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Plants from outer space
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Posted by Dewbert z5 IN (My Page) on Sun, Apr 6, 03 at 10:27
Hi folks--
As part of my Master Gardener Education committment, I am planning a project for kids entitled "Plants from outer space and other weird creatures you can grow on your windowsill!"
The goal is to capture their attention with the "weird" plants and get them interested in gardening of all types.
I'm looking for suggestions on plants that might fit the bill for this type of project. (I'm also looking for trades for "weird" plants I don't have yet.)
Here's what I've collected so far:
Lithops (Living stones)
Bromeliads (various)
Tillandsia (Air plants)
Haworthia (Various types)
Crassula (Jade & Burro's tail)
Aloe (various)
Alephandra (Zebra plant)
Gynura (Purple passion)
Davillia (Rabbit's foot or tarantula fern)
Nematanthus (Goldfish plant)
Pachypodium (Madagascar palm)
Cryptanthus (Earth star)
Agave (Century plant)
Chlorophytum (Spider plant)
Beaucarnea (Ponytail palm)
Ornithogalum (Pregnant onion)
Adromischus (Crinkle leaf)
Kalanchoe (Aurora Borealis)
Other suggestions? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Plants from outer space
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Peanuts
Garlic
Money plant (Lunaria)
Pond Scum = string algae; just leave a bucket of water around long enough, it'll come on its own. Add water hyacinth or duck weed and watch it go away. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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Don't forget Venus flytrap and other insectivores. They are easy to grow and fascinating. A sensitive plant (Mimosa pudica)is also nice.
They all fit a window sill. Ethan |
RE: Plants from outer space
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- Posted by Sanda Uz10/Sz23 SoCal (My Page) on
Tue, Apr 29, 03 at 16:46
Passiflora. The flowers look like they're "out of this world". Check out the passiflora forum and gallery.
Sanda |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| Have you thought about introducing 'weird' textured plants? Lambs ear, a thistle and definitely a mimosa pudica. How about cosmos to go with the theme? Celosia always looks like an alien to me, as does a growing potato (although not really for the windowsill) (Good idea on the passiflora, Sanda!) Good luck with the project -
Samantha |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| The first plant that ever grabbed my attention was a purple passion plant in the middle of a grocery store aisle. I begged my mom to buy it, which she did. It didn't survive, but it definitely planted a passion for gardening in my little heart. I like your idea, and I believe it will definitely have the desired effect. By the way, you might include some type of stinky plant. Boys would probably get a kick out of it. We had an ornamental pear (?) tree that had flowers that smelled like fish. It was horrible, but I couldn't keep my son away from it. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| There is a great Kids book on plants in a comic book like style, called "Weird things you can grow" Illustrated by Phoebe Gloeckner. One of the plants it mentions is the Carrion Flower. How Fun!! |
RE: Plants from outer space
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- Posted by vivi z5 NY (My Page) on
Mon, May 19, 03 at 15:23
| I've never grown them, but I've seen them - I believe they're called Chinese Lantern. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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- shrimp plant really looks like shrimp.
- haworthia 'star window' has translucent window-like leaves that are fascinating.
- haworthia 'zebra' is another really cool haworthia
- aeonium schwarzkopf is a beautiful, striking purple color
- lamb's ear is soft and cuddly
- many kalanchoe varieties are quite hairy and strange-looking.
- and then there's horsetail plant. its a very tall, strange, almost reed-appearing plant, but it is extremely aggressive, and once it flowers (which doesn't look like a flower, but more a swelling at the tip), it sends out spores and it is never to be gotten rid of. i have found my favorite strange plants by going to places that sell succulents and just browsing for what looks unusual. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| In our garden center, Allisonville Nursery, they sell what appears to be a succulent plant (but they have it with the herbs) called Vicks Plant. It is hairy, has weird-shaped thick leaves, and it smells like Vicks Vaporub when you rub the leaves. That would look and smell weird and spacey. Also what about aluminum plant (houseplant) with its silvery leaves?? Very spacey! |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| Orchids are great in warmer climates or as an exotic indoor plant. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| While studying weird plants find out which ones are poison. |
RE: Plants from outer space
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| Bronze fennel is light and airy, and smells like licorice. The kids love to pick it and smell it. Cheap and easy, but sets lots of seeds. |
RE: Plants from outer space 2
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| How about allium giganteum? They are so big and round, kids are awed by them. (and want to pick them of course.) |
RE: Plants from outer space
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I have always thought that dill looks funky.
Snapdragons, I believe are the ones that you can squish the flower in the right place and they will open and close their "mouth"
A purple cabbage plant might be fun. the kids could watch it grow then get to eat it!
Mint is fun to smell and eat, plus you can cut it and let them see the perfectly square stem.
Pitcher plants have unusual shapes and diet!
Any of the unusual colors for normal plants-black calla-would be interesting. They will be able to make the connection to flowers they've actually seen. It sounds like a great idea! Good luck |
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