This is the place to see what all the books don't want to tell you, about what you can grow outdoors in Michigan. I started growing plants outdoors because I couldn't grow anything indoors. Then I found out why I couldn't. Plants don't grow indoors! When's the last time you saw a plant in a building, when a person didn't put it there? It just doesn't happen, because the growing conditions are all wrong!
All plants need water, humidity in the air, heat, light, and even a variability of all of these. Inside your house, plants don't get the temperature changes they need, and very few get all the light they need. Plants need a diverse ecosystem in which to grow.
If you have a cactus that is infested with fuzzy bugs (I think they are called mealy bugs), then put it outdoors, in it's pot, and watch for a few weeks as the bugs disappear. Then when you bring it in for the winter, the problem will return. If you find cacti which are hardy in your climate, then you can plant them in the ground permanently and never see those bugs again.
New email as of ca. 2006! Send me an email.
Read my soapbox on the USDA hardiness zone map, how people use and abuse it, and why I try not to use it myself.
Read Alicia Ellis' soapbox on my soapbox. Alicia Ellis is a Master Gardener here in Michigan.
Send me an email if you have any suggestions, comments, or questions, or if you think that I have identified any plants wrong. I want to know if you have any cacti outdoors that I don't have. Let me know where in the world you are growing them!
