Indoors garden

Ivy - see update (below)

Yesterday, was filled with new tasks I've set myself recently. All to do with bringing the outside, inside. Or creating space for indoor plants. It's something I've been researching and wanting to do (successfully) for a while. In the past, I've failed at keeping plants alive. So I haven't rushed into filling my house with plants again. Not until I was confident, I had the crucial information required.

Above is a cutting I took from some Hedera Helix, or common ivy varegated wax vine. I'm experimenting with rooting in water. The plant I removed it from, has lived in my shade house for about 2 years. It was destined to come inside, as I love the trailing vines. Plus coming inside, would ensure it received more attention than the shade house.

New pot (right)

I've removed it from the original pot, and soaking in a jug of water. The new pot I'm transplanting it to, isn't much bigger than the original. It's healthier for potted roots, if they don't have a lot of extra soil. Too much can lead to water logging, and root-rot. So no bigger than an inch, extra (all around the pot) is recommended, when repotting.

I recycle all my pots, from plants I've purchased previously. So I'm rarely without options, when it comes to potting plants. It doesn't matter if the pots are ugly on the outside either, because you can always put them in a nice, cover pot or basket to hide it. I will be doing this in future.

Colourful leaves

New leaves are red, and I love the variegated foliage too. Obviously, it received a lot of indirect light, in the shade house, so we'll have to see if it assimilates indoors. Sometimes a plant can lose it's leaves, while assimilating to a new location. It doesn't mean the plant is dying. It may just need to form new leaves, for the new location.

I will be watching my plant, and if it looks like dropping leaves, I can always take it back outside for a few days, and transition it slower, to inside. I didn't realise this is something you should do with plants. I always assumed if my plant was dropping leaves, it was from not being a good enough plant mummy. But sometimes plants just need to transition, between the different light levels. Especially coming from outside, to inside.

Next to a south-facing window

Southern Hemisphere

This will be the new location, for now. I'll observe how it responds to the new light levels. Some plants are more demanding of light, than others. Ivy Variegated wax vine, prefers bright, indirect sunlight. I may have to experiment with different locations, inside the house. But it's a good idea to move ivy variegated wax vine, regularly as it can get tangled in items it attempts to climb.

There was another task I was meaning to perform, since the beginning of September. I received two scion cuttings in the mail, from The Lost Seed.

Alive, but dormant

They've been living in the fridge crisper, until I decided what to do with them. The intention was to graft them directly onto my Clapp's Favourite, pear trees. To help with pollination. But they were far too small to fit any of the branches. And in our heat and lack of rainfall, I would need a much bigger cutting, to survive the grafting process.

So I decided I was going to root them in potting mix, instead.

Grow my pretties!

I created a mini greenhouse, to keep up the humidity, using a recycled drink bottle. It lives on my window sill, near the sink - overlooking the kitchen garden. I visit the sink multiple times a day, so observing it's progress, won't be a problem. If nothing else, visiting the kitchen sink has become a lot more enjoyable.

There are other indoors plants I have to share, which involve some recycling too. One in particular, which is near and dear, to my heart. All to inspire my life with plants again. It may be too dry outside for a main garden, but I can attempt small samples of greenery, inside. All while being mindful of limited water. What can I say? It's Spring. I need my plant fix!

I imagine my northern hemisphere readers, will be looking to move some of their outdoors plants, inside, over the next few months too. Do you have any recycling ideas, you like to use with plants - indoors, or out?

UPDATE: The learning curve continues. Thanks to Bev's comments, I realised my ivy isn't REAL ivy. It's called a variegated wax vine. More tolerant of hotter, drier conditions. Dies off, with frost too. So unlike common ivy! A passable look alike though.