Beginnners Guide to ..

YES. my passion for the moment, gardening. this post is especially for stace ;) i am trying to infect her with my gardening bug. *Grin.

here's my recommendation of beginner fool-proof plants.

main reason for picking them:

• super undemanding (can withstand some neglect)
  
• hardy
  
• multiplies giving you sense of achievement
• very colourful, looks cute
• can be decorative
• can be grown indoor and outdoor

• Echeveria imbracata (aka Monster flower, given its huge rossette forming structure)

- they have very interesting colours. they tolerate almost any type of soil (although the book recommend sandy soil) but they thrive on almost anything.
-with a little bit of attention, it will spread and produce many baby plants.
-they produce pink flowers with yellow linings to the petals
-recently I have tried and succeeded to propagate by using single leaf of the succulent.
-good for borders, pots, anything.

• Crassulae ovata (Jade plant)

-they come under a sub- species, for eg, some are green leaves, and some have green leaves with red rims.
-they have thick leaves and i grew mine under a bit of shade to give that dark green color on the leaves.
-sometimes they will flower too.
-to propagate, use single leave or a little branch.

• Pachyphytum oviferum

-sometimes called moonstones,
-they have very thick leaves and flowers is pale pink.
-can be propagated by single leaf or stem.
-when grown indoor, it can be very white but in sheltered dry outdoor areas, the sun brings out a pinkish color in the leaves.

• Haworthia attenuata

-my dad's friend gave him some bunch of these when he visited him in Auckland. he left me one baby plant and has since multiplied to two pots.
-narrow spiky leaves with bands of white tubercles give the outside of the leaves a zebra patterned look.
-they look a bit like zebras.
-in spring, they give out sprays of tiny flowers.

• Pony tail palm (Beaucarnea recurvata)

-my dad grew this in Sibu. they grew really big but takes ages to grow.
-am surprised to discover it's a type of succulent. it has a bulbous base.
-they like the ocassional drinks. if you grow them indoor, the leaves becomes very dark green.mine seems to have tinge of red on the leaves (maybe due to low temperature)
-what i really want to increase in my collection is palm with two bunch of pony tails on the same bulb.

• Sansviera (mother-in-law tongues)

- this is a really tough plant. it grows upwards so is suitable for any place.
- by tough i mean, it can withstand much neglect. i went on my trip and don't think it received a single drop of water. it still survived.
-after repotting in feb, it has produced many new babies and has grown much taller.
-having said that, i killed jakes first sansviera by standing it under full sun and full rain. (sometimes the plant label can be very misleading).

i think this is enough to get started ;)