As we look out over our mountains of snow in the backyard we start to miss and sometimes forget what our summer gardens look like, that is why creating an indoor garden space is so important to help brighten your winter blues.
If you are new to plants and don’t know how to care for an indoor garden, choosing common house plants is a good place to start, there are many varieties that can survive with low light and infrequent watering. Some of my favorite house plants include: Callisia fragrans or Inch Plant (when placed in a sunny spot the leaves turn purple!) Chlorophytum comosum or Spider plant (easy to care for – almost impossible to kill!) and of course Crassula ovata or Jade (needs low water – great for those forgetful ones!). Once you become comfortable with your houseplants, then the fun begins when you try to over-winter certain annuals that you grew attached to through the summer. Growing indoor plants can seem like a scary task to take on but truly the best way to grow (and have fun doing it) is by trial and error, just be aware when your plants change their look – they are trying to tell you they need care!
The hardest part of keeping indoor plants alive through the winter is making sure your environment is humid enough. Plants are just like us, when our skin starts drying out we grab a humidifier to help, your house plants would would love you for introducing this into your environment. If you don’t use a humidifier through the winter, fear not, use a spray bottle to mist the leaves of your plants every couple of days or create their own greenhouse with a glass bowl or vase over them and they will do just fine. Of course every plant is different so be sure to practice trial and error here and just observe any changes.
For some more inspiration about indoor gardens check out this article on Houzz.
At amy dutton Home we have created a “Potting Shed” and have brought in new planting material and garden tools to help with starting an indoor garden, please stop in to take a look at our new products and feel free to ask me any questions you might have about caring for indoor plants!