Living with houseplants. Or not.

 Croton Codiaeum variegatum pictum

Photo credit: Virginia Williams

Michael Tortorello writes in The New York Times that his house has always been a halfway house for houseplants.

"Halfway between a cozy berth in someone else's home and a pauper's grave in my backyard."

In this light-hearted essay on what I will agree are the toughest plants to keep alive, Tortorello asks some experts for their advice on what to try.

And there is a slide show of houseplants as well.

Orchids are on the list. I will agree that they are tough to kill. Re-blooming is another matter entirely.