Keep in mind that a green thumb is not about having luck with plants... it's all about having the knowledge to properly care for the plants of your choosing, and applying that knowledge. I would figure out exactly what kind of plants your topiary are, and go from there. Each type of plant has slightly different needs... with respect to light, moisture, etc... and caring for container plants will be different than caring for plants planted directly in the ground. You can do a quick google search for information on each plant type, once you know their common names, and you should be able to locate a lot of basic information on the care, the likes and dislikes or do's and dont's, which will make caring for them easy. Or, you can search here... for general care info on the peace lily, try the Houseplants Forum. For the topiary, I believe there's a Topiary Forum... all right here at GardenWeb. As for the peace lily, they are generally easy plants to care for... though, they do seem to wilt quickly when not enough moisture is present... though, you also don't want to overwater... I've included a link to a great store of information on the basics of potted plant care, how water behaves in soil, etc... I think it will help you in your quest for knowledge in container gardening. Happy Growing! Here is a link that might be useful: Basic Container Knowledge

Just an update. Looks like those 'concerned' plants aren't doing so well. They have started to wilt and develop brown spots and holes in the leaves. I'm going to let them go on their own until they fully die but I'm not holding on to hope. Ah well, 3 out of one still pretty good and at least one more seems to have a chance to grow a new leaf but its not doing well, it's developing holes in the existing leaf. Already gave one of the 3 healthy plants away to my co-worker. Another will go in my office. I replanted those 2 again because I think the pots were just too small, but I didn't re-do the soil for fear of shocking them again. I pulled out the plant retaining as much of the soil ball as I could and added more to it in the bigger pot on the bottom and sides. They seemed to not care and are still going strong. Going to do the third one that way too. I've found the self watering pot my coworker wanted to use actually useful, but not the way they were intended. I can flush from the top without directly draining and then pour off the excess out of the watering funnel. If given the option between the normal attached saucer or the self watering saucer, this is better. Though I still like the idea of draining into the saucer of stones. I may do that one yet. Aside from the Peace Lily, I've been taking advantage of this new experience. Replanted a rather healthy but root bound poinsettia in the second batch of soil I made with the 1/2" screen. This batch turned out much better, a lot less fine that the first, still a lot of sapwood though. I mixed this batch with the 5:1:1 ratio. My seedlings are doing well, currently they are in a store bought seedling soil in a tray. Can't wait to get them in the window boxes, but they have a month or so before that happens. I have Unwin's Dwarf, Columbine, English Daisy, Alyssum (purple and white), Bachelor Button, Coleus, and a white and purple "bluebonnet looking" dwarf plant I can't remember the name of. I just wish I'd started them in January, another week and we will be beyond the last possible freeze for my area... unless we have a weird April again. Even still, it's balcony gardening. I can always bring it inside.

You would probably get more answers if you posted this separately, but I'll try to help if I can. First, you need to figure out why the leaves are turning yellow and brown. Peace lilies don't like constant wet soil, or dry soil, you have th find a happy medium since this plant like evenly semi moist soil at all times. A couple things to keep in mind. The pot should only be an inch larger than the root-ball, they like to be snug in their pot like many indoor plant do. Need for a good draining soil is essential. I like to add "Perlite" to the soil which helps with drainage. It can be found at any of the box stores like Lowe's. The leaves can burn in direct sun, keep it where it gets bright light, but no direct hot sun. When the top inch of the soil starts to feel close to dry, water the soil thoroughly spilling out any excess water out of the saucer. As far as fertilizing, use only half strength or less, too much can cause the roots to burn. Billy Rae

If the pot is very shallow, using the guide to "water when the top inch (or two) of the soil feels dry" is usually ok. The same advice applied to plants in deeper pots, say 10" deep, is pretty much a recipe for over-watering. Here's why: For a very large % of plants, including PLs, it's best to water when there is just enough moisture in the medium to prevent drought stress. This means the soil column will be on the dry side except at the bottom. A pot filled with a 10" (deep) soil column very often supports a perched water table as tall as 6". This meant the top 2" of that soil column can feel dry, while the bottom 6" is 100% saturated. This has the potential to severely limit roots' ability to function, and, can set the stage for fungal root infections that wreck root health and often lead to the plant's loss of viability. Watering is a science and it holds significant sway over what kind of opportunity the grower might be able to provide the plant to realize as much of its genetic potential as possible. Poor soil and/or poor watering practices can rob a plant of virtually all of it's potential for growth and vitality, and much of its eye appeal. Using a 'tell' can take all the guesswork out of determining what moisture levels are deep in the pot where it counts most, and determining what intervals (between waterings) are appropriate. Using a 'tell' Over-watering saps vitality and is one of the most common plant assassins, so learning to avoid it is worth the small effort. Plants make and store their own energy source – photosynthate - (sugar/glucose). Functioning roots need energy to drive their metabolic processes, and in order to get it, they use oxygen to burn (oxidize) their food. From this, we can see that terrestrial plants need plenty of air (oxygen) in the soil to drive root function. Many off-the-shelf soils hold too much water and not enough air to support the kind of root health most growers would like to see; and, a healthy root system is a prerequisite to a healthy plant. Watering in small sips leads to avoid over-watering leads to a residual build-up of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil from tapwater and fertilizer solutions, which limits a plant's ability to absorb water – so watering in sips simply moves us to the other horn of a dilemma. It creates another problem that requires resolution. Better, would be to simply adopt a soil that drains well enough to allow watering to beyond the saturation point, so we're flushing the soil of accumulating dissolved solids whenever we water; this, w/o the plant being forced to pay a tax in the form of reduced vitality, due to prolong periods of soil saturation. Sometimes, though, that's not a course we can immediately steer, which makes controlling how often we water a very important factor. In many cases, we can judge whether or not a planting needs watering by hefting the pot. This is especially true if the pot is made from light material, like plastic, but doesn't work (as) well when the pot is made from heavier material, like clay, or when the size/weight of the pot precludes grabbing it with one hand to judge its weight and gauge the need for water. Fingers stuck an inch or two into the soil work ok for shallow pots, but not for deep pots. Deep pots might have 3 or more inches of soil that feels totally dry, while the lower several inches of the soil is 100% saturated. Obviously, the lack of oxygen in the root zone situation can wreak havoc with root health and cause the loss of a very notable measure of your plant's potential. Inexpensive watering meters don't even measure moisture levels, they measure electrical conductivity. Clean the tip and insert it into a cup of distilled water and witness the fact it reads 'DRY'. One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod of about 5/16” (75-85mm) would work better. They usually come 48” (120cm) long and can usually be cut in half and serve as a pair. Sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell comes out dry or nearly so. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue. Al