I’ve been rather busy lately, as you may have gathered from my lack of posting. The weeks have flown by, and I’ve tried to take time to enjoy my hobbies, like caring for my plants. While I have no shortage of things growing outside now, I really adore my houseplants. They are worthy of hovering, of checking in on almost daily which I’m just not inclined to do once a plant moves outside.
Last year I went down the rabbit hole of starting houseplants from seed. I had logical reasons for doing so, like trying to sell them at last year’s farmers’ market, and of course, growing my collection with plants that I didn’t currently grow. I spent quite awhile looking on the Plantflix website. There were plenty of choices, but I had my heart set on ponytail palms. I’ve always wanted one. Beyond their endearing name, they have the cutest chunky trunks with a sprig of grassy green leaves cascading like a fountain out of the top. I figured it would be a great way to grow a couple for myself and have some to sell.
I read up on what it takes to grow them and what I’d need. I started them last March, and it’s still fairly cold in the house then. So, I equipped myself with a seed starting heat mat and grow light. I used old leftover containers, the ones with black plastic bottoms and clear tops that you can’t recycle, as their home. I used a regular potting mix, which I amended to coco coir this year because the potting soil did wind up causing some bacterial growth last time. I soaked ten of the seeds overnight and then planted them, expecting that a few would pop up. I was completely surprised when all ten germinated! They were doing great, but I had planned to be away for two weeks shortly after they popped up, so I arranged for a neighbor to check in on them while I was away. They grew at a good and steady pace, but I realized pretty quickly that I had missed one crucial fact about the species…..ponytail palms are very slow growing. The plants that I thought would be ready to sell over the summer were still comically small, looked nothing like their adult selves, and really only appealed to someone like me who wanted to watch them grow and develop, very slowly. The good news was that I was enjoying them, and had plenty of windowsill space for all of their small pots once they graduated from the takeout container. I joked with my daughter (who is ten years old) that they’ll be ready to decorate her college dorm room.
Maybe how they’ll look in ten years? Photo from Bloomscape
This year, most of them have developed tiny trunks, or caudexes, which make them even cuter. I gave one to my friend Maria because I trust that she’ll do her best to care for it. The rest are still in my windowsill. When I went to the basement to get my seeds out for spring, I realized that I still had ten seeds left. I again found a hinged takeout container and got them going. This time, it was already warm enough that I didn’t need the heat mat. Again, they’re exceeding expectations, even a year later. I wasn’t sure how viable the seeds would be, but at least seven of them have poked through the soil. I’ll make space for this round, too, when they need pots. And I know that I’ll enjoy them just as much as the first batch.