How to choose the right indoor plant for tricky spots
Harking back to the indoor jungles of the 70s, today's homeowners are increasingly choosing to decorate their spaces with all manner of houseplants.
If you don't have green fingers, the thought of introducing life into the trickier corners of your home can be intimidating. But with the right plant choice, it's possible to create a successful indoor arboretum.
We spoke to the indoor plant experts to find the right plants for your home's needs.
1. I want to have plants in a room that doesn't get any sunlight.
When it comes to having thriving - or surviving - indoor plants, light is an important consideration. But direct sunlight is not a requirement.
"Most of the indoor house plants don't like the direct sunlight anyway, they want a well-lit room," says Daniel Kubler of Kings Plant Barn, St Lukes.
When it comes to picking a plant for a "decently" lit room, there's plenty of options. Peace lilies, flamingo flowers and the taller ficus trees, such as fiddle leaf figs, are popular, Kubler says.
Jess Hatton of California Home and Garden, Wellington, recommends the zanizar gem for darker rooms which might only get light through one window.
It's a plant commonly found in shopping malls because of their ability to grow in dark spaces.
The cast iron plant is another option, it's a "nice, glossy, dark plant that doesn't need sunlight".
"Total neglect, really, and they'll be fine."
2. I'm terrible at remembering to water my plants.
Green fingers are not a required for indoor plants, there's some you'd be hard-pressed to kill.
Homeowners with a penchant for killing off their greenery should look first to air plants, such as the tillandsia and spanish moss, Hatton says.
"With air plants you've pretty much got to mist them now and again and then you're fine."
Cacti require minimal care, little water and thrive in direct sunlight. In darker rooms, look to the mother in law's tongue.
"Water it maybe once every two months and it'll just keep going."
Kubler again recommends the peace lily, because it droops when thirsty.
"You'll notice when it needs a water, and that will jog your memory."
3. My home isn't consistent – it's hot in the day and freezing at night.
When assessing the suitability of a room's climate for indoor plants, Kubler has a helpful rule of thumb.
"If a person is comfortable enough to be inside the house, usually that would be okay for most indoor plants we sell in New Zealand.
"You don't normally get a frost inside the house and if you do that's another problem entirely."
Even so, plants with soft leaves, like ferns, can be more sensitive to changes in the environment, Hatton says.
When looking for plants that will do well next to a window, or in a conservatory, "tougher leaves are a bit more resilient".
Ficus plants, which prefer a lot of light, and rubber plants, which don't need much light, are both good options.
4. I want a plant for my bathroom, but it's so humid.
While ferns might be ill-placed in rooms with a varied climate, they thrive in a humid bathroom.
"Normally if you have a fern in any other room you'd want to mist it every other day, but in the bathroom with a hot shower that's pretty much doing it for you," Hatton says.
"Another good one for bathrooms are the hanging pitcher plants ... they just love the humidity, assuming it's a decently lit bathroom," Kubler says.
Hatton says the kitchen - humid but often warmer than the bathroom – is really good for orchids.
5. I don't have much space for a plant.
When it comes to small plants for small spaces, you would be wrong to head straight for the nearest bonsai.
"Most of them are conifers ... they need a bit of sunlight and a bit of wind, otherwise they curl up and die," Hatton says.
African violets are a small plant, but not all that easy care.
"They stay really tiny but it can be a bit complicated to find the right spot for them sometimes, they need bright indirect light and they need to be watered from below."
If you're low on space but need some green, consider plants which hang from vertical spaces such as shelfs. String of pearls is an incredibly popular succulent which drapes down from a pot.
6. I want a plant for my balcony, but it's really exposed.
Your options are "almost endless" once you step out onto the balcony or deck, Kubler says.
"You can do anything that doesn't get too big for the pot."
Hatton suggests herbs for small outdoor spaces.
"Really good candidates are things like thyme and rosemary, which do fine in potted containers, and will take just about any weather conditions – and they're useful."
First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.
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