Now we’re all stuck at home, once again, what better time to spruce up your interiors with a stylish array of house plants?
Not only do they add interest to a room but they can also improve your mental health, according to ethnobotanist James Wong.
‘Research has been done with people exercising on treadmills — people given a view of green scenery projected on to a wall find the exercise less tiring and have improved self-esteem afterwards,’ says James.
‘When the colours in the picture were changed to black and white or red the results were much worse, so we think the benefits are due to the greenness of plants.’
And you don’t need outside space to grow plants. ‘The one requirement above all others is light — you should put plants within two metres of a window,’ says James.
‘But you can also use white daylight bulbs and screw them into a desk lamp, or LED striplights. You can attach the striplights beneath kitchen cupboards and grow plants under those. Even if you live in a basement with no windows, you can use LED lights to grow plants.’
Here, James picks ten different plants that could help you get started with indoor gardening.
For more inspiration, listen to James Wong on episode five of the Bites Of Nature podcast (zenb.co.uk).
The unkillable plants
Even if you’re new to indoor gardening, these hardy specimens are ideal as you learn to turn your fingers green
Zamioculcas
This one is really tolerant of low light. You can put one of its leaves into compost and it will root. From one single plant you can grow ten more to give away to friends.
Where to buy: Called the less tongue-twisting name of Cassie on the Patch site, there are three height choices, from 20-30cm to 90-100cm. Prices from £8 to £57. patchplants.com
Aspidistra
It can handle the darkest environment and hardly being watered. I once got one delivered to my mum’s house.
The delivery person put it in the bin cupboard without telling us and we just assumed it hadn’t arrived. We only found it two months later. It was still alive.
If an aspidistra can handle that, it can handle anything.
They are quite slow growing which makes them expensive for house plants — they cost around £30 — but they can live for 100 years.
Where to buy: Try House Of Plants, which is currently offering two sizes 80cm high or 65cm. You can even choose to have it potted in a self-watering container, with up to three choices of style and six colours. Prices from £22 (without the pot). houseofplants.co.uk
Sansevieria
Otherwise known as the snake plant, sansevieria can handle dark environments and low water but also the opposite — a bright environment and lots of water.
Where to buy: Bloombox Club currently has 40-50cm high plants in stock, priced at £22, bloomboxclub.com
The propagators
Three easy-to-propagate plants that are good for gifting.
Tradescantia
This ladder-shaped hanging plant grows naturally along the ground in tropical rainforests.
In the home you can grow it in a pot and hang it up so it creates Rapunzel-style hanging leaves.
A trendy Instagram plant, it’s usually green but you can get it in silver and purple, too.
Where to buy: Hortology currently has the astoundingly beautiful silver-and-purple one in stock. It normally offers three sizes, but only the largest is left. They sell for £27.99 at hortology.co.uk. If you are after a greener specimen, try the Royal Horticultural Society website. The plant is about 35cm high and comes in an 18cm pot, priced £27.99 at rhsplants.co.uk
Epipremnum
This has heart-shaped leaves and is another hanging plant that climbs up trees in the rainforest.
Where to buy: House of Kojo has many different version, including Epipremnum Pinnatum, which has green-and-white marbled leaves. It comes in a hanging pot, priced £19.99. Other varieties start from as little as £8.99. houseofkojo.com
Begonia Maculata
Colloquially known as the polka-dot begonia, it looks like someone has painted dots on to the leaves with a silver marker pen — but it’s to help them capture the maximum amount of light in the jungle. You can propagate this in water.
Where to buy: A 30cm high version of this eye-catching plant is available from Primrose for £27.99 at primrose.co.uk
Something different
For a challenge — Brighamia
Extinct in the wild, Brighamia looks like something from Dr Seuss. It has a big cabbage crown of leaves, and white flowers that grow out of the top. It’s very striking.
Brighamia requires really bright light, so it needs to be on a bright windowsill, and it should be watered enough to keep it moist but you mustn’t let it sit in water. If you can grow this, you can grow anything.
Where to buy: We had trouble tracking down any in stock, but at the time of writing we found a beautiful specimen on Etsy for £25.99. Buy before it’s gone. etsy.com
For scent — Calamondin
Scent can really impact your mood — and any citrus plant smells nice. If you’re short on space, go for a Calamondin lime, left. It’s quite small, won’t overwhelm your living room and the fruit is the size of a 50p piece. Citrus plants like really bright light, so position it as close to a window as you can.
Where to buy: A compact calamondin tree from Plants4Presents comes with the option of a free container, £30. plants4presents.co.uk
For flowering — Moth orchid
The most reliable plant to flower is the Moth Orchid.
You can get it from supermarkets now, due to the changes in propagation technology. Thirty years ago they were much more expensive.
They like the same humidity and light levels that people like, so your Moth Orchid will be happy in most rooms.
Where to buy: You may well be able to pick this up in your local supermarket, but you can also buy online. Prestige Flowers sells a decent-sized specimen for £26.99. prestigeflowers.co.uk
For a terrarium — Bucephalandra
This small plant from Borneo grows in rivers and is usually sold in the aquarium trade. It’s advisable to get plants for terrariums from aquarium shops — they just require very humid air, which is what you get in a sealed terrarium. And unlike many plants people buy for terrariums, they won’t grow out of the top in a few weeks.
Where to buy: Aquarium specialist Aqua Essentials has small pots available for £8.99. They offer discounts if you are buying three or more of them. aquaessentials.co.uk
For more of James’s house plant tips go to his Instagram account @botanygeek
The best watering cans to buy now
Large Roxy watering can
Buy for £19 from Urban Outfitters
Eva Solo Globe watering can
Garden Glory Diamond indoor watering can
Burgon & Ball small indoor watering can
Metal watering can
Decorative watering can
Eva Solo aqua star watering can
Tilly Toucan watering can
Buy for £12.95 from NotOnTheHighStreet
The Fazeley Flow Copper — One Pint
This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a small commission on purchases made through one of these links but this never influences our experts’ opinions. Products are tested and reviewed independently of commercial initiatives.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2021/02/09/easy-to-grow-indoor-plants-that-will-liven-up-your-home-in-lockdown-14046044/
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