Indoor Plants

1
Indoor Plants
2
Selecting Indoor Plants

• Indoor potted plants are an important segment of
  the items for sale in the retail shop

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Selecting Indoor Plants

• Potted plants are sometimes preferred to cut
  flowers because they last longer

4
Selecting Indoor Plants

• Many customers who send flowers may choose a
  potted plant so that the recipient may enjoy it
  longer

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Selecting Indoor Plants

• Customers want to be educated about the plants
  that they select.

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Plant Names

• Identified by both common and scientific names
• The name given to a plant be people living in the
  area is its common name

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Plant Names

• Common name may reflect some unusual
  characteristic of the plant or a specific use.

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Plant Names

• Common names may be confusing as a plant may be
  known by several common names.

9
Plant Names

• Common names may be regional. The same plant,
  called by different names if different parts of
  the country
• Scientific names are often used in selling potted
  plants.

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Plant Names

• Scientific names come form the classification
  system based on how plants are related to each
  other.

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Plant Names

• System was developed by a Swedish botanist named
  Linneaus in 1743

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Plant Names

• This system is still in use today.
• All living things are divided into two kingdoms
  plant or animal

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Plant Names

• Each division is broken into classes and each
  class into subclasses or orders

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Plant Names

• The breakdown continues through family, genus,
  species and varieties.

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Plant Names

• The name given to a plant in each category is
  always in Latin or Greek, with the exception of
  the variety name.

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Plant Names

• Each of the plant categories is called a taxon
• A group of plant categories is called a taxa

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Plant Names

• Taxa are divided into minor or major taxa.
  Horticulturists are most concerned with the minor
  taxa.

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Plant Names

• The binomial naming system includes the genus
  taxon and the species taxon.
• There are international rules which dictate the
  naming of plants.

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Plant Names

• Rules stipulate that when a name is given to a
  plant it cannot be used for any other plant

20
Light requirements

• Most customers give little thought to the light
  requirements of the plant that they purchase.
  They are more concerned by its appearance and
  price

21
Light requirements

• Sales people need to educate the consumer about
  the plant they are purchasing including its
  environmental requirements

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Light requirements

• High light- these plants grow best in full sun or
  bright, indirect light such as that found in or
  near sunlit windows or places where there is
  strong reflected light.

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Light requirements

• Medium light - grow best in bright, but sunless,
  window, or four to eight feet from a sunny window.

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Light requirements

• Low light - grow well with indirect light, such
  as that in a shaded window, or at a point more
  than eight feet from a bright window

25
Watering

• More plants die form over watching than any other
  cause.
• Each plant has individual watering needs. The
  proper frequency is not constant

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Watering

• Watering depends on the size of the plant, the
  size of the container, the environment, and the
  time of year.

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Watering

• determine if the plant needs water by scratching
  the top 1/2 inch of the soil surface

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Moisture Requirements

• dry-in-winter plants Desert Cacti and succulents
• should be treated as moist dry plants during the
  growing season

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dry-in-winter

• from spring to fall
• during the winter, the soil should be allowed to
  dry out almost completely between waterings

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Moist/dry plants

• water thoroughly and frequently between spring
  and fall
• water sparingly in winter
• let top 1/2 inch dry out between waterings

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Moist but not wet plants

• most flowering plants belong to this group
• soil is kept moist but not wet at all times

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Moist but not wet plants

• water carefully each time the surface dries
• never frequently enough to keep soil saturated

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Wet at all times plants

• very few plants belong in this group
• water thoroughly and frequently enough to keep
  the soil wet, not merely moist

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Rule of Thumb

• in the winter check the soil surface weekly to
  see if it is dry
• in the summer, the soil surface should be checked
  daily

35
Cacti

• in the winter, leave cacti and succulents alone
  unless there are signs of shriveling
• keep in a cool room

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Drenching

• watering the plant until water runs out the
  bottom
• if plants are sitting in drip trays, empty the
  tray after 30 minutes to keep plant from becoming
  too wet

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Drenching

• helps to remove salt build up from the soil
• drenching is easily done in the tub or shower

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Permanent or temporary plants

• some plants are not expected to live forever
• this needs to be explained to customers

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Temporary plants

• are purchased to be enjoyed for a short time and
  then discarded
• some can be made to bloom again

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Gift Plants

• fall into the temporary category
• examples are azalea, gloxinia, cyclamen,
  chrysanthemum, poinsettia, Easter lily

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Temporary

• garden bulbs such as tulips and daffodils
• can be later planted in the owners garden to
  bloom again next spring.

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Temporary

• most plants in this group - the flowers will fade
  and after a few weeks the leaves will fall

43
Blooming plants

• African Violet and Peace Lily
• bloom continuously or cycle throughout the year

44
Blooming plants

• may have attractive foliage when not in bloom
• these would be considered permanent plants.