Vicks Plant

Common name: Vicks Plant, Succulent Coleus

Scientific name: Plectranthus tomentosa

Vicks Plant is a perennial with leaves that smell like Vick’s Vap-O-Rub or mentholatum when crushed. The light green, succulent, opposite leaves are broadly ovate, and are densely covered with short hairs. Purple blooms start in early spring and again in the fall.

Care tips:

• Water once a week.
• Need full sun to partial shade or high interior lighting with a well-drained soil mix.

The Spider Plant

Common names: Spider Plant, Airplane Plant

Scientific name: Chlorophytum comosum

The Spider Plant is a species of Chlorophytum native to South Africa. Spider plants have long narrow leaves, which grow from a central rosette. It also produces branched stolons with small white flowers and baby plantlets.

It is a very popular houseplant. The most widely grown is the variegated cultivar ‘Variegatum‘, with one or two broad yellowish-white bands running along the length of each leaf, but natural, entirely green plants are also grown.

It is an especially popular plant with beginners, as it is easy to grow and propagate and is very tolerant of neglect, being able to thrive in nearly any type of condition. Spider plants have also been shown to reduce indoor air pollution. Spider plants also grow well in hanging baskets.

Care tips:

• Drown with water once a week.
• Grows well in light shade.
• Able to grow under fluorescent lighting.

The Elephant Plant

Common names: Small Leaf Jade, Elephant Plant

Scientific name: Portulacaria afra

Synonym: Crassula portulacaria

This Jade is also used for bonsais and is native to South Africa. It can grow into a softly woody, sprawling shrub or small (~4m) tree if not trimmed, and can grow very fast in good conditions. The small leaf jade has smaller leaves than the Crassula ovata (as its name implies) and thus can be trimmed more intricately as a bonsai. It does need protection from freezing in the winter, and can bloom small star-shaped pink to purple flowers.

Care tips:

• Drown with water once every 1-2 weeks.
• Grows well in full sun to light shade (loves bright warm windows such as those facing south).

The Dragon Trees

Common names: Madagascar Dragon Tree, Red Edged Dracaena, Dragon Tree

Scientific name: Dracaena marginata

There are 5 different types of Dracaena marginata on the market today. The green variety, the tri-color, the bi-color, Colorama, and Magenta. The plants that have color in their names are varying shades of green, white, pink, and reds. Magenta has burgundy colored foliage that may turn green if under low light.

The Dragon Tree is a popular houseplant that needs little attention. It requires a minimum temperature of 59F (15°C), and is more tolerant than most plants of dry soil and irregular watering, though liable to root decay in permanently wet soil. Because it requires minimal care it is very popular in offices where the constant heat and light suits their growing requirements.

It is one of the plants used in the NASA Clean Air Study and has shown to help remove formaldehyde.

Care tips:

• Water once a week. Allow the soil to dry to the touch about 1/3 down the pot.
• Under-watered plants will shed a large amount of totally yellow leaves from the lower portion of the head.
• Over-watered plants will have leaves that are yellow from the tip all towards the stem.
• Grows well in bright light to light shade. Do not put under the sun.
• Feed only once a year, the Dracaena family does not like to be fertilized.

The Monarch Fern

Common name: Wart Fern, Monarch Fern, Maile-scented Fern, Laua‘e, Lauwa‘e

Scientific name: Microsorum scolopendria

Synonyms: Phymatodes scandens, Phymatodes scolopendria, Polypodium scolopendria, Microsorum grossum, Phymatosorus grossus

Microsorum scolopendria is widespread in the Old World, occurring from Australia, throughout Polynesia and Asia and extending to Madagascar and Africa. In Africa it occurs from the west to the east coast of South Africa and as far south as Port St. Johns. In South Africa it mostly occurs in dune forests and dune scrub, near sea level.

Care tips:

• This is a hardy species and is easy to cultivate in a wide range of habitats.
• It is best cultivated outdoors in light shade, but it will also tolerate direct sunlight for part of the day. In older gardens it often establishes on brick or stone walls, or on trees, especially palms.
• Although it will tolerate short, dry spells it is best cultivated in conditions which remain constantly moist.
• Water once a week.

Star Sedum

Common names: Gold Moss, Stringy Stonecrop, Graveyard Moss, Star Sedum

Scientific name: Sedum sarmentosum

The Star Sedum is considered invasive because it grows very well anywhere and spreads everywhere if not planted properly. This little succulent does well both as a groundcover and as a hanging basket.

Care tips:

• Water once a week
• Requires full to partial sun

Rex Begonias

Rex begonias are the showboats of the begonia world and are a type of rhizomatous begonia that are grown for their multicolored leaves. The leaves come in every color, pattern and shade, and every size and shape. All Rex Cultorum types are descended from the Indian species Begonia rex that was crossed with other types of rhizomatous begonias.

Begonia ‘Fairy’

Begonia ‘Jabberwocky’

Begonia ‘Tiger Kitten’

Rhizomatous Begonias

The rhizomatous begonias are grown mostly for their interesting leaves and compact growth. Most rhizomatous begonias are spring blooming but there are a few that bloom all year. They range in size from tiny miniatures to large plants like B. ‘Freddie’ that can have 3 foot leaves under optimum conditions. The plants can also grow very large across but don’t reach great height, because they grow from rhizomes that creep along the ground.

The rhizomatous types are popular all across the country. Some types of rhizomatous have intricate patterns on their leaves in almost any earth tone color, some are hairy leaved, some are round and shiny, and some are star shaped.

Begonia ‘Bethlehem Star’

Lettuce Leaf Begonia, Begonia ‘Bunchii’

Begonia ‘Bushmaster’

Begonia China Doll

Begonia ‘Freddie’

Begonia hydrocotylifolia

Begonia ‘Hyroglyphics’

Dwarf Begonia ‘Leprechaun’

Begonia peltata

 

Cane Begonias

Cane begonias have been popular plants for many years. People commonly known them as “Angel Wing” begonias. There are several types of canes in varying sizes but they all have in common tough stems that have a bamboo-like appearance, and flowers that are in large clusters.

Cane begonias are most popular in the southern states where they are grown outdoors in frost free areas but they can also be grown well indoors or in a greenhouse. Many hybrid cane begonias have silver spotted/splashed leaves and some have different serrated edges.

Cane begonias present in the greenhouse:

Begonia ‘Crackling Rose’

Begonia ‘Hot Tamale’

Begonias

Begonia is a genus in the flowering plant family Begoniaceae. “Begonia” is the common name as well as the generic name for all members of the genus.

With more than 1500 species, Begonia is one of the ten largest angiosperm genera. The species are terrestrial, sometimes epiphytic, herbs or undershrubs and occur in subtropical and tropical moist climates, in South and Central America, Africa and southern Asia.

Terrestrial species in the wild are commonly upright-stemmed, rhizomatous, or tuberous. In most species the fruit is a winged capsule containing numerous minute seeds. The leaves are often large and variously marked or variegated; they are also asymmetrical. Because of their sometimes showy flowers of white, pink, scarlet or yellow color and often attractively marked leaves, many species and innumerable hybrids and cultivars are cultivated.

Begonias have relatively the same care information: water it once a week; give it bright indirect light; make sure the water is porous; do not allow the plant to sit in standing water.
We have a large number of begonias in the greenhouse, donated from American Begonia Society (ABS), that are not for sale because they’re still too young/small to start propagating.

The ABS classifies begonias into 8 groups: cane-like, shrub-like, tuberous, rhizomatous, semperflorens, rex, trailing-scandent, or thick-stemmed. (Click on the group links for more info. about the begonias in the greenhouse)

A list of all the identified rare begonias in greenhouse:

• Begonia fuchsioides
• Begonia hydrocotylifolia
• Begonia peltata
• Begonia rex ‘Tiger Kitten’
• Begonia rex-cultorum ‘Fairy’
  
• Begonia ‘Bethlehem Star’
• Begonia ‘Bunchii’
• Begonia ‘Bushmaster’
• Begonia ‘China Doll’
• Begonia ‘Crackling Rose’
• Begonia ‘Freddie’
  
• Begonia ‘Jabberwocky’
• Begonia ‘Hot Tamale’
• Begonia ‘Hyroglyphics’
• Begonia ‘Leprechaun’