Sunday, October 20, 2002		Garden Life

Lend a touch of green to the festive decor
Satish Narula

THE more the colours on a plant the more attractive it is. Peculiar spotting and splashes of colour enhance the beauty of an indoor plant manifold. Bring the colours of nature indoors by selecting any of the following plants to liven up your home this festive season.

One of the sturdiest is the begonia. It has the advantage of both floral and foliage beauty. There are hundreds of varieties to choose from. The only thing that the begonia does not like is standing water, as it causes its roots to rot rapidly. Wilting of even old plants is not ruled out. But at the same time, the plant has immense power to recover. In any such eventuality, promptness is the key word. Take corrective measures like draining away excess water and the plant will revive. The plant is essentially a shade lover that likes moist, humid conditions but no water-logging.

Caladiums have randomly scattered white or red spots or have red coloured, heart-shaped central foliage. They love shade, warmth and moisture. The only drawback with this plant is that it goes to sleep in winter. At that time its tubers are extracted and stored in a warm and dry place. But it is not a compulsory operation. When grown in shady beds they disappear as the temperature falls and reappear as the weather gets warmer, that is, during February-March. It is a good choice for hillocks in a shady corner of the garden.

Gardeners must also include some of the plants that pose a challenge because achieving success in such cases wins them respect. Try and get some pots ready of maranta and calathea, two closely related variegated ornamental plants. Also known as the prayer plant, one of the maranta species, not many know, was being grown commercially for its thick starchy roots. At night this plant rolls its leaves to point upwards, hence the name. Both these plants grow well in the typical conditions prevailing in tropical rainforests where there is plenty of moisture, humidity and occasional flash of a ray of light.

The basic difference between the two is that while the maranta likes the indoors, the calatheas grow best in the portico or under the green shade net. The calathea has hard-to-develop roots. This plant, can keep growing in the same pot for many years. It can be propagated, like the maranta, through the division of roots, but unlike the maranta, it should first be allowed to establish its roots for a year or two before it is multiplied. The other plants that can spruce up the indoors this season include the peperomia, pilea, alocasia, aglaonema, acalypha, dracaena and fittonia.