestic palms | 10/29/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: We bought three majestic palms and are not doing so well indoors. I wanted to know if we planted ...
A: Liseth, Yes, they would probably die, they do not like direct sun. Watering is probably your main ...
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| Sad Corn Plant. | 10/29/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I found this plant on the street in the alley. At the time it seemed to look pretty good except for ...
A: Dunia, It was the wrong time of year to repot it. You needed to not repot them, this is the wrong ...
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| fiddle leaf fig | 10/28/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have a fiddle leaf fig that has the brown spots indicative of not being well acclimated to a new ...
A: Erica, I suspect that the marbling on the fig is also the result of insects, not a lack of ...
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| Hibiscus | 10/27/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have two hibiscus tree plants that spent most of the summer outside. I prepared them for indoor ...
A: Christine, How did you prepare them for indoor living for the winter? Mold on top of the soil ...
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| Jasmine | 10/26/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: . My husband bought a Jasmine for my daughter that is named YASMEEN after the flower. Since he got ...
A: Jamila, Put it in a pot that is a little bigger than the root ball but not much bigger. I imagine ...
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| Ficus Lyrata | 10/26/2008 | Tracy |
Q: i have a enormuse ficuselyrata at home(indoor),i like to konw how can i propagate this plant in ...
A: Ficus are plants that usually take a long time to propagate. Even Ficus Benjamina, which is the ...
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| my house plant problem!!! | 10/26/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I have 2-questions please, 1~my wandering jew was in a hanging pot & it was beautiful, seemed like a ...
A: Angelina, Your wandering jew needs lots of sun. When you have it in the hanging basket I suspect it ...
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| Mandevilla Care | 10/25/2008 | Tracy |
Q: I received a beautiful red Mandevilla as a gift last Spring. It flourished outside all summer, ...
A: Mandevilla can tolerate temperatures as low as the high 40s for short periods of time. If the plant ...
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| Goldfish Plant (Nematanthus) | 10/25/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: My plant is doing well, but currently in a resting period. It's nice and full, and the leaves are ...
A: Pam, It has nothing to do with watering. That stickines is called honey dew which is the excrement ...
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| kalanchoe | 10/25/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: (I live in CT so I keep it indoors). When I got it, it was COVERED with blossoms. I did some ...
A: Lisa, Yes, unfortunately, flowers do not last forever. The flowers do generally last a couple of ...
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| personal attachment to ficus | 10/24/2008 | Tracy |
Q: I recently overwatered a ficus I've had for 25 years. Unfortunately, it was not salvageable. I ...
A: Any well draining commercial potting soil would be fine. You can make drainage better by adding a ...
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| spider plant | 10/24/2008 | Tracy |
Q: Are spider plants poisonous to dogs or cats?
A: Some botanical sources have Spider Plants listed as poisonous and some have it listed as a 'safe' ...
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| Leaf spots on Dracaena Fragrans 'Massangeana(Mass Cane) | 10/24/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: Please help me save this beautiful plant! I have bought it ~3-4 weeks ago and it was in great ...
A: Maria, You should be giving it about 2 quarts of water when you water it. That should make all the ...
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| Norfolk Pine | 10/24/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: I bought a potted Norfolk Pine for Christmas last year. It was doing just fine until summer. Now the ...
A: Maura, The parts of the tree that have dry needles and limbs falling off are dead so yes, the tree ...
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| Gnats and Ficus tree | 10/23/2008 | Tracy |
Q: I have a ficus tree in my office and I have little black bugs flying around everywhere! I think ...
A: What you probably have are Fungus Gnats. Fungus Gnats are little flying insects often seen flying ...
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| Jade Plant | 10/23/2008 | Tracy |
Q: I recently moved to a new home and put Jade Plant (Crassula argentea) into a much sunnier spot next ...
A: What probably happened was the plant was given too much light and heat too fast. Jade plants grow ...
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| My Schefflera Plant | 10/23/2008 | Darlene K. Kittle |
Q: Why is it losing leaves?
A: Juanita, Any time a schefflera is not doing well I suspect that it is getting too much water and ...
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