u/PastafarianVibes

Hi everyone! My parents have massive green thumbs and were very excited that I became interested in houseplants this year. They came to visit yesterday and surprised me with this Desert Rose and a starter Bougainvillea bonsai! I wasn’t expecting these at all so I didn’t get a chance to prepare.

Everything I’m reading says DR needs full sun and heat, which makes sense. They live in South Florida, so they get all the direct sun and heat. I however, live in Seattle, WA and I think 60° is warm AND I live on a lower floor of an apartment building that only gets about 6 hours of decent sun in my window/on my patio. I have most of my plants happy under Barrina grow lights for about 13-15 hours a day.

I put them under a grow light reading about 800ppfd (under the top leaves) to 1200ppfd (top of leaves) through the Photone app. I will get more dedicated lights for it too. Current indoor temp about 76° and getting warmer (no ac). The current soil in the bag is pretty organic, so I will need a more well-draining mix. Would a chunky mix I use for my monstera work (last picture; Douglas Fir Bark, Perlite #3, Coco Chips, Charcoal, Worm Castings, Humic Acid, Mycorrhizae. Zeolite). I will be getting a terracotta pot tomorrow to put this in.

Would I be able to keep this plant thriving indoors? What changes should I make to have this plant happy? Thanks for reading this, I really want this Desert Rose to continue to be this pretty! My parents have done such a great job so far and I’m so scared to kill it 😭.

ID help please!!

Is this rot? Help what should I do?

Ace Hardware 👀

Moved from Florida to Washington… Help her survive.