Sage Garden Blog
Succulents make such wonderful, funky houseplants... but winter care indoors does have a few challenges. Check out these easy tips to help keep your succulents flourishing rather than disappointing you!
1) Lots of light. Although succulents are generally lumped into the "low maintenance" category, most varieties do require the brightest location available indoors. This rule of thumb is particularly true of succulents with rosette style leaves, such as sempervivum, echeveraia, graptoveria and aeonium selections. Not only will these plants be healthier in more light, they often look significantly more saturated when getting all of the sun they crave.
Houseplants can brighten your day
Ever notice just how good it feels to be surrounded by plants? I sure do and as we can see on Instagram - or observe in our homes, offices, public spaces and even some institutional settings - many people relate to the positivity that comes from being in proximity to greenery. When you think about this, even in the context of the massive renaissance houseplants are experiencing at the moment, humans hooking up with plants is nothing new; think about all of the ancient public gardens, Victorian hot houses, healing asylums in the countryside and other centuries-old examples of humans going out of our way to cozy up to cultivated botanicals.
Getting ready for the indoor garden
Now that we have had some cooler nights... even light frost in parts of Manitoba, many gardeners are thinking about the transition to indoors. Here are a few ideas to help you organize for this next season:
Zones tell us a lot. The zone hardiness info that we often reference when thinking about perennials also helps identify the best plants to grow indoors through winter. As a general rule, evergreen plants from high zones (9 - 11) are the easiest to keep through winter, as they naturally want to grow year round in warm conditions. Lower zone plants (1 - 4) really need a significant cold period, and do best when planted into the outdoor garden for winter. Annuals (yes, that includes most types of basil) really do not transition indoors as houseplants, as they often require long daylight hours and finish their life cycle as they flower at then end of their first season. With this information in hand, it is much easier to succeed with bringing summer plants indoors.
How to grow coffee beans... at home!
There is a remarkable undertaking quietly unfolding in prairie homes right now, one you do not hear about every day nor see very often... but the local participants have a really cool trick up their collective selves: they are growing their own coffee beans, right here on the cold prairies!
Why I vacuumed my plants today!
I am a pretty big fan of the low maintenance approach to plant care. In fact, as just another busy person who also loves plants, I definitely admit to looking for ways to ignore my houseplants' needs as much as possible. My potted plants get the wonderfully simple, every three months Jobe's Organic Spikes and I prefer plants that thrive on water once per week or less. But I also find huge satisfaction in those little chores that allow me a good visit with my plants, and also yield a real sense of "refresh". Vacuuming is just one of those tasks!
How to get over wintered poinsettias to turn red for the holidays
Although - sadly - the vast majority of poinsettias get tossed out after the holidays, there are those who like to keep them going as a house and patio plant. That's cool!
There is a very simple but specific process required to get the top growth to turn holiday red, if you have an over wintered plant.
Here are the three key steps:
There is a very simple but specific process required to get the top growth to turn holiday red, if you have an over wintered plant.
Here are the three key steps:
Growing cinnamon in pots
Funny how obsessions go. When I was about fourteen I spent a summer at the most amazing farm in Maitland, Nova Scotia. This was a herb farm set on a quaint property over looking the Bay of Fundy, where the World’s highest tides rush in and out for what seems like miles... amazing. The farm produced greenhouse bedding plants and herbs, as well as oodles of fresh cut basil and ornamental kale for restaurants. The soil was red clay and these growers made deep use of the fertile dirt in all of their pots, and part of my job was to dig, and dig and dig.
Tips for growing Christmas Cactus (and getting them to bloom!)
I bet you have had one of these in home over the years! Christmas Cactus are very long-lived classic houseplants - and often passed down through family or as gift to young adults moving into a new apartment or first home. Not to mention they are popular in offices and other public spaces! All this because Christmas Cactus can be very good companions... and spectacular when in bloom.
How to store non-hardy bulbs indoors for winter?
A very common inquiry from gardeners has to do with storing bulbs such as Canna and Calla Lilies. These are are valuable bulbs and a category of plant that is next to impossible to purchase from organic sources; by saving your own plants you can multiply your stock and support ecological stewardship by avoiding the re-purchase of chemical-intensive products... not to mention save yourself money!
Tips for wintering rosemary indoors
We are happy to offer an over wintering service for lavender and rosemary plants, as we can provide the plants with the sunny yet cool conditions they prefer through winter. But what if you really want to keep yours on hand to harvest right through the winter?