Plants

[laceblade]

I haven't had much luck with plants. I made some type of succulent plant last for about a year, from Trader Joe's, before it died. I have a lucky bamboo plant, but that's slowly dying as well, and I'm not sure how to spruce it up.

Undaunted, though, I went to the UW plant sale yesterday and purchased an English Ivy plant and a Pink Polka Dot Plant. None of those pictures really do the pink polka dot plant justice. Mine has green leaves and brilliant red spots, almost neon.

Anyway, so I'm looking for advice.

Both plants came in plastic planter thingies....Am I supposed to take them out of the plastic and put them in a pot? Or keep them in the planter and just rest it inside of a pot?

The pink polka dot is supposed to get "bright indirect light." What the hell does that mean? Set it on top of my bookshelf near the window? Or elsewhere in my apartment where light sort of reaches eventually?

Am I supposed to use fertilizer, in addition to watering them? I'm already planning on getting a spray bottle so that I can "mist" the red polka dot.

Oh yeah, and what does "pinch back to prevent legginess" mean? Is a plant leggy if it grows to tall? Does pinching it mean snapping a stem with my fingers instead of cutting it with a scissors?

Comments

[littlebutfierce]

I could totally be wrong on that one! It's just what I've been told every time I try to sustain plant life in my apartment. ;) It makes sense to me, tho', that people selling plants would put them in the smallest pots possible, b/c to go any bigger would cut into their profit margin or whatever. Heh.