Indoor plants - bring it in

Succulents are so rewarding their different textures and shapes offer interest to any decor whilst being easy to care for.

GARDENING INDOOR PLANTS

Bringing it in... By Melanie Walker

There's nothing new about having indoor plants. I doubt there's a grandmother's kitchen of one's youth anywhere that didn't have African Violets or Peace Lily experimentation going on in it. A 'trend' which continues today in many a suburban home.

It's not just at home that indoor plants are trending again, although given the fact that so many people have been downsizing, or have moved into an apartment or 'townhouse' which doesn't have its own garden, people are coming up with innovative ways of ensuring they still have some calming green in their space.

It's all about getting back and getting closer to nature, about letting the outdoors in (instead of letting the indoors out, as has been the main trend in gardens in South Africa), blurring lines between the two spaces. And this is translating into the work environment too. Studies have shown that having that little touch of nature close by lessens stress while purifying the air of the artificial office situation. It was in 1984 that NASA (yes, the space agency) first published studies demonstrating that indoor plants have the ability to remove unwanted volatile organic compounds from the air, which opened the door for future research into the study of plants as natural air filters.

If it works for NASA, it should work for you, in any environment. And depending on your particular style, you should find a planting scheme that works for you as well indoors as outside. If succulents are your thing, pop some into a terrarium or terracotta pot and put them in a sunny spot - a solution that offers an affordable, easy, low maintenance way of adding interest to a room or quiet corner.

If you are of the belief that bigger is better, no problem there either. Dracaena are beautiful larger large-leaved forest denizens which can handle low light. And if you have the space, go for larger focal plants, grouping three varieties of palms with their shapely fronds together in similar pots. Consider the rather attractive areca palm (butterfly palm / Areca lutescens / Dypsis lutescens), an indoor houseplant that is relatively easy to care for and has much going for it. Of the best-known indoor palms, it may be the most challenging to grow, mainly because people tend to love their indoor plants to death by over-watering them!

But is well worth it for its narrow, numerous, full fronds arranged close to one another in neat, compact lines along the stems. Over-watering will be the end of many plants – ensure the surface soil has dried out before you water again. If there is any doubt, wait a few more days. And if you have access to rainwater, use that or put water into old cold drink bottles and leave in the sun to neutralise chlorine and to help avoid fluoride build-up.

Indoor plants may need a little more looking after than plants out in the garden, as you have taken them out of their natural environment where everything it needs to grow is to hand. You just need to check on water, sunlight, food and fresh air. And that last point is the most important.

If your home or office environment is airconditioned or heated, the air becomes very dry, so you will have to ensure you mist and clean your plants regularly, especially those plants that come from subtropical climates which are adapted to growing in low light, but need the sultriness of the tropics.

However, if you get the 'climate' right, you too can have your own little bit of green heaven without having any 'land space'.

NEW PLANT PARENT’S GUIDE TO Popular INDOOR PLANTS