Houseplants: a hip new niche
(ARA) - Great as a gift or home decor, indoor plants are making a comeback as the coolest new trend in gardening. Cultivate, collect and even clean interior air with them.
Six smart ways to feature indoor plants for fabulous effects:
1. Great gifts: Give the gift of green with an indoor plant.
With spring holidays right around the corner, this year skip a short-lived, purchased bouquet and give a gift that will continue to blossom well beyond the special occasion. It is easy to find beautiful indoor plants with eye-catching blooms like anthurium, bromeliads, amaryllis and hibiscus. For an inspired idea, give a living topiary shaped like a heart, or a beautiful living orchid - which can bloom for several months - instead of a mundane marketplace arrangement. Plants also make great hostess gifts, housewarming presents and get-well tokens. Give the gift of green and share a live plant with someone this holiday.
2. Terrariums: Create your own miniature garden.
Invented in Victorian England and popularized in the 1970s for their "kitschy" appeal, terrariums are fun micro-climates that can be both decorative and entertaining for kids and adults. Terrariums are generally enclosed in glass and can be planted inside anything, from brandy snifters and fish bowls, to large, upscale stained glass containers. With terrariums regaining popularity, experienced gardeners and novices alike are experimenting with new ideas, plants and vessels. To create a miniature garden under glass, simply start with a few small-scale plants (mosses, liverwort or carnivorous plants like the Venus flytrap). Plant inside a mason jar and add rocks, sticks or tiny figures to set the scene.
3. Succulent gardens: No longer gift shop novelties.
Succulent gardens are rapidly becoming the cool, low-maintenance way to bring plants inside. Nurseries and retailers nationwide are offering unique combinations of these interesting plants in assorted dishes and planters. Or, try creating your own succulent dish garden in a well-drained bowl, dish or pot by choosing a variety of species that have the same growing requirements. Fill the planter with a specialized potting mix like Miracle-Gro Cactus Palm & Citrus Soil, formulated for slow-growing plants that require fast-draining soil. Obtain great results with very little watering or care. For a more decorative interpretation, plant a living picture by incorporating different varieties of succulents together in one box that, once root systems are established, the container can work as decor in your home. These gardens are not only beautiful, but also a creative way to fill empty wall space, while reaping the benefits of an indoor plant. Feed your living picture with Miracle-Gro Liquid Cactus Food for all jade, aloe, cacti and succulents.
4. Hanging plants
Have little floor space, shelf space, or window ledges to spare? No problem. You can still reap the benefits of indoor plants by hanging plants from hooks on walls or ceilings. Take care to firmly anchor into ceiling joists or wall studs. Many pots, planters and baskets are made just for hanging and will allow the opportunity to hang new greenery anywhere. Take caution not to hang plants directly over a heat vent or too close to drafty windows or doors. Choose from a selection of spider plants that do well in a hanging pot like English ivy, or Boston ferns.
5. Mounted plants: The mystery revealed
What are "mounted" plants? Plants requiring little or no soil for nutrients and growth are simply mounted onto bark, wood, cork, or are hung up by wire. Air plants, also known as Tillandsia and staghorn ferns are interesting and unique plants that can be mounted and hung on walls, from ceilings or nearly anywhere that would protect their roots from getting wet. These unusual plants don't require soil because they take in nourishment and water through their leaves. In their natural tropical settings, these plants can be found attached high up in trees. These plants are sure to draw attention and make great conversation starters. Some varieties of orchids do well mounted and make a beautiful, unique addition to any home.
6. Forcing bulbs: Boost the blooms
A layer of snow may be covering the flower beds outside, but you don't need to just wait for the colors of spring. Simply begin forcing bulbs indoors to fill your home with beautiful spring blooms all winter long. Daffodils, tulips, crocus and hyacinth are the most popular bulbs to force indoors and will add a nice splash of bright cheery color to your late winter doldrums. To get started, choose a broad, shallow pot that is clean and contains drainage holes in the bottom. Next, fill loosely with a potting medium like Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Potting Mix and add bulbs - ensuring the "noses" stick slightly out of the soil directly under the rim of the pot. Then, water and force bulbs into an "artificial winter" by placing in a cool place such as a basement, garage or crawl space with a temperature of around 35 to 50 degrees. Continue watering consistently until this period has ended (length depends on the variety of bulb). Finally, keep bulbs in temperatures near 60 degrees with sunlight. Soon you will be enjoying the blooms of spring right inside.
Whatever your reason for incorporating plants indoors, make the experience enjoyable. Take advantage of both the air purification features of indoor plants as well as their exquisite beauty. Experiment with different ways to grow plants.
