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House Plants
SOIL
Given otherwise ideal conditions, good plants cannot be grown without good
soil. The assumption that each kind requires a special type of soil is wrong.
Plants adapt themselves readily to various soils, providing they can manufacture
food from such raw materials as soil nutrients and water. A good mixture
is composed of one-half garden loam, one-quarter clean, sharp, coarse sand
and one-quarter peat. The loam represents any soil containing considerable
clay and some humus. Sand is necessary to provide drainage and prevent caking
and packing.
Peat supplies water-holding capacity and some plant food. Sandy
soils, as such, will not require the addition of sand when preparing a soil
mixture. Often the easiest and best way to be assured of the proper soil
is to purchase prepared soil from a florist, garden supply or variety store.
The addition of half a teaspoon of a complete plant food to a 6-inch pot
of soil is beneficial when the soil is mixed. This supplies the necessary
nutrients for a while. A complete food is one which contains a balanced ration
of the various important elements which are necessary for plant growth. (It
is complete if it contains nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in a 1:1 :1
ratio.)
Various brands of plant food are on the market and many are desirable. Some
are better than others by virtue of the proportions of the elements contained
and the type of materials in which these elements are carried. Purchase inorganic
fertilizer strictly on the basis of cost per total units present. If the ratio
is 10-10-10, then it contains 30 units per pound, which divided into the cost,
gives the value per unit. Purchase fertilizer with the lowest unit cost.
Usually plants bought from a reliable store are potted in a mixture which requires
no immediate addition of fertilizer. Later when the supply of the available
nutrient material becomes exhausted, fertilizers in concentrated form may be
obtained and applied in accordance with the directions given. Such fertilizers
or plant foods are available in many convenient forms, such as liquids, tablets
and soluble dry fertilizers. Regardless of the type used, never feed a dry
plant; always be sure the soil is moist before feeding.
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