Well if you’re part of our community then I would be surprised if you didn’t have at least one indoor plant. You know what…you need more!
Indoor plants can be used to add colour and life to a home through the variation of their foliage and beautiful flowers. There are many positives to decorating your home with indoor plants; they reduce stress, enhance therapeutic care, boost your productivity & make your home look fabulous. They are so good for your health as they purify the air in your home, absorbing carbon dioxide & releasing oxygen. This happens at night when you are sleeping, filling your home with fresh, quality air.
Caring for your indoor plants is important, not only for them but so you can spend more time enjoying them at their best. Like anything it’s easy when you know how, so stick with us and let’s break it down. Greening up your interior design has never been easier.
Important Things To Know.
When choosing indoor plants, it’s important to consider their living conditions and care. Making sure of the plant needs, with regards to light, is important as to where you position them in a room. This will govern whether it thrives or not. So if your plant is not happy, consider moving it to a different spot in your home.
There are three absolutes when looking after indoor plants:
- Good soil.
- Available Nutrients
- Regular Watering
Indoor plants live in pots, that is their entire world, so making sure you have the right pot and quality potting mix is essential for your plant’s health. Unlike the plants in your garden, that have the room to spread their roots to find moisture and nutrients (reducing pests and disease), indoor plants don’t have that luxury, they solely rely on you.
Providing a premium potting mix that contains slow-release fertiliser & water crystals is essential. This will reduce your need to fertilise and water regularly, supporting your plant for months. You can feed your indoor plants again in 12 months by scattering slow releasing fertilizer over the top of the soil (please read your chosen fertiliser instructions for guidance).
We will cover watering shortly but once you notice that your indoor plants are needing more regular watering then consider applying a liquid water crystal product which you will find in your local hardware store. When applied it will retain the moisture in the soil, reducing your need to water as regularly.
What Not To Do.
Killing them with kindness is how many indoor plants die, mainly through too much watering. This causes the soil to become water-logged, reducing oxygen levels and causing roots to rot. It also inhibits the plants ability to take up the nutrients it needs, seeing it’s inevitable demise.
The trick in knowing when your plants need a drink, is to stick your finger in the soil and if it feels moist then your plant is still fine. If the soil feels dry then you can give it some water. Some species tolerate drying out fully before needing watering, some like to sit in a saucer of water it just depends on the species
Indicator plants.
Some plants are known as indicator plants, these plants show signs of wilting when they require watering. They hold great value in your collection of indoor plants as they will guide you as to when to water. The Spathiphyllum is one of these plants and is a stunning inclusion to your indoor plant collection. Available in different sizes, this species showcases a beautiful white lily flower along with lush, green leaves. When the Spathiphyllum starts to dry out the leaves will wilt giving you an indication that all of your pot plants are due for watering. The Spath is an amazing plant in that it’s leaves can be fully drooping, but with a good watering or setting in a bucket of water for a period of time, will see the plant full recover when you think it couldn’t.
When watering pot plants, the hardest part is knowing how much water each pot needs before leaking. Optimally you want to give your plant the maximum amount of water to alleviate having to do so again too soon. Using a measuring cup or water bottle so that you can get used to the amount that each pot plant takes will make this job easier.
Low Light Levels.
If your home suffers from low internal light levels, then we have the trick for you! Consider having double the potted plants. Yes, I know, you’d expect that comment from us…but seriously, Potted plants for inside your home and then a selection of potted plants outside recovering. This really works! Plants can then be swapped when the indoor plants start to show signs of stress. This is a great trick and also brings a wonderful change to the interior of your home. Allowing you to have a diverse selection of plant species on hand at any time. Depending on your circumstances you might find you need to do the swap every month or so. This will ensure plants aren’t pushed too far. You can also achieved this by moving plants around from high light areas to low light areas regularly. But really, the idea of having double the plants sounds better don’t you think.
