HOUSE AND GARDEN 
IIO 
February, 
I 9 I 3 
described, but will succeed well if precautions are taken not to 
let it get chilled in cold weather. 
Unlike the palms, most of the other foliage plants for the 
house are rapid growers, and depend for their beauty largely 
upon being grown quickly and under the most favorable condi¬ 
tions. 
The Norfolk Island Pine ( Araucaria ) is, I think, the most 
beautiful of all decorative plants. Its dignity, simplicity and 
beautiful plume-like foliage of clear soft green, lighter at the 
tips, borne on straight branches that leave the main stem at right 
angles in whorls at regular intervals, make it unique among 
house plants. They have become very popular as Christmas 
gifts, but most of the fine specimens that leave the florist's dur¬ 
ing the holiday season, find their end, after a few weeks in a 
gas-tainted, super-heated atmosphere where they are probably 
half drowned by the excess of water given at the roots, in the 
ash-barrel. They should, with proper care, last for several years. 
Keep the air as fresh as possible, the temperature cool, forty- 
five to fifty at night, and water very sparingly during the winter 
months. In summer place outdoors in a sheltered spot. 
For unfavorable conditions- — extreme cold, dry air, dust and 
smoke — aspidistras are the most satisfactory foliage plants. The 
long flat leaves grow to a height of one and a half to two feet, 
springing directly from the base 
of the plant at the soil. They like 
plenty of water during the sum¬ 
mer. The sort most commonly 
seen ( A . larida ) has plain dark- 
green leaves, but A. I. variegata, 
with its handsome white striped 
foliage, is a revelation to those 
familiar only with the former. 
A. punctata has spotted leaves. 
The variegated pineapple (Ananas 
sativus var.) is one of the most 
beautiful and probably the most 
satisfactory for use in the house, 
of all the variegated leaved foliage 
plants. The broad, tough, sword¬ 
shaped leaves, two to three feet 
long, rise from the center of the 
plant in habit similar to the screw 
pine (Pandanus ), and are beauti¬ 
fully variegated with bands of 
The leaves of the dracaenas give an almost fountain-like effect 
The araucaria requires comparative coolness 
light yellow on 
either side of the 
dark green center. 
The screw pine 
(P an d a n u s) is 
another favorite 
decorative plant, 
easily grown. The 
leaves are two or 
three feet long and 
come out spirally, 
as the name indi¬ 
cates. As they get 
older they bend 
down gracefully, 
giving a very pleas¬ 
ing effect. The soil 
for Pandanus should 
contain a generous 
amount of sand. 
Give plenty of water 
in summer, little in 
winter, and be sure 
that none of it 
lodges in the axils of 
the leaves, as rot is 
very easily induced. 
New plants are pro¬ 
duced from suckers 
at the base of the old 
ones. 
Pandanus utilis is 
the variety most 
commonly seen. P. 
Veitchii, dark green, 
bordered with broad 
stripes of pure 
white, is much more 
decorative, a really 
beautiful plant. P. 
Sanderi is another 
good sort, with 
golden yellow color¬ 
ing that should be The thatch-leaf palm is one of the hardiest 
o-iven a trial house plants of its class 
Farfugium grande, 
better known as Leopard Plant, 
has handsome dark green leaves 
marked with yellow. It is of the 
easiest culture, standing zero 
weather. Old plants may be 
divided in spring and rooted in 
sand. There is a newer variety 
with white spots, very beautiful. 
The Farfugium is now more com¬ 
monly listed as Senecio Kccmpferi. 
Another plant which I consider 
excellent for house use, but which 
is usually left to die in the vases 
or to go back to the florist’s after 
its summer service outdoors, is 
Draccena indivisa. The long, nar¬ 
row, graceful foliage, producing 
the most fountain-like effect of 
any decorative plant, and its ex¬ 
treme hardiness, should make it 
much more popular as a house 
plant. As I write there is a large specimen on the desk above 
me, a few of its gracefully poised leaves swaying gently in the 
draft from the lamp, which is the pride of our winter garden. 
I would by all means advise every plant lover to try one. D. 
fragrans also makes a most satisfactory house plant. 
The other plant to which I referred above, is the “silk oak.” 
It is grown with the greatest ease and makes an extremely grace¬ 
ful, beautiful plant, either by itself or as a center for fern dishes, 
etc. Sow in March and grow on, shifting frequently. 
The plant which probably has the surest claim to being the 
most popular house plant is the rubber plant (Ficus elastica). 
At least part of the secret of its success undoubtedly lies in the 
fact that — almost literally — you cannot kill it. But that is no 
excuse for abusing it, as there is all the difference in the world 
between a well-cared-for, symmetrical plant and one of the semi- 
denuded, lopsided, spotted-leaved plants one . so frequently sees, 
and than which, as far as ornamentation is concerned, an empty 
pot would be far more decorative. 
The rubber requires — and deserves—a good rich soil, and 
in the spring, summer and fall, all the water that the soil will 
keep absorbed. Give less in winter, as an excess at this time 
(Continued on page 126) 
