HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1972-12-14, Page 24op tito. wtot+er
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.'1972
Grow house plants
The philodendron is a good exariple of an easy -to -grow
house plant.
. By A.R: Buckley
Growing plants indoors with
only a moderate amount of at-
tention is simply a matter of
choosing the right kinds. This
means, for the •averaie home,
selecting plants that will thrive'
with little• light and quite dry
air.
- Nowadays, with the use of
specially designed artifical•
lighting and, improved means of
humidification, there are few
plants that can't be successfully
grown in the home. Orchids, for
example, are not a great
problem when they are given
proper structures with con-
trolled light and .humidity.
This week, let us consider
only plants whose growing
..requirements are not so deman-
ding.
From the collections of
tropical and subtropical plants
in the Plant Research Institute
we ini ht choose as the easiest
plants for the beginnerto grow:
the jade plant (Crassula ar-
booescens); aucuba laurel
(Aucuba japonica'); the
miniature palm (Chamaedorea
elegans 'Bella', (often 'named.
Neanthe Bella by florists); the
snake plant (Sanseviera spp);
the -rubber plant (Ficus
elastica); aspidistra
(Aspidistra elatior ); English
ivy (Hedera helix); and many
cultivars of Philodendron, all
of which are very long-suffering
and will grow with the least
amount of care.
About the only things that
adversely affects these plants is
watering too frequently or
using too much fertilizer, both
of which cause leaf drop,
yellowing of the „ leaves and
other- abnormalities_ Give• them
a fair amount of light and they
will grow . for• years.
Plants that will grow in dark
corners usually come from the'
dark, damp tropical•rain forests
where they grow on the forest
floorin collected leaves and
moss or on the trunks of trees
and in the' forks of large bran-
ches. Here at the base of large
trees grows the aspidistra, and
one could find several forms of
the common philodendron, a
plant almost everyone' knows,
climbing around the stems of
the trees. This vine will climb -
spirally up the trunk of the tree
until its ,long stems reach out
over the top of the forest, some
75 feet high. Selection and
breeding have now ,produced a
wide -variety of -these • plants,
from the cut -leaved types to
those with simple and heart -
shaped leaves.
The so-called dumb cane
(Dieffenbachia) too, lives in
the undergrowth of the tropical
forest. In our living rooms it
will flourish best when placed
in a location with bright, dif-
fused light.
It, is always surprising to find
that_thestkplants will grow well
in our homes even.though they
lack the humidity found in
their native environment.
Given"the kind of soil they like
and lots of -warmth, .they will
grow with the greatest if vigor.
Other similar types of
carefree yet attractive plants
are- the Chinese evergreen
(Aglaonema modestum),
Pothos, Schefflera, Dracaena,
Pepefbmia, the spider plant
(Chlorophytum), and all the
multiple forms of these genera.
r
The flowering plants easiest
to grow, are the fibrous'
begonias 1$egohi'a '`sernpot
florens ), patience plants (Im-
patiens sultanii ), African
violets (although some might
find this hard to believe),
Episcia, Clivia, shrimp plant
(Beloperone) and • Achimenes.
Fibrous begonias lifted from
the flower beds and potted in
late summer will continue to
flower after recovery from the
shock of digging. They will
need topping back occasionally
to' retain a compact shape.
Espiscias are red and yellow -
flowered plants that will grow
in brighter sunlight than
African violets but otherwise
require much the same treat-
ment. They are often called
'flame violets' or. 'yellow
African violets', although they.
are really not one bit like the
African violet, but have very
fine, decorative foliage and a
more trailing habit.
Cliy-ias will bloom year after
year in the same soil provided
they are given a rest period for
a month after they finish
flowering.
African violets do best in a
fertile mixture of loam soil and
peat moss or a commercially
prepared African violet soil mix
readily .obtained 'at. most gar-
den centers. They will do well
in a window shaded from
strong sunlight during the
brightest partof the day. This
provides sufficient light to
promote flowering, but not
enopgh, O. cause+ the leaves to
/yellow.
These, then, are among the
best of the more easily grown
house plants. But any plant
will benefit from more than
green thumbs. Talk with others.
about your hobby. Read about
the plants you like. Do some ex-
perimenting. All these pursuits
help make,the growing of house
plants more enjoyable.
In excess of $600 was raised last Friday evening- when the ' Final score in the game is still under dispute but it would ap-
nursing staff at Alexandra Marine and General Hospital took pear the doctors will come out of the negotiations still well
to the ice against the doctors for a hockey game. The funds ahead of the nursing team. (staff photo) W
are to go toward the purchase of Intensive Care Equipment. "
.11111111111111
Chess Club News
Keen competition seen
The Goderich Chess 4Club
meets each Wednesday'evening
between 7 and 11 p.m. at 150•
Cambridge Street. Anyone in-
terested in playing or learning
chess is welcome to attend or
phone 524-9019 for infor-
mation. The tournament
results as of December 6 are as
follows:
Level 1: Charlie. MacDonald -
won 15, lost Dv tied 0, percen-
tage 1.000; Clarke Teal -7,2,2,•
:727; Jim Kingsley -2,5,1, .694;
Tom McGill -12,7,1, .625•
Level 2: Kirk Lyn-
don -10,6,2, .61 1 ; Glen
Falkiner-3,2,0, •600; Glen
•Y50; Rick Kingsley -3,15,0,
.167; =Rob Shrier-1, I4,0, .067.
In highschool chess, London
South Secondary School edged
GDCI' in a closely fought battle,
Monday afternoon in Goderieh.
DENOMME
WORK BOOTS
WORK CLOTHES.
TOOLS
PET SUPPLIES
HAMILTON STREET
GODERIGH
Industrial 3 .
Garden Supplies,
FARM, & GARDEN
•SUPPLIES
COMPLETE
PEST
PEST & WEED
CONTROLS
524-8761
The fads on
snowmobiles
This is Snswmobile Safety
Week in Ontario. The whole
purpose of a 'safety week' i8 to
inundate the public by evi -v
passible medium . with every
conceivable idea Which the pur-
ported experts think. will
prevent accidents .and
fatalities.
Druing. Snowmobile .Safety
Weelr, , December - 10-16, there
are just two ideas that the On-
tario Safety League would like
the snowmobiling public to
seriously consider:
1. Over 3/4 of all fatal
snowmobile..accjdents in On-
tario occurred on public
thoroughfares. A snowmobile is
designed to travel on snow,
where the track that propels it
and breaks it and the skis
which steer it can get sufficient
grip to- perform efficiently. On
the hard -packed, and, often icy,
surface of a public thorough-
fare frequented by motor
vehicle traffic, the snowmobile
becomes difficult to steer or
stop. This lack of control com-
bined with the close proximity
of fast moving cars and trucks
produces an extremely hazar-
dous situation. W The first
snowmobile fatality of the
1972-73 season was . a
snowmobile -motor vehicle
collision.
2. Drunken- snowmobile
operators were involved in a
high percentage of snowmobile
accidents in Ontario during the
1971-72 season. It is the con-
sidered opinion of many ex-
perienced snbwmobilers that
the snownlobile requires more
skill for safe operation than an
automobile; so how can anyone
y
expect to safely operate one of
these machines with their
ability impaired.
If snowmgbilers want to
eliminate " over 75% of all
snowmobile accidents, stay off
public' thoroughfares and quit
. drinking and driving.
A PEQ SELECTION OF SIFTS N
OQ:EVEPYCz'JE ON YOUR UT
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7RTVGT✓.5.�•�v�Jr✓IC ]�Vi�TViTV.4�7wA7W.TJw7R.7,V4 ._._ –.. a .
.Wightman-7,5,0, .58:3; Scott
Thomson ----13,5;2, .400: •, �,lnr ...� ;` �� s,, r•
Level 3: Ian Ross -4,10,0,
.286; Larry McDougall -3,9.0,
A friendly welcome awaits the . , : z : V
hungry and destitute atii
Salvation Arm centres." =_; ss<x:,: x :': %> ' '•''.
Army acrossN � ;:, � <s� s s • � �
the too country, which provide ! \ fir,
nourishing meals and Christmas1
Ag KENWOOD
festivities to • thousands of Large Assortment of s ' :`'' `" ''''`
men. {.:.. > IBEX
homeless � �t:>.�, xs .
N. -GLOVES MOHAIR. THROWS
g •,:,,. P , ,. _ I BLANKETS
••a•e
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n December �
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Signal -Star
will place Jspec�a
peron?r0'
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nly t,. ent must accompany5 p.m.,
APayfil
.Deadline for tec
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SWEATERS '~~
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110
• Scarves - Hats - Sets of .: -°e;, ackable Wabasso SHEETS
7.7 -kA
WINTER WARMERS PgSLIPPERS g
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Dreamy Gifts A Personal Gift 1 A Large selection -of
SLEEP GOWNS ..:• LINGERIE 1 HANDBAGS
..........................................r......... ..
F. Fi HIBBERT.
t SON
TNI~ SQUARE ' r GObElliuk
GIFT CERTIFICATES
`"A gift certificate front F. E. Hipbert and Son
as the perfect way to say a Merry Christmas
to your friends.
1 illil ' 1 rlb i rl i i;l t . NFAXIS .
LAYAWAY A small cash deposit will
hold your Christmas gift
purchase until December
•
24th.
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