I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

--
Bill S. Jersey USA zone 5 shade garden
globalvoicesonline.org
http://www.davidmccandless.com/

Bill who putters wrote:
I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

The problem with house plants is mostly they get little or no sun and the
air is often too dry. If you include outdoor areas like patios, decks etc
and rooms with big windows facing the equator there is more scope but
mostly in the house you will be limited to plants that are small and do with
limited light. Even then the plants must be in front of a window unless
you want to burn up power on lights.

This limitation usually means that plants that need high energy are out
which excludes fruits, including solanums and cucurbits, and those that
store starch in tubers and corms. This leaves herbs (but some of them don't
do so well) and leafy greens. So try lettuce, spinach, chard, the smaller
brassicas etc.

David

On Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:42:01 -0400, Bill who putters wrote:

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

It rather depends on the house. How about bananas?

http://www.wagonmaker.com/

IOW, what David said: give them space and light.

But for more "typical" houses: how about the classic potted herbs on the
window sills?
--
Ross McKay, Toronto, NSW Australia
"Under the big bright yellow sun" - Fat Boy Slim

Give shiitake mushrooms a try.
Steve
"Ross McKay" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:42:01 -0400, Bill who putters wrote:

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

It rather depends on the house. How about bananas?

http://www.wagonmaker.com/

IOW, what David said: give them space and light.

But for more "typical" houses: how about the classic potted herbs on the
window sills?
--
Ross McKay, Toronto, NSW Australia
"Under the big bright yellow sun" - Fat Boy Slim

"Bill who putters" wrote in message
...

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

--
Bill S. Jersey USA zone 5 shade garden
globalvoicesonline.org
http://www.davidmccandless.com/


Lemongrass, and C. hystrix I've grown and are practically a staple when it
comes to Thai cuisine. If you can successfully overwinter Citrus, you will
have more options. But even on the "borderline," the very common & lowly
calamondin orange is easy, and is highly decorative (-ok well maybe only if
you grow them as beautifully as my g'mother did!), and its fruits will
oftentimes substitute for a wedge or two of lemon juice. And Key lime fruits
may be small (at least mine were, grown in containers) but, even their skins
*IMO* are really very palatable; more so than kumquat.
And there's rosemary, but I never seemed to have the knack for the stuff -
always croaked on me after a couple years. Nice looking plant if you can
grow it on. Makes a nice pale lavendar dye if you don't like the taste :-)
I could probably think of a bunch of other stuff but few would really be
considered "decorative" as houseplants.
One exception comes to mind is banana, whereas growing indoors will almost
surely never produce fruit but might possibly be used in Thai cooking. I
truly like these as houseplants, but they can be a little fussy as to their
soil, since over a few years they IME tend to get rot.

"Nelly" wrote in message
...

"Bill who putters" wrote in message
...

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

--
Bill S. Jersey USA zone 5 shade garden
globalvoicesonline.org
http://www.davidmccandless.com/


Lemongrass, and C. hystrix I've grown and are practically a staple when it
comes to Thai cuisine. If you can successfully overwinter Citrus, you will
have more options. But even on the "borderline," the very common & lowly
calamondin orange is easy, and is highly decorative (-ok well maybe only
if you grow them as beautifully as my g'mother did!), and its fruits will
oftentimes substitute for a wedge or two of lemon juice. And Key lime
fruits may be small (at least mine were, grown in containers) but, even
their skins *IMO* are really very palatable; more so than kumquat.
And there's rosemary, but I never seemed to have the knack for the stuff -
always croaked on me after a couple years. Nice looking plant if you can
grow it on. Makes a nice pale lavendar dye if you don't like the taste :-)
I could probably think of a bunch of other stuff but few would really be
considered "decorative" as houseplants.
One exception comes to mind is banana, whereas growing indoors will almost
surely never produce fruit but might possibly be used in Thai cooking. I
truly like these as houseplants, but they can be a little fussy as to
their soil, since over a few years they IME tend to get rot.
Forgot to mention peppers, had some pequins that ripened well after bringing
indoors.

In article ,
"Nelly" wrote:

"Bill who putters" wrote in message
...

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

--
Bill S. Jersey USA zone 5 shade garden
globalvoicesonline.org
http://www.davidmccandless.com/


Lemongrass, and C. hystrix I've grown and are practically a staple when it
comes to Thai cuisine. If you can successfully overwinter Citrus, you will
have more options. But even on the "borderline," the very common & lowly
calamondin orange is easy, and is highly decorative (-ok well maybe only if
you grow them as beautifully as my g'mother did!), and its fruits will
oftentimes substitute for a wedge or two of lemon juice. And Key lime fruits
may be small (at least mine were, grown in containers) but, even their skins
*IMO* are really very palatable; more so than kumquat.
And there's rosemary, but I never seemed to have the knack for the stuff -
always croaked on me after a couple years. Nice looking plant if you can
grow it on. Makes a nice pale lavendar dye if you don't like the taste :-)
I could probably think of a bunch of other stuff but few would really be
considered "decorative" as houseplants.
One exception comes to mind is banana, whereas growing indoors will almost
surely never produce fruit but might possibly be used in Thai cooking. I
truly like these as houseplants, but they can be a little fussy as to their
soil, since over a few years they IME tend to get rot.

Rosemary, and bananas? Inside?

You got anymore of that stuff?
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/7/2/maude
http://english.aljazeera.net/video/m...515308172.html

"Steve Peek" wrote in message
m...
Give shiitake mushrooms a try.

Good suggestion. I've grown mushrooms in kits in the sauna (which gets used
to store stuff in rather than to sweat in)

"Ross McKay" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:42:01 -0400, Bill who putters wrote:

I have only one that is outside in a large pot right now. That s a
Kiffer Lime which flowers when I have been real good (Kidding).
I love lemon grass but I'm at a loss to find other gems.
Any thing I should consider ?

It rather depends on the house. How about bananas?

http://www.wagonmaker.com/

IOW, what David said: give them space and light.

But for more "typical" houses: how about the classic potted herbs on the
window sills?
--
Ross McKay, Toronto, NSW Australia
"Under the big bright yellow sun" - Fat Boy Slim

FarmI wrote:
"Steve Peek" wrote in message
m...
Give shiitake mushrooms a try.

Good suggestion. I've grown mushrooms in kits in the sauna (which
gets used to store stuff in rather than to sweat in)


I think you mean the sort where you buy a bag of compost in a box and some
cultivated mushroom spore. These are much easier to grow than raising
shitakes which live on damp logs of wood. If nothing else you need an
ongoing supply of suitable logs.

David

"Billy" wrote
Rosemary, and bananas? Inside?

You got anymore of that stuff?
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/7/2/maude
http://english.aljazeera.net/video/m...515308172.html

Well, JME but the edible dwarf banana in particular somehow seems to fare a
tad better indoors north of z10.