need houseplant tips

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I have a common umbrella tree in a pot. It's shedding like crazy yet it's got a lot of new growth on it. All the bigger leaves along with the stalks are falling off. Question: Is there a way to do something to the center stalk to encourage it to grow new shoots?

My spider plant isn't doing very well. I recently repotted it because I thought it was time to. You should have seen the taproots - they were the size of small carrots. Shortly after I trimmed back the roots and repotted it, it started to wither. A lot of the blades turned brown. I figured it was a goner so I put it outside for a week or so but saw that it was still green so I brought it back inside and the cool air seems to have bolstered it. The blades are smooth but it's still getting a few brown blades. I'd really like for it to grow much more and get some of it's fullness back. It's got a couple of stalks with babies. One of the stalks isn't doing so good but the other is fine.
My other spider plant is doing great. I asked a friend of mine if I could have her large babies. I put them in a moist paper towel and planted them together. That was about a month ago and it's still firm and green.

My snake plant (mother-in-law's tongue) is going great. I popped out a couple of babies and potted them and they're still green so I guess I did it right. In fact the main mother plant has new growth in the pot. I was fairly excited to see that.

I've noticed that the soil in my pots gets extremely hard. I was hoping someone might have a tip to maybe softening it up a bit. Maybe I'm watering too infrequently or I need to aerate it by sticking a fork into the soil and loosening it.

In short - how to encourage new growth from a center stalk?

How to bolster a spider plant?

How to soften up pot soil?

I am not sure with the umbrella tree, but usually if you prune plants back, it encourages growth.

To "bolster" a plant, well around here we like to use a product called Seasol, which is Fish Emulsion, or Charlie Carp! Basically a liquid fertiliser. Or one you put into liquid, like Miracle Gro.

If the soil is getting hard in your pots, it sounds as though you are using soil from your yard, rather than potting mix.

I think there are recipes as to how to make your own potting mix by adding sand, other things to your soil from the backyard. Otherwise best to get potting mix from the shops.

nope. Potting mix

I would change brands of potting mix.

Failing that you can buy coir blocks and add water, and then mix that in with your potting mix.

Are you water too much/too little and is it in the proper sun location? ie: direct, indirect?

Most of the time with any plant individuals water too excessively or not enough. Same goes with the lighting. If you are over watering, the leaves turn yellow, so sometimes people put it in the sun thinking that would help, when really it doesn't.

Potting mixes really shouldn't matter unless it requires something special like sand. Which it does not sound like your does.

Houseplant Cultural information: This old time favorite has been a staple of the house plant industry for decades. The fast growing "Umbrella Tree" is easy to keep and over time...can grow to the ceiling.

Place your "Umbrella Tree" in a location with early morning or late day sunshine for optimum growth. The plant will adapt to low light locations... but will naturally thin itself out according to the amount of light it receives. Allow the soil to dry 2" to 3" from the surface on larger plants between watering... 1" to 2" on smaller plants. "Umbrella Tree" always seems to be growing, so feed monthly with a balanced liquid fertilizer. Spider mites seem to like this plant... so keep any eye out for them. Propagation of stem cuttings is difficult.

Spider plants enjoy natural light, but not direct sunlight. You should place your plants near a window but not directly in them, this will cause browning of the leaves. The plants do well in cool rooms as long as there is enough light. You should keep your plants watered at least once a week and never soak the soil. If you find your spider plant’s leaves turning brown at the tips, this could be from the water you are using. Chemicals in water cause damage to spider plant leaves and you can remedy this by using distilled water.

If you keep your plants in proper condition, you will soon notice spider ‘babies’ forming on your spider plant. These babies look like little miniature spider plants suspended from a longer branch of the plant. In order to separate the baby from its main plant, place the baby on a pot of loose soil, making sure to hold it in place with a lightly tied piece of string or stake. The baby will take root in the pot of soil and once it’s roots are established, you can clip the baby from the main plant. You can also clip the baby from the main plant and place the bottom of it in a glass of water until roots begin to form, then plant the baby in soil or put them straight into the soil. These methods take longer and are not as healthy for the plant as the direct transplant into the soil while the plant is still attached to its mother.

Treat your plants with a bit of house plant fertilizer from time to time, using half of the recommended strength. Spider plants are sensitive and need only a bit of fertilizer to stay healthy. You can even do without the fertilizer if your plants are looking well. If you don’t want to grow separate plants from your main plant, you can leave the babies hanging, they will continue to grow and add beautiful lush branches to your plant. Put your spider plant in a hanging pot and you will have cascades of new plants in no time. Spider plants have been known to help condition air quality, so it is a great idea to have as many plants around as you can manage. Friends will appreciate your transplanted babies with which they can start their own spider plant farm.

To soften up potting soil add vermiculite.

Hope this helps.