It's not unusual for the roots of plants started in water to make the transition to soil poorly. The cellular make-up of water roots is quite different from roots produced in a well-aerated medium, like perlite (though perlite isn't the best choice for spider plants because of its fluoride content and spider plant's aversion to fluoride) or screened Turface or DE. Try potting in a fresh, well-aerated medium and keeping the medium barely moist. If water roots have already formed on your plantlets, they will have difficulty extracting water from the medium, so a loose tenting arrangement will help to keep humidity up and transpirational water loss down. Some questions - I think I see fertilizer prills on the soil of the struggling plant. Did you fertilize and what with? Did you use old soil to pot the plants in? Spider plants are among the easiest plants to root because they come complete with preformed adventitious roots; so all you need is a well-aerated soil, light, and a little moisture to get them started. Best luck. Al

I'm bringing this to the top again to see if we have anymore people that wish to add to it. I also want to include the thread from yesterday inviting all the "lurkers" to join us. It was a really fun thread and a very good indication of why this forum needs a conversation and gallery section. Thanks Shauna Here is a link that might be useful: Lurker thread

The reason I told you to read that is because it gives a lot of information about container gardening that you don't come across everyday. Seriously, the name-calling is a little out of line I think. If your goal is to keep a pepper plant alive for a few years the soil and feeding program is going to be the most important parts to get right from the beginning. There are some ways you can improve whatever soil you are trying to grow in if you can't make a mix of your own. Screening regular potting mix with a bug screen makes a world of difference. Then you can add some supplemental things to approach the 5:1:1 mix. It doesn't have to be perfect, but some little things make a world of difference. Something people talk a lot about is a perched water table, meaning, in regular potting soil water will actually pool and not drain out. Roots grown in this environment tend to rot, especially plants that prefer well drained soil. Decreasing the amount of fines in the soil decreases this level. The fertilizer you use is important too because you're basically trying to supply all the nutrients the plant will need without the natural minerals and microorganisms that are in the soil. If you can't find something that you know the ratios for at least, is it possible to order online?

What I see is an attempt to make specific areas for specific purposes. But what you have is too much stuff taking up the extra space you had when you first moved in. Your living area is cluttered, and I'm not talking about the random trash. The mantle and every shelf has no cohesive purpose. For instance, put all your photos on the mantle. Put all your books on the step ladder shelves. Keep similar things together as collections. You can probably mix some decorative things with the books but on a different shelf. Your desk is what is taking up most of the space. Put the desk in your storage closet. Use your dining table to work at. Put your printer and work supplies on/in the cabinet the way you had it when you first moved in. Your dog is laying on your sofa; why do you have a dog bed? Get a throw for your sofa that you can remove when you expect company. Do you lock your dog in the crate at night? If you are not using the crate daily put it in the storage closet on your deck. If the dog bed and crate are used regularly put them behind the sofa. Below is how I would arrange your furniture. The TV stays next to the fireplace. The desk goes into storage and all the work items go into or on the built in cabinet between your living and dining rooms. The dog stuff goes where the desk used to be, but you have a little more space to ease your sofa back. Move the 3-light lamp next to the windows and point the lights up so you get a softer light bouncing back from the ceiling. Move the smaller spot light next to the fireplace so it overhangs your papasan chair. Move the ladder shelf bookcase into the dining area on the wall next to the deck exit.