Gardening with Gary

Gardening Advice from an Expert

Sansevieria (Mother-in-Law's Tongue or Snake Plant)

Member Vida kindly adds, Mary asked for shade plant or foolproof plants. You forgot that Sanseveria, or Mother-in-law's tongue or Snake Plant is the most forgiving, hard to kill thing that grows! After about 7 years of growth, it puts out beautiful long stems of a sweet-smelling delicate flower. Don't know where to find them any more but should be available somewhere. Every parlor had one, but that was years ago. They start short but will get to be about 3 feet tall. Look them up. I think they are great, but then, I am an old plant, too!

A. As always, I welcome posts from fellow gardeners with suggestions and yes, even corrections!!! I love to learn, too, as I research these questions, so feel free to write me. I was thinking that Mary was asking about outdoor plants, but I could be wrong. These plants above [which have been house favorites for generations] are still available at some garden centers. Their blooming is a true sight, and happens only ever so often, so is a pleasant surprise.

Yasamin writes~ I have a snake plant that I inherited last year. I keep it indoors. I'm not sure how old it is, but I think it needs to be repotted. It's current pot is a bit cracked, and the potting mix it's in just looks very used up. It seems pretty healthy for the most part, but some of the leaves seem to be not as firmly rooted in the mix as before. Anyway, I've never repotted such a big plant before, so I could use your advice. How should I go about repotting it? What kind of potting mix would you recommend? Additionally, I would like to try growing a new snake plant from a cutting. Can you tell me how you would do that? How long should I expect it to take to grow?

A. Glad you have a plant growing so well that it needs repotting and I assure you that it does. Once a pot starts cracking, you know that the roots are yelling at you quietly, repot me...I want more room, please...

Snake Plant [Sansevieria or Sanseveria]

Carefully lay the pot on its side on newspaper large enough to protect the floor. Use a hammer and lightly hit the sides where split. Remove pieces of the pot as they break off. Do not smash down hard enough to harm the roots. When the pot is all removed, use you hands to loosen the root ball around the edges. I would bet that you will see circling roots. Take a sharp knife and cut right up and down on the roots to sever them in places around the ball, maybe about 3-4 times. Pry loose some more soil and allow to drop off. Loosen the roots and set the plant into a pot larger than before. If it is in a 6" pot, use a 7-8" pot, new and clean. Place a shard of broken pottery over the bottom hole allowing water to escape but not soil. Fill in around the root ball with a good house plant soil from the store, with some perlite added in [you can buy most all over the place!] Keep the soil line the same as it was. Take outdoors or to a sink and water in slowly and well. Allow to drain for several hours, out of any direct sunlight. return it to its former home and water only when dry down 1". Fertilize once a month with a dilute food, 1-2 teaspoons per gallon water.

There may very well be side shoots visible when you break the plant out of its pot. See if it looks like a new young separate plant with its own root system. Pot this up in a new small pot and it will grow to become a big beautiful plant. They are easily propagated by division.

Jamie writes~ I have a plant in the office that has tiny white bugs crawling around in the soil of the plant. I have looked at them with a magnifying glass and they are all white with six legs, two antennae and their bodies are long. When I water the plant they come out in the bottom tray and seem to walk on the water. I have looked all over the under side of the plant leaves and cannot find and debris from the bug. They do not look like they have wings. Are they harmful to my plant? The only name I have for the plant is a mother-in-law tongue.

A. Its botanical name is Sansevieria, Agavaceae (agave) , pronounced SAN-sev-ee-ay-ree-a. Also called snake plant in UK and snakeskin plant in USA. Other common names are good luck plant, lucky plant, devil's tongue, and bowstring hemp. These insects are eating organic material found in the potting mix and move above ground only when liquid is applied. Apply an insecticidal drench obtained from a garden center. Bold and erect with sword-like leaves, most Sansevieria have an attractive marbled pattern on the foliage. A tough plant that will grow in bright sunshine or shade, withstand dry air, drafts and periods without water, and it rarely needs repotting. Water sparingly and let the soil dry between waterings. In winter do not overexpose to near freezing temperatures nor overwater as it will rot the base. Temperature: average warmth - min 15 C (59 F) in winter. Care must be taken not to damaged the tip of the leaf as it will stop growing. The ultimate unkillable plant with good resistance to insects makes it a good starter plant. Growth is comparatively slow but it lasts for many years.

http://www.flowers.org.uk/plants/plantfacts/motherinlawstongue.htm

Judy writes~
I have a Mother-in-law's Tongue plant, also called Snake root I believe, that has sent up 2 flowers. I have been indoor (as well as outdoor) gardening for 45 years. Have you ever seen anything like this?

A. Most people who experience the flowering of Sansevieria think it is a very rare experience. But, it is not. It is just a sign that you are getting better at growing them. They will flower more often as they get bigger and healthier. They need good light and fertilizer. Then they build up the strength to put up flowers.

Usually, separating them causes them to stop this behavior, and allowing them to grow undisturbed in a pot, filling it up with roots, prompts this behavior. Each flower will last one night, releasing a heavenly scent. Each morning, those blooms will wither. Because of the amount of blooms on each stalk, you should get about 7 days worth of blooms. If you move them from their preferred spot, sometimes they sulk. Each plant usually but not always only blooms once but the pups [side shoots] will flower when they mature. Some species take a little longer, but a nice sized mature clump of Sansevieria of just about any species should flower every year or two.