Tips for keeping indoor plants happy during the winter

The end of December means cleaning up from the holidays both indoors and out.

Here are some common questions and answers:

Q. I was given a potted rosemary plant in the shape of a tree as a gift. Can I keep it indoors all year? How should I prune it? Can I use the fresh rosemary sprigs in cooking? — N.G., Bonney Lake

What a scent-sational gift — rosemary is an herb used in many recipes.

Your potted plant will need as much sunlight as you can give it so a bright south facing window is best. In our cloudy climate, it will grow leggy and weak after a few months of no sun, so enjoy every spring by clipping the new growth and using this herb fresh or dried. Keep a pair of scissors nearby to manicure the tree shape every few days if necessary. Gather the pruning crumbs as you snip.

Rosemary does not need much water, so feel the soil and water it only when the top 2 inches of soil is dry. Do not fertilize this plant in the winter.

In spring you can move it gradually to the outdoors by letting it sit on a covered porch or patio for a few weeks while it adjusts to the cold. Then in May you can remove the tree from the container and transplant it into the ground or continue to grow it as a potted plant in a warm and sunny part of the garden.

Q. I have a spider houseplant. It has one main plant with three baby plants dangling from long stems from the mother plant. This is my first houseplant that has stayed alive and I want to make a new houseplant from the dangling baby plant. When is the best time to do this? — C.L., Tacoma

A. Anytime is a good time to make the snip and remove the baby spider plant from the mother.

You may already see new roots forming on the bottom of the dangling plant. You will can cut the umbilical cord and float the baby in a glass of water for a few weeks to get more roots growing. Then fill a small pot with potting soil and push the rooted plant into the soil. You may need to use a bent paper clip to secure the bottom of the plant into the soil so that the roots stay underground. Keep the soil moist but not wet.

If your spider plant is given plenty of bright light it should start making new baby offsets of its own in about a year. Congratulations of becoming a plant parent.

Q. What was the tip you gave last year on how to get African Violets to rebloom? Something about boiling eggs? Thanks for repeating it.— Anon Email

A. The dirt cheap way to feed an African Violet and get it to bloom again is to boil an egg. Save the cooled and unsalted water from cooking the egg and use this to water your African Violet houseplants. The calcium from the egg offers a free dose of fertilizer that will jumpstart violets into bloom.

Marianne Binetti has a degree in horticulture from Washington State University and is the author of several books. Reach her at binettigarden.com.