Things Are Going Wrong... 🌱 The Best + Worst Of My Houseplant Collection 

I would LOVE a longer video of this. I hope this doesn't come off wrong but it's nice to see others (who's plants are otherwise fabulous btw lol) struggle a bit and talk about what they're trying to do, what works and what hasn't. So yeah, I'm all for more like this!!👍🏼😊💚

Cork is by far the most mold resistant wood I've ever used, been using it in Terrariums for almost 4 years and have had 0 issues, would definitely recommend it! 🌿 Also in regards to the skeleton key mine wasn't maturing on a moss pole for almost 2 years, but I moved her onto a plank about 4 months ago and after 3 new leaves she's already starting to key!! 🙌

Cedar wood is quite rot resistant making a good mounting option. I personally don't have any of my ferns on a wood mount. I have my staghorn ferns in orchid pots. I especially love my staghorn in a ceramic orchid pot. I did see one person potting a staghorn in the side of a pot once and it seemed to absolutely love it

Regarding the mold on the fern wood plate: you get mold cause the moisture can't escape as the wooden plate sits directly at the wall. I would try to give the plate some spacers, perhaps made of wine bottle corks which you glue on the back of the plate. This keeps the plate at a distance to the wall so the moisture can properly escape the wood. Edit: watched the video a bit further, there you mention it yourself. A few millimeters of spacing won't do the trick. I guess you are safest with like 2 inches of spacing between the wood and the wall. And: you have to completely get rid of the already moldy wood. You will never get the spores out of there. So if you wanna go mold free, you have to start all over and also make sure the fern roots and the wall are mold spore free. --- By the way: I see that you have fragrance oil on your table in height of your dogs nose. This oil is toxic for pets. Even if your dog doesn't touch it, it's highly irritating for a dogs nose, but your dog simply can't tell you how much she dislikes it. Do your dog a favor and get rid of incense oils or other highly fragrant room deorizers.

Also meant to say, as far as your fern mount, apply yacht varnish to the back and this will/ should prevent mould issues

Hi Claire! Hello from NJ USA! So sorry your ferns aren’t happy, I learned a trick awhile back for mounted plants.. before you afix the plant to the board you can drill a few large holes I. The board, staple some mesh over he holes then mount your plant. The holes allow for circulation ;) I would attach a picture of mine to show you but I don’t think I can on the comments.. anyhow this should help

I love this video and would love a longer one! This is the real plant life and I think we can all relate. Also, your living room is gorgeous!! 😍

benjiplant has a really beautiful fern collection on his wall, I think he uses cork bark. He has a few videos 😊

This is a great video and refreshing for plant lovers dealing with the downsides of loving plants!

Claire, for your singonium plant, just cut off the brown leaves, and give lots of light and they like to dry out in between watering's. It will send up new growth shoots and in time will fill back out.

My alocasia pink dragon sulked like your zebrina, until I repotted it and put it under a grow light, and seriously, she started pushing out a new leaf 24 hours later. They appear to like more light than what people realise, and I’ve heard people saying alocasia prefer to be snug in a pot, but I disagree, a good nutrient based airy mix and they love it. I’m sure it will come good, but they definitely show when conditions are not to their liking.

I'm glad to see someone else with a 1 leaf zebrina like mine.. hang in there babies!

My husband was just suggesting I try to put some plants on wood to hang and my instant thought was mold. Thank you for sharing!

Hi! I don't have any wood mounted tips but if you want to take the ferns off the wood you could just kokedama them rather than putting them back in pots. I am a huge fern geek and most of mine are kokedamas and they LOVE it! You already have them in moss so you can just pop them off and rewrap them without the wood. ✨️

wasn't expecting a video tonight from you so this has made my Friday evening much better yay! xxxxx

I agree Cedar wood or cork are great ways to go. If you mount on Cedar wood you can cut a small hole in the wood where the mount is going to go ( maybe 2-3"), cover it with netting from the plant side. Will serve 3 functions. Water to the roots, air flow, and no mold. About your M. Esqueleto is possible it could be a few things...Irregular watering, Sunburn from plant light/ direct bright light, or a Magnesium deficiency. Personally I would get the new healthy part off the plant as soon as safely possible.. It could be nothing or something. You could just end up with 2 plants if the original turns around. Know if it's sunburn it will never look better but the beautiful new leaf is an awesome sign. 😊💚🪴🌱🌵🍃🍀🌿🌸🪷

I used to grow microgreens and had a business doing so. We would take seeds, sprinkle them on trays of soil, and then stack the trays up and put 20-30lbs of weight on top to mimic them being underground. they would burst out so quickly and push the trays up as they grew. So this is no surprise to me that the ones in the dark are doing better. I had some alocasia corms that I put into a little tray of water with a lid, and stuck them under my grow light. They didn't seem to do anything until I shoved them in the dark lol!

So excited about your anthurium regale. You should definitely take a picture of it every day so in months to come we can see it's growth.

I’ve got all my ferns in compost in plastic pots and they require so much water. When I keep on top of the watering they thrive and grow so fast. Maybe consider potting them back up? Even my staghorn is potted up and it’s growing so fast. I’ve tilted its pot sideways 45° but tilt it upright to water…

My Staghorn ferns are on cedar and cork and they have no problems! I highly recommend both cork and cedar.

Syngonium Batik: Chop it up and start over. What have you got to lose? 🤗

I think that most if not all seed germination should be done in the dark since the seed "thinks" it is under substrate and will concentrate to make its roots. Those exposed to light "think" they are not at all buried or are not in a safe location to properly germinate.

Maybe try sticking the clear spacers they use for glass tables to give it a space from the wall on the back.

I have a few orchids that are wall mounted and require quite a bit of water. I take a hammer and put a couple of nails from the backside. The flat heads of the nail touch the wall and maintain a gap between the wall and the wood - zero mold issues!

Oooo that is so exciting about the Regale! I often find the petiole is a good tell for how big the leaf is going to be in Anthuriums, and that petiole looks chunky! So I reckon the leaf could be a decent sized too 😍

If you varnish (several coats) the back of the wood it's a lot harder for the mould to establish and easier to clean any mould off (with an anti-fungal soap).

With the Esquelito, I’m sure those yellowing leaves are quite old at this point and that’s likely the reason they’re dying off, so I would chop the runner and start the new leaf up a pole, then add the cuttings in later.

For the skeleton key - try a slightly more moisture retentive medium or watering more often. All the advice I read online said they enjoy chunkier mixes and hate staying damp - however mine yellowed like yours when I did this. I moved it to a mix which stays pretty moist and now it consistently gives me beautiful rich green leaves! They like more water than people tend to say :)

You can also try to cover the backside of the wood with some see-through acrylic paint or some other kind of coating that is water repellent

A PLANT L💚VER'S W💚RK IS NEVER D💚NE!!!

I love that Monstera Dubai climbing up the plank by the door. So beautiful the leaves and i love where you put it up against that wall. Never seen one so established and so tall. Is always nice each leaf looks different. The bird of paradise is a lovely plant it reminds me back home where my granny lives with all her banana trees. The leaves reminds me of it. Definitely hard to grow indoors if you have the space for it would be great. Would be nice if they can survive outside on a balcony.

the skeleton key looks like only one vine is affected by yellowing and the others are fine. I once had something like this with my huge philodendron scandens where one vine just started to rot inside the soil so that it was invisible and the vine started to yellow REALLY slowly and eventually I took cuttings from it. The rest of the plant was and still is totally fine, there was no more rot whatsoever. Maybe it’s the same with your plant?

I wish I could upload a pic of my Skeleton key. The trick for me was high light and 80%or more humidity. Temp is normally in the mid 70s during the day and 68ish at night in the winter and fertilize more than you think. I've had it for 1.5 years and and got keys last month. Now it is growing fast. I would pit it in your cabinet. Only problem was that the leaves bleached but once the keys started they are growing great.

Happy to have more of this kind of video. We definitely need to see the good and the not so good of your plant collection. It certainly helps us learn so much and that’s a good thing in my opinion. Thanks for an informative and entertaining video Claire, keep them coming!👍

Try keiki paste on the bare nodes of your syngonium. You should get new growth points popping out

I think you should repot your fern or reach out to someone who grows them like that. If you leave yours like that the mold will start to grow on the wall. You need some kind of air flow between the wall and the wood mount. Your monstera esqueleto needs to be be up potted. Any of your plants that are yellowing is getting to much light and up potted and up pot your zabrena she will be happier with more room for she roots.

I love ferns on wood mounts! I live in a northern humid climate. I keep ferns on cedar planks and use small clear aqua globes to water them. They are placed behind the foliage so they are less visible. I also switched to using a combination of soil and moss in the core to help retain moisture. This has been good because I can keep a more consistant moisture to the roots which i think is the key to keeping most ferns happy. I also can water less frequently without having to take them off the wall to soak and let dry. I haven't issues with mold in the moss or wood, and I am able to use Mountain Moss, which is a little more affordable. It also allows the outer surfaces to remain drier. Overall, i have found it to be less laborious, and there is no water damage on my walls.

I preserved my woof with kitchen oil, the one used for any wooden parts that get in contact with food.

I'll echo the other commenters and recommend cork for the mounted ferns! I've had my staghorn fern on it for half a year now and haven't had any issues with mould on the cork. I did, however, struggle with the moss getting mouldy. I resolved it by patting cinnamon all over the moss and I haven't had any issues since 🙆

In regard to your syngonium batik: I recently had a similar issue on my tetrasperma rhaphidophora. I made a simple and really stupid mistake because I was watering while exhausted. I watered all her neighbors, who are also mounted on moss poles, and somehow forgot about her. 😢 By the time I noticed she had some damage and leaf dropage. What I decided to do was cut her in two places along the vine where she had really established aerial roots within the pole (essentially I cut her into thirds). I just removed the internodal space in those sections and creates 3 separate vines that we all already rooted to the pole. She seems happy and is gearing up to throw some new leafs. I’ve done this before when I made a similar mistake with my monstera adansonii and she rebounded beautifully. Good luck!

I just found your channel when trying to prop my anthuriums, Love all your videos and happy to see your update in this video.

Yellowing of the leaves can be a nutrient deficiency also tap water can alter leave structure

Regards to the wood mount for ur fern, I would start again with a new wood cookie, ensuring the wood you use is full dry and then seal with Bees wax which would seal it and would be plant friendly. Also is ur wall cold as that could cause condensation to form, having a spacer behind like you’ve done would be good to do too.

Really enjoy this type of video! Thanks, Claire!🪴

I love this type of video! Thanks for sharing.

I would put a chrew in the backside off the wood so the gap is bigger and there is more airflow? maybe that would help?

Maybe paint /seal the back of the wood on your mounted ferns

You could put the Alocasia in PON. They need much air and moisture, so thats the best option. The roots will grow and the plant will not hang anymore 😊 if you like to use soil, put a LOT of pumice in it 😉 good luck!

I don’t have a lot of experience with Alocasias, but mine are thriving in pon! I put them in water first for a few days and then pon and they recovered and are giving me new growth. Hope that helps!

I think mounting plants on wood is fine if you have a proper green house or if they are kept outdoors. Mold inside your home is not something you want given the potential for health issues. I would repot in a normal pot with soil as soon as possible; but do water them now if you want to save them.

Great video Claire I think if u put ur monsters Escalator on a moss pole so it has somewhere to grow it will take off & look amazing again x

Love to hear from you! I got a strelitzia just the other day, here in south of Portugal they grow in every garden but they are just so pretty that I want one indoors🥰

I love your channel! Recently found it and wow!! Thanks for your effort and love!!

I know you’ve already received a lot of feedback about your fern, but just wanted to add that when I was ready to mount one of mine, I could not find cedar or bark so I took a regular piece of wood and sprayed it with three coats of a matte finish clear outdoor sealant. Once it was dried, you couldn’t tell that it had been sprayed but it has protected the wood from the water so far. I do also put feet on the backside of the planks that it does not directly contact the wall. I’m a couple years in now, and the wood looks exactly like it did the day that I mounted the fern and the fern seems to be quite happy 😊 I hope you are enjoying your new home!

I can listen/watch you talk about your plants for longer videos easily. You’re a good communicator. And maybe your accent helps too ;) Thank you for sharing

it's really beautiful that much of care you give them, indeed people may think we're all crazy but plants respond. that's a lot to learn about living things and in regards to the time passing by. thank you for the tips and motivation!

I had the same issue with mold. I moved my staghorn to corkboard and haven't had another issue and it has grown so fast!

I used metal foil tape and coated that on the back of the back of the wood, in combination with this you can also coat it in a oil treatment like coconut oil which is anti fungal and fine for plants. Even cleaning the wood really well and giving it a resin brush should do the trick.

Thank you for updating all yea I been try growing from seed I use min green house and keep mostly eyes on how grow I succeed in doing it I so glad that I do now thank you ☘️☘️☘️😊☘️☘️

I think I would take a top cutting from the syngonium batik, because that might activate the nodes below. But I wouldn’t chop more than the top node because she is so big and would look amazing when branching out!

Glad to see such progress in most of your plants; nice job! About the ones that have started to yellow, it’s puzzling as they don’t have pests. Did you use anything different recently…like nutrient solution/water etc? Hope they recover soon. Thanks for sharing Claire!

The zebrina is probably thirsty if you have a moister meter handy, if it reads between 2 & 3 water it. That is usually the number i shoot for.

I only use Cedar wood or Cork as I have had no rot or mould issues using those with plants. I loved seeing the progress of the seed experiments and look forward to seeing more updates. Shame about the Batik, i would just chop the oldest stem back as the new growth looks good. I love my Batik. Wow that Dubia looks fab, it just doesn't stop growing! I'm glad your Regale is back, that new little leaf looks beautiful and what a plant that will be when it gets bigger; I'm definitely going to put that on my wishlist. I'm wondering what that spotting and yellowing is on your Esqueleto, as my variegated Monstera is showing exactly the same issue on a couple of leaves and I have no idea what it is 🤔It's so frustrating not knowing as the roots are fine, no pests,etc. With the Skeleton Key it almost looks like a mineral deficiency, you could try Cal-Mag or Epsom Salts and see if that makes a difference. It might be worth doing a soil test to see if anything is lacking. I love watching these good and bad show-and-tells. I wish you all the best with the bad. My bads at the minute are the cooler temps have slowed down the growth on most of my Philos, the Marantas have all had to be chopped back as they all suffered as soon as it got cold and a couple of root rot casualties where the soil wasn't drying. Having to lessen the heating due to extortionate costs has really not helped 😭The good is that my Philo Ring of Fire, my Hoyas, Cacti & Jungle Cacti, Alocasias and Syngoniums are all growing so much I can't keep up with them. The positive thing I can say about this winter is "Thank goodness for large plastic boxes and prop boxes" 🤣

I use acrylic mounts for my stag horn. Looks very modern and no moof issues.

my esqueleto only gives me runners in lower light conditions. in my experience they grow better in bright light

Hey Claire, concerning the mold issue, a natural remedy you may want to try is clove oil, I use it to deter mold growth in the manufacture of watercolor paints. People use clove oil diluted in water to spray on mold to control it, so perhaps a spray for the back of the wood panels might be beneficial. Love your channel!

Wow, good job with the Dubia!

Sorry about your ferns Clair 😢 I have a staghorn fern attached to cedar, it is anti fungal and anti pest. Also on the back of my cedar wood I hot glued a strip of felt at the bottom back edge so when it rests on wall it will protect wall. I’ve had it about a year and no mold at all.

Re monstera esquelleto I would try and water them regularly. They love consistency. I have noticed this kind they thrive if they have regular on clock watering.. for example in my house exactly every 9 days. If I forget to water by a day or water too often leaves go yellow or brown

Loooved the video!!

I loved this video! Don't worry about your Allocasia. Her environment changed, she just went a little dormant. All of my Allocasias & Colocasias pull that w/me,lol. Leave her be for a few or chop it down & let her start again. They usually take off for me after I do that. They like to withhold affection with change🤣😂🤣

I have a few ferns on planks and I use cedar planks, I also make sure they’re off the wall so the nail at the bottom is a great idea, I also put moss on the bottom when I plant them up so it’s not a humid then if it was earth, that’s all I can contribute, I never get mild so not too sure, I water by putting them under the tap Hope that helps, I’ve put hoyas and orchid also, fun to have various type of leaf and color on the wall

one option for the mould would be to use sealant on the backside of the wood (or both sides if you haven't mounted it yet). Matte sealant is less visible/more natural looking.

I would Paint that piece of wood the ferns were on. Well future reference.. use paint and stain blocker for the next piece. And just paint the backs. See if it works.. love your channel!

Heck yeah, FIRST! Keep it going - big fan :D For me transparant pots are massive yes, seeing those noodles go around is amazing! As for the Esqueleto I have mine in a chunky perlite, coco coir, coco husk, bark, soil and worm poo - on a heating math. Giving me leaf after leaf, i did lose the first two it had. Might have been acclimating. Worm poopies has been doing wonders on all my plants tho!

I can’t wait to see that Jose leaf 🤍💚

I had issues with my staghorn ferns on wood slices, move them to cork bark! No issues for me, and as a bonus cork is way lighter, so much easier to hang

Scrubbing the wood with vinegar should help, then adding little feet trom nails or screws on the back so it isn't sitting flush with the wall. That or switching to a cedar mount

I bought a piece of cork bark from a pet store (I assume regularly used for reptiles) and mounted my fern on that. Haven’t had any issues with mood or the wood staying damp because i guess that kind of wood is built to stay in a humid environment like a terrarium.

As for Zebrina... I have same one-leaf-plant. I have a theory that once a year alocasias lose their roots. But I have mine in pon. Perhaps that's the reason. Also please check temperature by the window. If it drops below 18°C it may loose its roots. If not then the only explanation is... "It's alocasia" 😂

I wonder if the Skelton key’s yellowing is from a buildup of salts burn/fertilizer burn. Or maybe a pH imbalance causing nutrient deficiency? Or perhaps too much light or heat on the one side where the yellowing is more prominent.

random thoughts since you've probably already considered the obvious stuff: could the esquelato be thrips damage? (they like monsteras, and I've had plants develop similar yellowing/browning splotches from thrips). could the skeleton key be a nutrient deficiency (not something people generally think of in houseplants, but in the garden yellowing edges and green veins can be magnesium deficiency I think). For the mounted ferns - I would start with a new piece of wood (something more water resistant - cedar, cork), and make sure it is well elevated off the wall (some people do rubber pads, but you could just screw a few screws in the back so they stick out half an inch or more, so that it holds the wood off the wall and air can flow behind it.). And there are a bunch of flower seeds that only germinate in darkness, so not surprising that could be the case in other species - cool to know for anthuriums though!

I think the yellowing in the esqueleto and the skeleton key is fungal and water related? Have you checked the roots? I would whip them out to be honest if you haven't, and see what's going on. That yellow halo with the brown is v indicative of water and or fungal x

I suggest cork wood (it's oak as far as I remember) it's used for aquariums. Staghorn fern nets lots of sunshine. Perhaps that's the case of bird's nest fern?

I’m losing yet another Dieffenbachia, everyone says they are so easy but mine always die and I love them 😢

My zebrina also completely croaked over winter, I wouldn't take it personally 😂

Love the Philo Jose Buono! It’s so bigggg ❤🎉

I use modge podge sealer on my mounted wood. Doesn't hurt the plant that I have seen.

The esqueleto is my dream plant!

Your hair looks so great down!

Some of my started yellowing like that one,lacking calcium .from New Zealand

Not sure if I'm seeing things but when you were caressing your Alocasia's stem i noticed some webbing....maybe check for spider mites 🤔

I have no idea if this will work well but I had an idea that might work? I had the same problem mounting my stag horn's on wood and haven't found a good solution online. but I know you can mount orchids on terracotta/ clay mounts so I was going to try mounting my staghorn on a 8" terracotta drip tray, drill a hole at the top for a hook, and see how that goes? it shouldn't mold and if you use distilled water it wont leave hard water stains.

I think you Alo zebrina is in winter mode... ! my strelizia nicolai also pushes two new large leaves 😁

I saw a video where someone mounted a fern into a bamboo steaming basket and they rubbed the bamboo with alcohol beforehand to sterilize it so it wouldn’t get moldy as fast. So maybe that’s a hack? 🤔

I get all my mount wood at petsmart. Pet quality wood and spaghnum moss only for me. Also I water twice a week.

Lovely video Claire but don't chop your batik there's definitely new growth coming through. 🌴🌲🍀❤

For your plants with yellowing leaves, could it be a nutrient deficiency? I know it's winter and not a lot of fertilization happens during the colder months, but maybe take a look online and see if anything matches the type of yellowing you're seeing. The roots could also be dried and dead, although you said you had your watering under control. I mention dried, dead roots because my philodendron burle marx had yellowing and soft leaves and I discovered many of the roots had somehow dried to the point of dying even though I had been watering regularly and it was in fresh soil (it had been root bound when I got it so I transferred it to a slightly larger pot, but I didn't untangle the roots and left them as I found them. Big mistake 🤦🏻‍♀️). I hope this helps!

My zebrina is down to 4 leaves but my stingray is down to just the one. Think it's just the time of year, even though I've added growlights I think they know it's winter, so hopefully will be back to 6+ leaves in a few months.

With Birds Nest , you can't get the nest wet or it will die. They do better in a pot and water when dry half way down. Good luck!