Reverse the old saying, “You can’t see the forest for the trees,” and you’ll have one that applies to hedges: “You can’t see the plants for the hedge.” How often do you see the individual plants instead of the overall symmetry of the planting?
Long before ixora became the well-known houseplant it is today, I saw it used as a formal hedge in southern Florida.
I remarked to a friend who was with me that I thought it would make a beautiful plant for my indoor garden up north, and she looked at me obliquely, wondering whether I was joking or had had too much sun!
Ixora
Ixora (pronounced ix-OR-a) is a shrubby evergreen with glossy-green, opposite leaves. As you might expect from its use as a hedge material, it can be cut back severely or shaped whenever necessary.
Never allow Ixora to become root-bound in a pot smaller than the ultimate size you want it in, and pot large plants firmly in coarse, turfy material.
Types of Ixora
In theory, established plants will have three crops of flowers a year; in practice, the crops are so long-lasting, and the rest period so brief, that the plants are almost constantly in bloom, and they begin flowering when very small.
The most commonly seen type has scarlet flowers, and is known as Flame-of-the-Woods; my plant is yellow-flowered, and there are other forms with blossoms in pure white and various shades of pink, orange, and red. The white-flowered sorts are often fragrant.
The blossoms are extremely showy, having long, slender-tubed corollas with four (sometimes five) wide-spread lobes, and borne in dense corymbs or heads.
Liquid Feeding on Ixora
Ixora needs ample water and regular liquid feedings when in active growth. After flowering, watering may be reduced slightly.
Either sun or partial shade agrees with this plant, and mine hasn’t seemed particular about the temperature, although 65° to 70° degrees Fahrenheit is suggested for them.
My plant has resisted our newest indoor pest, oat thrips, and seems equally resistant to scale and white flies, but if these insects should appear, standard remedies may be used.
Sea-Grape
Another “find” for me was Seagrape (Coccoloba uvifera). Its leaves are large, leathery, broader than long, and wavy-edged. They are glossy green, and when grown in the sun have a red midrib.
In southern Florida, this plant has been especially valuable for use in newly developed suburban areas where the loose, light soil makes it difficult for more demanding plants to exist.
In pots, Sea-grape prefers rich, sandy soil. Give it either sun or partial shade, and normal watering
Propagation
Sea-grape is propagated by cuttings, layering, or seeds, which was how I started my plant. Since it has seeds, it follows (or comes first!) that it also has flowers. These are white and fragrant, borne in erect racemes or loose clusters about six inches long.
The berries, or “grapes,” which follow are reddish purple, and fully edible if your taste is educated to them! Mine isn’t.
Thus far, my plant has not produced a flower, let alone fruit, but since it has proved to be as tolerant and durable as it is attractive, I don’t care whether it flowers or not.
Polyscias
Polyscias are shrubs that are widely used in Florida as hedge material in great variety. Some are classified (correctly or not) as Aralias, Panax, Fatsia, Dizygotheca, et al., and the confusion in this genus is further compounded by the tendency toward variable leaf forms as the plants mature.
I conducted a sort of mobile line-up to identify my favorite satisfactorily; after its photograph had made the rounds of some of the country’s leading growers, the consensus was that I had Polyscias filicifolia or fern-leaf polyscias.
This variety has a much-divided leaf and is one of the best plants I know for use in simulating dwarf trees.
The foliage is exceptionally graceful and a good, deep green color. Although the plant tends to drop its leaves if subjected to sudden changes in growing conditions, with continued care, the plant will soon put forth new leaves.
Varieties of Polyscias
Several varieties of polyscias transfer amiably from hedge to house. One of the most frequently seen in northern florist shops is P. Balfouriana (sometimes Aralia Balfouriana), which has broad leaves edged in creamy white.
Another which caught the public’s fancy a short time back is Dizygotheca elegantissima (or Aralia elegantissima), having digitate (finger-like) leaves composed of many bronze-colored leaflets.
Polyscias Guilfoylei and its numerous varieties (P. laciniata, P. Victoriae, etc.) are all attractive shrubs, with pinnate (feather-like) leaves margined neatly with creamy white. These plants are all easily grown in loose, humus soil and should be given strong light and ample water.
Crotons
Crotons, popular hedge plants in southern regions, certainly deserve mention here, even though I cannot find much good to say about them!
Even in their native habitat, they may drop their leaves if conditions fail to suit them, and they are miserable things to prune properly, yet without constant care, they get extremely leggy.
The Croton leaves are lovely and diversified in shape and coloration almost beyond description, but let’s face it… they can be pretty pesky items to grow indoors!
They absolutely must have air so humid it will peel your wallpaper off, but the air must be fresh, or they will drop their leaves.
They require sunlight to develop their fullest coloration, but the sun coming through glass often scorches the leaves indoors. In addition, these plants are favorites of red spider mites and scale.
In the face of all this, if you feel that crotons are worth the extra effort to grow them well, try them by all means.
Top spray frequently with clear water, provide a fully bright, well-ventilated location, and give them ample water and regular liquid feedings. But don’t complain to me if they drop dead overnight in the face of all your tender care.
Oleanders
Oleanders are so well known to both northern and southern gardeners that they need a little introduction or description.
They are grown everywhere in the South and at one time ranked with hydrangeas as northern house plants.
For some obscure reasons, oleanders (Nerium) faded from popularity some years ago, but they are now making quite a comeback.
Give these plants good, loamy soil, full light, and plenty of fresh air. After flowering, cut the plants back and rest them for a few weeks.
If cuttings are wanted, take them of mature wood when you cut the plant back sharply; pruning to shape the plant may be done at any time.
Growing Oleanders
Oleanders may be grown in bush shape or trained as crown standards (like a tree rose). In the latter, plants are topped at whatever height is desired, and good crowns will develop in the same season.
However, owing to the weight of the large flower heads, which are borne in terminal clusters, it is not advisable to allow the plant to flower the following year, as the branches will not be strong enough to support the blooms.
I have very little room for duplication of indoor plant material, but I am so enamored of oleanders, that I have two plants.
The larger one is a bush and has double pink flowers. From this, I have taken innumerable cuttings, which root in plain water as easily as willow cuttings.
In my other plant, I am training as a crown standard, and I can see the space-saving advantage of this form for house use.
When the plant is allowed to flower, it will have white blossoms. Oleanders have single or double flowers, and in addition to the white, they range through shades of pink and rose to an almost-purple color.
Unusual Indoor Plants
If you can’t go in person to a southern nursery and look for unusual plants to use indoors, why not do your “exploring” via catalogs?
Those from southern growers offer endless possibilities… one I was reading recently describes Anise Tree and Banana Shrub, both of which I hope to try soon. Sweet Olive and Live Oak are two more I want to grow next year if I have room for them.
In “scouting out” new house plant possibilities, look under “shrubs,” “trees,” or “vines,” evergreen notes, and order the ones that sound most interesting.
Don’t be afraid to try trees; when confined to a pot, they will remain a reasonable size for a long, long time.
44659 by Katherine B. Walker