Excerpt: 'Joey Green's Gardening Magic'

Oct. 8 -- Houseplants

Alberto VO5 Conditioning Hairdressing. Clean houseplant leaves by applying a small dab of Alberto VO5 Conditioning Hairdressing to the leaves with a soft cloth.

Arm & Hammer Baking Soda. Neutralize the acidity of potting soil by watering the soil once with a mixture of four tablespoons Arm & Hammer Baking Soda and one quart water. Aunt Jemima Original Syrup. Revive an ailing houseplant by adding two tablespoons Aunt Jemima Original Syrup at the base of the plant once a month.

Bounce. To prevent the soil from leaking out of a planter, line the bottom of the planter with a used sheet of Bounce Classic. Water can drain through the dryer sheet without the sheet breaking down in the pot.

Canada Dry Club Soda. Feed flat Canada Dry Club Soda to your houseplants. The minerals found in club soda are beneficial to plants.

Carnation NonFat Dry Milk. Mix three ounces Carnation NonFat Dry Milk with two cups water and, using a soft cloth, wipe the milky solution on houseplant leaves to give them a fine gloss.

Castor Oil. Rejuvenate a houseplant ailing from a nutrient deficiency by dribbling one tablespoon castor oil into the soil and then watering well.

Cool Whip. Clean houseplant leaves by using a soft cloth to wipe Cool Whip on the leaves.

Depends. If a planter is leaking excess water, set the pot inside a pair of Depends, creating a diaper for the plant. Conceal the Depends diaper by placing the pot inside a second, larger pot.

Epsom Salt. For every foot of a houseplant's height, sprinkle one teaspoon Epsom Salt evenly around the base for better blossoms and deeper greening. Adding Epsom Salt to houseplant food will also enrich the color of any flowering plants and aid in disease-resistance. Or mix one tablespoon Epsom Salt in one gallon water and spray the mixture on the plant. Epsom Salt is magnesium sulfate, which lowers the pH of the soil and provides magnesium.

Geritol. Revive an ailing houseplant by adding two tablespoons Geritol to the soil twice a week for three months. New leaves should begin to grow within the first month.

Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar. To revive undernourished houseplants, mix one tablespoon Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar in one gallon water in a watering can and water your houseplants with the solution. The vinegar neutralizes the pH of the water, making vital nutrients in the water more available to the plants.

Heinz White Vinegar and Q-Tips Cotton Swabs. To remove mealybugs from houseplants, dab the bugs with a Q-Tips Cotton Swab dipped in a mixture of equal parts Heinz White Vinegar and water.