Scary Plants and Poems for Your Greenhouse Halloween Home

Stenocactus multicostatus
Brain Cactus
Let’s visit the primitive part of our brains, the amygdala, that part that makes us love the spooky holiday known as Halloween. Getting tricked gives us a little treat of adrenaline (triggers your fight of flight response) and dopamine (the feel-good neurotransmitter). But because we now have the neocortex in this head of ours, which oversees higher-order cognitive function, it tells us, “Yep, that’s scary, but you are not in mortal danger!” Fascinating however, the neocortex is much slower than the amygdala which reacts first giving you the jolt that makes you feel alive!

Pause for a poem from Emily D.

The Brain—is wider than the Sky—
By: Emily Dickinson

The Brain—is wider than the Sky—
For—put them side by side—
The one the other will contain
With ease—and you—beside—
The Brain is deeper than the sea—
For—hold them—Blue to Blue—
The one the other will absorb— As sponges—Buckets—do—
The Brain is just the weight of God—
For—Heft them—Pound for Pound—
And they will differ—if they do—
As Syllable from Sound—

This Halloween, to pay homage to our mysterious brains and this beautiful work of poetry, and to celebrate that one time of year where living in fear is just fine, why not pick up a brain cactus at the greenhouse?! Follow basic cactus care instructions to turn on the dopamine in your plant pleasure center.

LIGHT
Cacti need bright light for best growth and prefer full sun. Place in direct sun for as many hours as possible. If moving a cactus outside in the summer, be sure to harden off before placing in full sun to prevent scorching. Introduce them to a sunny area a little more each day.

WATER
Thoroughly water cactus when soil is completely dry, then let soil dry again. This can often mean watering cactus only once a month. Cacti are desert plants that have evolved to hold water in their thick structure in order to survive prolonged periods of drought. Too much water will cause root rot.

SOIL
Well, sharply drained soil is a must. Cactus must be able to take up water but also drain and dry quickly. We recommend Espoma’s Organic Cactus Mix

TEMPERATURE
Cactus like warm, dry air. Unlike other tropical plants, they do not need humidity and can handle cooler temps.

FERTILIZER
Use a cactus specific fertilizer during active growth, spring through summer. We love Schultz’s Cactus Liquid Plant Food. Stop fertilizing during inactive growth, fall and winter.

FOR THE LOVE OF PLANTS
It freezes in the dessert, so cactus can actually handle fairly cold temps and can be left outside longer into the Fall than most people think.

Shop in-store for 2” Brain Cactus cuties.

Alluaudia procera
Octopus Tree
The most mythical and spooky representation of the octopus is the Kraken which originated in Scandinavian folklore. A commonly known amalgamation of the kraken/octopus/human can be seen in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Ursula’s famous solo, “Poor Unfortunate Souls” tells the sorrowful tail of those who long to be something else. But at what price?

…

Poor unfortunate souls
In pain, in need
This one longing to be thinner
That one wants to get the girl
And do I help them?
Yes, indeed
Those poor unfortunate souls
So sad, so true
They come flocking to my cauldron
Crying, "Spells, Ursula, please!"
And I help them!
Yes I do

…

Keep singing!

-Ursula, The Little Mermaid

Fortunately for us, the Octopus Tree, although strange and strangly, knows exactly who it is with no apologies. To care for this cactus, err, thingamabob, which is actually a deciduous, succulent shrub follow these care instructions:

LIGHT
Place in bright, direct light. As much light as possible.

WATER
Water only when the soil is almost completely dry. Give it a good soak so that the pot feels heavy, let drain. Empty any excess water from your saucer.

SOIL
Plant in Sol Soil’s Cactus Coco Grit, the hottest new cactus mix on the block. This eco-friendly spin on traditional cactus mix utilizes recycled coconut chips and coir. As a soil component, the ground husks offer excellent aeration and moisture retention properties while still providing a fast-draining medium.

FOR THE LOVE OF PLANTS
In outdoor environments, this shrubby cactus tree can grow up to 30 feet tall and can tolerate temperatures down to 25 degrees F.

Available in 10” pots, in-store only

Euphoriba flanaganii
Medusa’s Head

First a reading.

Medusa
By: Sylvia Plath

…

In any case, you are always there,
Tremulous breath at the end of my line,
Curve of water upleaping
To my water rod, dazzling and grateful,
Touching and sucking.
I didn't call you.
I didn't call you at all.
Nevertheless, nevertheless
You steamed to me over the sea,
Fat and red, a placenta

…

Yikes. And here’s the T. When Medusa broke her vow of celibacy by having an affair with the sea god Poseidon, Athena punished her. She turned Medusa into what she thought was a hideous hag, transforming her hair into writhing snakes and coloring her skin a pukish shade of green. These days she’s a symbol of noxious beauty and strength in the female form – also one of the best Halloween costumes ever.

While Medusa is a well-known figure in Greek mythology, the succulent (not really a succulent, but a euphorbia) named in her likeness is not. Consider for your collection, the Medusa’s Head Euphorbia if you are in the market for a spooky, mythological plant that is even the symbol of Versace. Follow care instructions specific to Euphorbia lest you turn to stone.

LIGHT
Euphorbia plants prefer a spot in full sun, although they can tolerate indirect light if for most of the day.

WATER
Water when your plant is about 50% dry. Euphorbias unlike cactus do not like to dry all the way out. During active growth, water more frequently.

SOIL
Euphorbia like a well-draining soil with grit. Combine 1 part Sol Soil’s Cactus Coco Grit with 1 part Espoma’s Organic Cactus Mix for sharp drainage that holds onto just the right amount of moisture.

FERTILIZER
Fertilize with a cactus specific fertilizer with each watering during active growth. We love Schultz’s Cactus Liquid Plant Food. Reduce fertilization to once a month during dormant or inactive growth periods.

FOR THE LOVE OF PLANTS
Poinsettias are also a part of the Euphorbia plant family. Coincidentally, a plant we can’t take our eyes off.

Shop for Medusa’s Head in the greenhouse in 6” pots.

Dionaea muscipula
Venus Flytrap
When is the last time you watched “Little Shop of Horrors”? a perfectly creepy film, and also a Broadway production about a manipulative carnivorous plant. What if you had to talk to your plant like this?

“I’ve given you sunlight, I’ve given you rain, looks like you’re not happy ‘less I open a vein!”
-Seymour Krelborn talking to Audrey II

Luckily for us, that overgrown flytrap is just a character in a cult classic film, a metaphor for an all-too-common human condition that often results in tragedy – desire for fame and success leading us to lose sight of what is really important. Hubris really.

To care for your mini-Audrey II, follow these care instructions:

LIGHT
Venus flytraps prefer at least 4 hours of direct (but not too hot) sunlight each day. Indoors, place in an East, South, or West facing window.

WATER
Venus flytraps prefer consistently moist soil and plenty of humidity. Indoors in winter, Venus flytraps do well in a terrarium where they are less likely to dry out. Water with distilled, RO (reverse osmosis), or rainwater for best results.

SOIL
Venus flytraps like poor, acidic soil, heavy in peat.

TEMPERATURE
65 to 85 degrees will keep them quite happy.

FERTILIZING
Venus Flytraps feed themselves with bugs they lure in, trap, and digest. Don’t feed these plants dead bugs, they won’t eat them, and they don’t like to be fertilized.

FOR THE LOVE OF PLANTS
Venus Fly Traps can live for 2-3 years without going dormant, but they do need dormancy to live beyond that.

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Zamioculcas zamiifolia ‘Raven’
Raven ZZ
Ravens often represent death and the underworld. In the poem, The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe, the raven is described as grim, stern, ebony, ancient, and ghastly. The raven is a reminder of sorrow that will never leave. How sad and dreary, but mystical and mysterious at the same time. Let’s read on…

The Raven
By: Edgar Allan Poe

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door —
Only this, and nothing more

…

Click here to read the entire work.

While EAP’s, The Raven and other works were influential in altering the direction of modern literature and forthright in the “art for art’s sake” movement of the 19^th century, so too has been the reign of the Raven ZZ. While not a symbol of death and despair, it has taken the plant industry and resulting plant parents by storm as we have been “thrilled and filled with fantastic terrors never felt before”. This “rare and radiant maiden” is one for the books and also your bookshelf. Go ahead and buy plants for plants sake!

LIGHT
ZZ plants tolerate low light, and even do well under florescent office lights. Just about any corner of the home or office will suffice.

WATER
Water only when the top several inches of soil is dry. If you forget, or go on vacation, no worries! ZZ can handle a couple weeks without water and can even survive a drought period.

SOIL
Regular potting mix is all that’s required for ZZ to thrive. We recommend Espoma’s Organic All Purpose Potting Mix for best results

FERTILIZING
Fertilize at least twice a year – more often for more growth – with a balanced, basic water-soluble fertilizer. We love Schultz All Purpose Liquid Plant Food.

FOR THE LOVE OF PLANTS
Basically, ZZ is easy.

Two sizes available in store and online!

Whew! That was a big one. Hopefully by now you are feeling spookified, enlightened, and emboldened to try out one of these Halloween harrows. Stay creepy folks.