The first sansiviera that I saw bloom was in an old restaurant in downtown Mobile years ago. The window faced west, the pots were overcrowded with plants, and I know they were root bound. And they were blooming away. If you wish to optimize the planting soil and keep feeding most of your plants, for a controlled experiment, leave ONE pot unfed and mostly ignored, and let it get rootbound. It may turn out like my first huge (and ignored) aloe vera plant, and when overcrowded and in intense heat, with only occasional watering, it shot up 4 foot tall spikes of lip-colored blooms that were truly awesome. It made me wonder if the plant was trying to procreate because it anticipated death!!! I'd be interested in what results you have with your MILtongue/snake plants. I think my big pot of them may have died with the record cold spell this winter.

That's one plant that can look really ratty and beat-up, but yours looks beautiful. I checked the Sunset garden book, and if this is "sansevieria trifasciata," shelter from midday sun is recommended. The cactus book says it likes "summer light," so I guess you are meeting it's needs very well. Maybe the plant often looks bad because it's overwatered or in full sun all day.

Once it starts to turn to mush, very likely you will lose the plant. Take it out of the soil check to see if there are any hard roots (rhizomes) left to save. If so let them dry out for a week, then just set them on top of the soil, put them in the shade until you see growth, then water. Then water. Rhizomes without roots, can not take up the water so rot. Norma

thanks everyone for your help, mm thanks for the pics, I think mine is probably the same type as yours with that yellow strip down the side and yours seems to be behaving itself there. I love the sound of your "mexican garden". dee I will check our local wa site and see what they say about it, Im a long way from any bushland though so it shouldnt be a problem, they wont escape from these beds because it's all surrounded by paving and they wouldnt have anywhere to go if they tried. robyn thanks for that info, frost wont be a problem and our overnight winter temps normally range between about 3-10c and it's pretty unusual for them to go much lower. "they produce lots of offsets when they hit the side of the pot so in the ground they will not reproduce so rapidly." that is very interesting because it explains what mine is doing. Ive had this plant in a smallish pot for about 12 months and all of sudden there are about 4 offsets coming up on the edge of the pot and the pot is getting all stretched out of shape where they are growing. at least I know now if I have to remove them it wont be too hard. thanks robyn. hi len, I'll only put a few of them in there and surround them with a mix of other plants, I dont like the look of just one plant mass planted so I always mix things up together. trancegemini