---- — This week will be a potpourri of things you need to know
for this time of the year. During the last two weeks, I had many
people come into the store with houseplant problems. The problem
concerns insects on the houseplants. In most cases, the plants
had been outside last summer and then were brought back into the
house. While outside, they were exposed to many insects, but
natural predators kept the insects in check. Once the plants
were inside, the insect population began to grow due to the lack
of natural predators. At this point, an application of an
insecticide will get the insects under control. Depending on the
type of insect, you may find that using a systemic insecticide
may be your best bet. Most of your houseplants will soon go into
a period of new growth. Some will need to move up to a larger
size pot. If you are not sure whether or not to repot your
houseplants, take a few moments to do a quick test. Slide the
pot off the root ball of the plant and then look at the roots.
If the roots are w