Common House Plants
Common houseplants make a home or office come alive with brilliant colors and sweet fragrances, giving rooms charm and personality. Besides beautifying rooms, they also brighten moods. However, too often people view houseplants as short-term guests that don't last as long as outdoor plants. Houseplants are like people, coming in a diversity of shapes, sizes and colors, each type having special needs. By taking the time to learn the needs for various houseplants, such as light and watering requirements, houseplants can endure for much longer than expected. Does this Spark an idea?
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Identification
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A houseplant is a plant grown indoors, such as in homes and offices. A few of the most popular houseplants include plants such as the areca palm, philodendron, miniature date palm, peace lily, Janet Craig, Boston fern, Ficus Alii and English Ivy.
Benefits
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In addition to beautifying a home and filling it with sweet fragrances, houseplants allow you to enjoy and grow plants year-round, in the coldest of climates.
Houseplants offer health benefits as they help clean the air, removing several toxins such as ammonia, formaldehyde, carbon monoxide and others. They also reduce fatigue, coughs and other illnesses by reducing dust and increasing humidity. In fact, hospitals promote hospital visitors to bring in plants, not just because they add cheer, but they also clean the air and provide oxygen to patients. How purifying a plant is depends on the health of the plant; in other words, the healthier the plant, the more purifying it is.
The ability to survive on limited amounts of light is one of the biggest benefits of common houseplants. In other words, they don't need to be placed in front of a window to thrive. On the other hand, don't hide them in a dark closet. Different plants have different levels of light. -
Types
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There are scores of different houseplants, most of them, non-flowering. If you don't like re-potting, then non-flowering plants may be best for you, as they need less care than ones that produce flowers.
Flowering houseplants range from fragrant flowers, such as gardenias and stephanotis, to easy-to-grow plants, such as chrysanthemums. The key to growing flowering houseplants is having the right amount of light.
Flower bulbs include colorful plants, such as begonias and tulips. When spring comes, you can always transplant them outdoors.
Herbs such as basil, thyme, chives and parsley are ideal in hanging baskets or on a sink windowsill.
Cactus houseplants, which usually bloom, require minimal care and do well on windowsills as well.
Small shrubs also make attractive houseplants. Normally, people don't think of shrubs as houseplants, but shrubs such as camellias and azaleas can be grown indoors.
Considerations
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Consider how much time you can devote to caring for plants. If your lifestyle doesn't allow much time for plant care, choose low maintenance plants that have a wide tolerance for coping with erratic watering and are able to recover when slightly neglected. For example, cactus varieties make excellent low maintenance plants.
Besides lighting, when deciding on plants for certain rooms, consider the colors and themes of your different rooms. Also, consider the season. For example, in winter, cheer up a white room with bright red poinsettias.
Warning
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If you have small children or pets, know which plants are poisonous so you won't bring them home.
Look out for drafts in sunrooms. Although sunrooms are excellent for showing off houseplants, they can be drafty. It doesn't take much lowering in temperature to kill some houseplants, so check any doors or windows that may need sealing. Know which houseplants thrive better in sunrooms, both in summer and winter months.
Water collects in saucers, creating an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes. Therefore, if you use saucers to prevent stains from forming on surfaces, drain your plants immediately after watering them to avoid mosquito infestation.
Misconceptions
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Some people are afraid to have too many plants in their bedroom, fearing they will cut off the oxygen supply. Although plants produce oxygen during the day and use it at night, the amount produced over 24 hours is much more than they use. A room filled with plants has no noteworthy impact on a human's oxygen supply.
Prevention/Solution
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Root and crown rot, one of the most common diseases of indoor plants, is caused by fungi. A few signs that a plant is affected include leaves that wilt, droop or turn yellow. Instead of looking healthy white, rotted roots are black or brown. To prevent houseplants from root and crown rot, protect plants from warm, wet conditions and avoid over-watering. Ensure plants have enough drainage and air. Other safeguards include having a favorable temperature, light and pH, as well as the right moisture.
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- Photo Credit Elena Elisseeva
