It must be spring in the air but I have been cleaning out the house like crazy. As you can imagine I have a ton of plants. I love plants... a lot. However, the house we are renting has the worst natural lighting. Not to mention some huge Chinese Elms that cover the house in absolute shade.
I have a little collection of plants that are enduring my favorite pest the "mealy bug". These awesome insects have been hanging out and almost killing, if not deforming some of my best plants. I have tried everything:
- water + alcohol
- water + soap
- plant oil (this by the way makes your plants so greasy every spec of dust and pet dander will be gathered on your plant)
- pesticide
Unfortunately, a few of the more sensitive type species I think have given up on me and look like they should be trashed. I have decided to stick it out with them though. A friend recommended that once a week I should wrap their pots and roots in plastic and power wash the tops and branches.
So week two and no casualties (cross your fingers my perseverance pays off) well, except the mealy bugs.
In lieu of the pest problem I asked my brother to make me a bench to fit under the one window in the house that gets enough light for succulents and cacti. The bench actually turned out to be more of a huge shelf which has not only freed up all the space my plants were taking up around the house but has also set up my plants with more sun (which they definitely need). Every year, right about spring time I realize my plants need more sun. They get a bit leggy and stretched out.
Here are some pictures of some plants that are doing well:
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| succulent blooming |
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| succulent bloom |
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| succulent bloom |
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| barrel cactus blooms |
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| the only window that gets some light |
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| the new shelf built against the window ledge |
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| my brother building the new shelf |
Until next time panda on.
