Dating back to 1800, house plants became popular as they were used to brighten things up during the cold winter season.
Indoor plants bring a lot of benefits to your home. Some of these include boosting your mood and Productivity, reducing stress and sore throats.
They are therapeutic as they bring a sense of nature into our living spaces. It makes us feel relaxed and comfortable.
A lot has been said about the benefits of cultivating plants indoors, let’s now have a look at the tips to cultivate and nurture our indoor plants.
Choice of indoor plants
First off, you should make the right plant choice. Not all plants can do well when grown inside a house.
Some plants are more resistant or tolerant to shades, and that is what we should go for.
This is because, in an indoor space, you’ll be getting more shade than actual direct sunlight.
Of the many, name a few types of plants best suitable for indoor cultivation to include, aloe vera, passion plant, ‘nana’ juniper, paddle plant, Monterey Cypress, and the pregnant onion among others.
Types of pots
The type of pot to use will depend on the size of the plant; the larger the plant the bigger the pot.
Go for quality material, avoid ceramic potting as they tend to get very very cold during the winter and this does not provide a conducive environment for plants to grow from,
Ensure that the pot you get has drainage holes to drain out excess water.
The style and design of the pot should also fit in your house theme. With potting, this is where you bring in all your stylish and design ideas.
You can either choose to DIY a potting plant or have one customized for you.
There is a range of online dealers that sell a variety of pots coming in different shapes, sizes, (depending on the size of the plant), and of course, beautifully crafted and decorated pots.
To help you make a good decision, I suggest that you read some reviews about home decor companies. This will help you find a trustable store to make your plant and pot purchases.
To start you off, you may read Newchic UK reviews, an online fashion and design store that has, among other products, home and gardening equipment.
Watering
All plants need watering, or else they will wither and die.
Time and intervals of watering the plants will of course depend on the type of plant. Some indoor plants will need to be watered every day.
The good thing about some plants is that you don’t need to water them regularly. An example of one such plant is Aloe Vera, they have thick leaves and because of this, they retain more water.
Also, the frequency of watering plants will depend on the weather in your location. Plants in warmer areas will dry out faster than in cool temperatures.
During summer, you need to water your plant more often than you would during winter.
Take some time to know more about the type of indoor plant you want, look at how best you can care for it, time intervals other related plant needs.
Caring for and nurturing plants has been proved to be therapeutic.
Lighting
By the laws of nature, plants need light to photosynthesize. Do not confuse light with direct sunlight, they are two distinct things.
All indoor plants require some level of lighting. The plant you pick should be able to adapt to low light.
You may choose to have your plants next to the window to boost the lighting requirement. Overall, ensure that you get the best low lights plants
Fertilizing
One thing about growing plants indoors is that you would have deprived this plant of the natural minerals and fertilizers present in the soil essentially required for its growth.
For this reason, you need to fertilize your plant, periodically based on the information given to you by your trusted agriculturalist.
Pruning
Last but not least, pruning. This is where you cut off excess growth or withered parts of your plant.
The benefit of doing regular pruning is that it helps the plant grow healthier and prevents the spread of plant diseases from infected parts of the plant.
Care should be taken when pruning to ensure that the vital parts of a plant are kept intact for purposeful growth.
Conclusion:
All the above tips were on ways you can care for your plant. The tips do not stand on their own, it is up to you to integrate each one of them.
You cannot make the right plant choice and fail to water the plant, neither can you water the plant and deprive it of sufficient lighting. All these tips work hand in hand.