Cool Plants for You and Your Kids

Sometimes you tire of the usual array of ferns, begonias and African violets. Wouldn't it be nice to have a plant that could move around for a change, or maybe one that you could dry off and stick on a shelf until you were ready to grow it again, or maybe a plant that could pull itself into the ground and hide?

All of these and more are available in the mysterious plant kingdom. Many of us are familiar with Venus flytraps. These plants turn the predator prey dynamic on its head by eating the insects that usually eat them. This adaptation allows the plant to obtain necessary nitrogen from the bug's body that would be otherwise unattainable. This is one of a host of plants including pitcher plants, dewdrops, cobra plants and many others, some of which are native to bogs and and around the New York area. Venus flytraps are tough, however. They need very moist conditions and the kids just tend to love them to death by feeding big chunks of hamburger that they just can't manage.

For a more practical look at these, I recommend The New York Botanical Gardens, Nolen Greenhouses www.nybg.org/. These greenhouses, unlike the more famous Enid P. Haupt Conservatory, are open to the public free with grounds admission. And if you stop by on Wednesdays or before noon on Saturday, your visit is free. Once you've checked them out, you'll probably want to spring for a membership so that you can take advantage of the excellent Christmas train displays and Orchid Show.

A better idea for the child who just wants to see his plant move is, sensitive fern, scientific name mimosa pudica. This terrific Brazilian plant features delicate frond-like leaves that close and droop when touched. It is easily grown from seed each spring and features pretty red flowers as a mature plant, although older plants don't move as impressively. Thompson and Morgan, a well known British Company that is one of the best sources of exotic and unusual seeds in the world can satisfy your need for this seed and others. www.tmseeds.com/product/2554.html.

How about a plant that you can just drop into a drawer when your easily distracted tykes move on to the next new thing? In that case, check out the resurrection Plant, scientific name, selaginella lepidophylla. This is a member of a very ancient and primitive family somewhere between mosses and ferns in the evolutionary family tree. The plant can be grown by dropping it into a bowl of water and putting it in the window for light. When you are fed up with it, dry it out and stick it on a shelf. You will just be doing what nature does naturally in the arid environments of Texas and Arizona from which it hails. You can pick one up at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's gift shop if you in the neighborhood www.bbg.org/ or from Escapade Direct www.escapadedirect.com/evev.html by internet.

One of the most interesting of all plants, and my personal favorite, is the genus known as "living stones" or lithops. These canny desert dwellers disguise themselves as stones to hide from thirsty desert creatures during the long months of drought that follow spring rains. They feature contractile roots that have the ability to pull the plant further into the ground so that they are invisible. Furthermore, unlike most plants, these feature a window on top that allows light to penetrate the interior of the plant for photosynthesis. These living stones feature no roots, no branches, only a very realistic imitation of a pebble. They can be grown from seed available through Thompson and Morgan or any dealer in exotic seeds or as plants sold by most major botanical gardens. New York area residents and visitors will find the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens display in the succulent greenhouse to be especially comprehensive and well laid out.

These are just a few of the nifty treasures to be found in the plant kingdom. But fess up now, you will actually let the children grow them? You won't keep them all to yourselves, will you?