Ivy as houseplant in low light?

Discussion in 'Other Plants' started by daisybelle, Apr 13, 2022.

  1. daisybelle

    daisybelle Gardener

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    Hi, I have tried an ivy in a certain spot before and it died. They’re pretty indestructible, so I thought it was a fluke. I bought another this spring and displayed it in that spot in its original pot with some primroses and it seemed fine. I then repotted it and sat it there by itself and it went downhill. Brown leaves and completely wilted. Barely had time to feel the effects of either under or overwatering! I watered and no improvement, so I unpotted it and had a good look at the roots, all seems well.
    I really would love a plant in this spot and every list of plants good for gloomy indoor spots includes ivy!
    I’ve tried a plain green tradescantia and it clung on, but never thrived and is doing way better now next to a window.
    I’ve also tried phlebodium aureum ‘blue star’ and that hated it too and is now perking up, again near a window.
    Any idea what could be wrong with the ivy?
    I have pictures on my tablet, but only seem to be able to add them from online?
    Thanks
    Edit, found the picture upload. As well as a shot of the sorry plant, I’ve also shown the 3 windows it gets light from, and its position relative to them 8E504D9B-9ED7-422F-BFEC-7394AAEAB225.jpeg 9EB58019-FD80-4B32-B209-9DD03AFBAC6F.jpeg 116B4435-6DBB-4650-A489-040639736349.jpeg CBD7572B-413D-4089-85B1-1988E050BFF3.jpeg
     
    Last edited: Apr 13, 2022
  2. pete

    pete Growing a bit of this and a bit of that....

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    I'm not sure, but I think sometimes we just have to accept that places are too dark to grow plants.
    Ive always found Sanseveria to be good in all but the darkest places.
     
  3. daisybelle

    daisybelle Gardener

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    Thanks Pete, I’ll look into that one
    Edit-I like the look of that I have a B&Q voucher, so might tootle off there tomorrow, see if they have one.
    Out of curiosity, I used an app to measure the light levels on this cloudy day. Facing the 2 windows, it was about 50 lux and 20 facing the other way, so very low
     
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    • Selleri

      Selleri Koala

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      Hi @daisybelle , I don't think there is necessarily much wrong with the Ivy in the photos, it just never got off to a good start. Try moving it in a brighter spot, water only when the compost feels dry and perhaps trim half of the branches above alive looking leaf (and put the trimmings in water to see if they root). With any luck it will recover and grow stronger. It's a nice looking variant, very dainty and elegant :)

      There are several options to have some plant life in that spot.

      One possibility is to buy a grow light bulb that fits a floor/ table lamp, they are nowadays very good and being LED, don't consume much energy. A spotlight in that place could look really cosy. A simple timer on the socket makes it care free. Grow light bulb

      Or, you could perhaps consider a rota system and buy 2-3 same or similar plants, displaying one on the spot whilst the other(s) are having a windowsill holiday, and swap them around as needed.

      If everything looks doomed, why not have a permanent display of seasonal cut flowers in the summer (ooo... cutting garden sounds lovely, seeds should be readily available just now), then autumn leaves and grasses, Christmas supermarket displays and fruit tree branches in the spring...

      A thing to add, cache or cover pots can be deadly if any water remains in the bottom and gets stagnant. A solution is either to have the cover pot wide enough so that you will notice any residual water, or to lift the plant out for watering, or to have the plant planted in a self watering pot where you can control the water level easily.

      Good luck! :)
       
    • Billi

      Billi Gardener

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      In my experience peace lily and pothos seem to do well in low light
      Oh and snake plants
       
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