I have a curly spider plant that I purchased last summer. The leaves were curly when I got it. Somewhere, somehow, I saw something that said let them dry out a bit. So I could not stand it any longer seeing it droop more each day. I am wondering if it is overcrowded. I know they like to be a little potbound but maybe not quite as much as it is. It has never produced babies either. It has a south exposure about 3 feet from the window. I am going to keep it medium moist now that I have read it here. Any suggestions?

Mutt!
My thought would be that it's not getting enough light. To my mind, most of your Chlorophytums prefer a really bright light, even some sun, and I would think that especially in the winter when the sun is low, that it would be even more the case. I don't have the 'curly', but my spiders get full morning sun, and produce a lot of 'babies'. And they do dry out somewhat between waterings…I never keep them on the 'moist' side. Hope this helps. And again,
Curly Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum 'Bonnie')

Is it in a hanging basket?

Thank you Tara. I will give your suggestion a try, although I will have to juggle some plants to give it better light. As I woke up this morning to total greyness, I was actually thinking, this sure looks like winter!

And to whomever wrote, "I don't understand, Mutt." I did not write that very clearly. Sorry about that.

I just want everyone to know, this place is very friendly and comfortable. I will have to brush up on my Latin names though to keep up with all of you.

Lin, thank you for your help too. You are an angel for your prompt greetings and responses.

No, Tiffany, it is not a hanging basket. I don't like to hang spider plants because I walked into a leaf a few years ago and it scratched my eye. The eye doctor said I was not the first patient he had seen with the same story. Be careful out there to those who hang their spider plants!

Your very welcome, and I do hope that this truly is the answer to your dilemma.
It's been my experience that "gardening" is a lifestyle that teaches you something new everyday. (love that)! I am far from being a master of Latin…Not even a novice! But I have found over the years, that many, make that most plants tend to have different 'common' names from one part of the country to another. Heck, from one part of the world to the other! And that is one of the biggest reasons why I continually find myself going back to the Plant Database, typing in a common name that I know, and trying to learn if nothing else, just the Genus name, and even, as is in this database particularly, other common names. It can cut down a bit on the confusion. Plus it keeps my grey matter from shrinking to much!

Anyway, for me, It's all about having fun, and learning that certain "something new everyday"!
Happy gardening!

Hi again Tara,
The Curly Spider Plant got juggled up to within a foot of the south window.

I once had a friend who was a University Master Gardener. I had plants all over the yard. She and I would give each other daily reports on our plants by Latin names. Then so much changed in my life and lifestyle and my yard went to heck. That was quite a while ago and I have forgotten so much!

Last summer I went wild and bought dozens of African Violets and then houseplants of many types. I feel alive again! I totally agree with you on keeping the grey matter working. Learning new things is fun.

Leda

I love it!…"I feel alive again!" … So wonderful!

Who doesn't understand? How can I help you understand?

(the signature in your post says 'I don't understand. MUTT')

Thank you, Hetty. I am a definite "newbie" here. I will try to find that and fix it.

Leda, sorry to hear about that! Excellent advice. I've scratched my eye on leaves before too. Luckily my glasses deflect most of the leaves I lean into, but it has happened. I don't do spider plants anymore but do have a lot of other plants in hanging baskets.

Your avatar pic is extremely pretty!

Hi Leda, So glad you found us here!

Leda, have you taken your spider plant out of it's container to see if it's perhaps root-bound? One problem I used to have with Chlorophytum is they grew so fast and filled the pot with roots that the root system could no longer take up the water and the roots died. I've never been able to keep spider plants looking good unless they are planted in the ground in bright shade! I can't begin to count how many hanging baskets of spider plant I've had over the years! They would look great for a little while and then the leaves ended up getting brown edges and the plants just looked downright ratty! One time I had one hanging in a tree in the backyard where a few babies fell off and took root beneath the tree ... those always looked really great so I just decided they must prefer being in-ground rather than in hanging baskets. I have a non-gardening friend who had spider plants as a ground cover in a spot in her yard and they were always so pretty!

Chlorophytum (Spider Plant) somewhat resembles:

Creeping Lily Turf (Liriope spicata 'Silver Dragon')
Lilyturf (Liriope muscari 'Variegata')

I think the flowers of Liriope are much prettier and the plants are much hardier as a ground cover in most areas. I've lost a few spider plants to freezes over the years but they are so easy to come by and always abundant in local garden centers.

Hi Again Lin,

I will trying taking the plant out of the pot. I am pretty certain it is root bound, water flows through rapidly and there were many plants in the pot when I purchased it. I live in Colorado so can't imagine having them outside during the winter. I have always had spider plants and they have prospered. This curly one has me confused but if I try everyone's ideas, and it still doesn't curl, I will go to the drug store and buy those old pink sponge curlers we used many, many years ago.

Thanks Lin,
Leda

Leda said:This curly one has me confused but if I try everyone's ideas, and it still doesn't curl, I will go to the drug store and buy those old pink sponge curlers we used many, many years ago.

I kinda like that idea!

Sometimes plant cultivars will revert back to the habits of the parent plant ... I wonder if that's what your curly spider is doing?

By the way ... love that beauty in your photo!

Thank you, that is Penny. I liked the dog in your avatar. That sweetie made me smile.

About eye-poking in the garden ...

I'm usually somewhat unsteady on my feet even on flat, smooth surfaces (weak ankles). Then my old high-top sneakers wore out and I was trying to garden in sneakers with no ankle support.

A rock rolled under my foot and I started falling face-first into a bush. I saw the sharp end of a branch rushing towards my eye.

I had time to think "I don't want to lose an EYE!" before my glasses deflected the branch so it only scratched my cheek.

For those of us with uneven land or big stones or weak ankles, consider wearing shoes or hiking boots with good ankle support! I found some $25-$30 hiking boots made from synthetic material, and now I don't lurch around my garden like a drunk.

Or even put some time into leveling off frequently-used walkways. If you dig them down a few inches, in effect you've made your bed a raised bed, improved its drainage, and made it warm up and dry out a little sooner in spring. That's also a few inches less that you have to bend over to weed, sow or plant.

And you can screen rocks and roots out of soil that you shovel away, then add the screened soil to your beds or compost heap.

And, if this walkway keeps grass away from the bed, its roots will invade the bed much less.

Rick, thank you. Those suggestions are very good ideas to think about and I will tell my husband about them. I garden mostly indoors because of asthma and allergies. I am sure this puts more mold in my house but so far...so good. (Or maybe I am just fooling myself.)

I scratched my eye when I was closing the indoor venetian blinds on the window. There was a variegated non-curly spider plant near the pull cord. The edge of the leaf scratched my eye, the retina, as I blinked. This was after cataract surgery so vision is perfect. I wear sunglasses outside and reading glasses for close work. Now my spider plants are on tables or shelves - not eye level. I have also made a paper cut like scratch on my hands from these plants.

I do have stable footwear.

Thank you for the ideas.
Leda

When i worked in a chemical factory, they convinced us that we WANTED to wear safety glasses. They had a safety video that showed a pair of safety glasses a carpenter had worn.

A nail from his nail gun had missed, bounced off a hard surface, and then STUCK in his safety lens. The lens popped out of the eyeglass frame and gave him a bruise, but it did NOT pass through his eyeball and brain.

We all wore our safety glasses after that video!

Wow, that is powerful. I am glad the carpenter had his safety glasses on.