How to interpret what your plants are saying
We’ve all heard of the Victorian’s fascination with “the language of flowers,” floriography. Carnations speak of “mother’s love,” irises are “wisdom,” and roses say “I love you.”
Perhaps they’re not merely mirroring our feelings but expressing their own. Maybe our flowers and plants may have something to say for themselves. Let me review with you 12 important messages your plants may be communicating, if we pay close attention.
There are three common problems we gardeners usually look for: (1) Dryness or Overwatering, (2) Aphids, and (3) Excessive or Insufficient Sunlight. Whether we’re looking at our houseplants or the flowers in the garden, we are accustomed to watching for these problems. But, how do we figure out that our begonia is getting too much sunlight or our peace plant needs less water?
Here are some basic plant-language translation tools:
If a plant begins to drop leaves or the leaves may curl and darken, and the soil may appear gray and arid—the message may be “Give me a drink.” (Be careful not to drown the dear; a good soaking and more regular waterings are probably needed.)
If the plant’s leaves wilt, perhaps turn yellow, and the soil is spongy or even soggy, root rot usually caused by overwatering or poor drainage may be the problem.
Looking at the underside of a plant’s leaves, if you see something resembling white powder (the aphids’ secretion) and/or you might see webs, or if a plant has tiny spots on the leaves, Aphids have attacked your plant. The old home remedy of a few weeks of regular wipe-downs with soapy water, particularly on the underside of the leaves, usually gets rid of them.
If your plant in the garden or house seems to shrivel and the soil feels hard to the touch, the message may be “I’m getting sunburned; give me a bit of shade.” Start digging.
Does the foliage appear pale and dull or are the leaves displaying pale patches? That plant is asking for more sunlight.
Following are other useful messages you can discern from reading the leaves of your plants.
Over time, if a particular plant seems to stop growing or appears smaller than would be expected, the problem may be stunted growth. Loosen the soil, give the plant a bit of gentle fertilizer, and consider whether the light satisfies this plant’s needs.
Are your plant’s leaves looking like someone took a hole punch to them? Lots of holes and tears in the leaves may mean pests are having this poor plant as a buffet lunch! Look for beetles, slugs, or caterpillars. You can simply pick off the bugs, or if you’re a bit squeamish, apply some gardener’s Neem Oil.
If your plant is waving its leaves laden with white powder, even on the tops, the plant’s probably suffering with mildew caused by our region’s high humidity and crowding of your plants. Try pruning the plant to give more air and room to breathe. (Don’t leave the mildewed cuttings in the garden.) If you’ve been sprinkling these plants, switch to a soaker hose to keep the water off the leaves.
If there is mold forming on the soil around the plant, overwatering and/or poor drainage may be the culprits. You will probably need to remove the top half inch of soil around the affected plants, then adjust the drainage and watering plan.
You can recognize an even more specific plant message if you take a close look at your plant’s curling leaves. If the leaves are curling UP, the plant is probably suffering from heat-related stress or an infestation of bugs, such as aphids. However, leaves curling DOWN is usually due to chemical damage, perhaps over-fertilizing or the wrong fertilizer mix.
Are your marigolds and daisies failing to flower or flowering less? Your plant may be telling you of one or more problems. Check sunlight first; is there a lack of sunlight—always essential to showy flowers? Another problem may have been some heavy-handed pruning that cut off the buds and stunted the plant’s development. The third problem could be incorrect fertilizer. Too much nitrogen will give you lots of green but few flowers. Treat that sweetie to a good dose of phosphorus-rich fertilizer.
Finally, if your favorite columbine or that clump of echinacea you love seems to suddenly collapse, like a fainting Victorian lady, the problem may be moles or voles—those furry, little varmints. The best remedy I’ve found for these little critters is diluted castor oil—yup, that icky, gooey stuff. Pour some of the castor oil into any little holes in the lawn or garden. You can also spray the mixture around and beneath plants and shrubs. Close to the ground is best. The advantage of this remedy, unlike those horrid spikes and gassing pellets, is that the voles and moles will leave! You’re not really killing them, only insisting they leave your garden!
So, we can try to apply our skills in observation to the garden’s residents. The language of flowers requires some translation, but the effort is worthwhile.
