CHAPTER ONE
WHEN I STARTED OUT on a quest to fill my home with greenery, I had to visit lots of different plant shops and garden centres and learn about the plants I had purchased by searching online for tips and by making mistakes along the way. I hope with this book I am able to answer some of the most commonly asked questions raised by new plant owners and help people who want to have more greenery in their lives but don’t know where to start.
Once my interest in plants began, I found my own plant collection started to grow pretty quickly. It was hard to choose just one plant when I was surrounded by choice in the plant shops I visited. Even though I wanted plants to clean the air in my home, I didn’t only buy these, and sometimes this was successful and sometimes this ended in tears. This book aims to help you start a plant collection that is going to last, and to help you avoid making the mistakes I made when I first started out. I’ve included a whole chapter on succulents and cacti later in the book, as it felt as though they needed their own section. I also think that as long as you have enough light for succulents and cacti these are a great place to start too, so you don’t have to only stick to the plants I have mentioned below.
Owning and maintaining an indoor garden can be possible for anyone, and this book will give you step by step guides to creating and designing your own closed and open terrariums, air plant displays and even kokedamas (Japanese for moss ball). Included are descriptions of the equipment needed, and how to find this inexpensively so that the hobby is accessible to everyone. I am hoping that by reading this book you will discover a new-found joy of plants and nature as well as learn a brand-new skill.
Start off with a few lowmaintenance plants. Left to right: Sansevieria cylindrica, ZZ Raven and Snake Plant
For absolute beginners (or busy plant owners who want greenery with minimal input)
I’d recommend at least one of the following plants for a first-time plant owner, and also for people who don’t have a lot of time for plant care. All of the plants suggested below need minimal water and can survive an element of neglect. It is a good idea to group plants in your home based on their care needs at first, so that when you come to water one, you know that the other plants in that spot in your home need watering at the same time, that way you will avoid making the over or under watering mistakes discussed in Chapter Two.
When I talk about feeding your plants, I recommend an inexpensive seaweed plant feed that you can buy online or in homeware stores. It is usually organic, although not all of the homeware stores advertise this, and is the best plant feed for your house plants. Just search online for ‘seaweed plant feed’ and you will find a few options.
The ZZ plant can withstand a lot of neglect.
ZZ PLANT AND ZZ RAVEN (Zamioculas zamiifolia – also known as Zanizibar Gem)
I have been a fan of ZZ Plants for a long time. They really are one of the toughest house plants going and need limited care from their owners. They have beautiful glossy leaves and with the right amount of care they will grow new shoots for you. They are actually a bulb plant, and therefore do not like to be overly watered.
Water
I would recommend watering these plants no more than once every two to three weeks, but if you were to forget to water this plant for a month then it still should survive!
Light and Temperature
ZZ Plants are a good option for lower light levels. I often use them to brighten up gloomy office spaces. They can tolerate both brighter light and being close to a window, as well as lower light levels. You will find that they should thrive in most spots in your home. You should plan to water them less often if they are in a darker position as they will be using less water and energy as they will be photosynthesising less. Wipe down the leaves regularly to remove dust particles and keep the leaves shiny. They can tolerate draughts, but they do not like to be in damp spaces.
Soil and Feeding
Repot your ZZ Plant every couple of years. They are happier in a more compact space, so only go up one pot size when you do come to repot. Make sure that the soil you use is extremely free-draining to avoid root rot. Mix in perlite with a regular house plant soil to give extra drainage. Feed this once a month in the summer.
The ZZ Raven has dark, almost black, glossy leaves.
THE RAVEN
Recently, the ZZ Raven has become extremely popular. This has dark green, almost black, glossy leaves and is very eye catching. The care is exactly the same as the regular ZZ Plant, although you may wish to wipe the leaves down on this variety more frequently, as dust shows up on the darker leaves more.
When new growth starts to appear on the plant, the new stem and leaves will be a very light, almost lime green. Don’t worry, as the plant matures the leaves and stem will darken to match the colour of the rest of the plant.
VARIEGATED SNAKE PLANT (Sansevieria trifasciata also known as Mother-in-Law’s Tongue)
The snake plant has got to be one of my best-selling plants. These yellow and green beauties are air-cleaning, look good and also tolerate lower and brighter light levels so are a good first-time plant option as they can go anywhere in your home.
Water
Water your snake plant no more than once a fortnight. If you over-water them you will see that the stems start to go mushy and rot, or the stems will droop. I have seen snake plants thriving in pots that are bone dry and have not been watered for long periods of time. They are definitely a fan of drier conditions. Although as a plant lover I do not really condone complete neglect of your house plants this is one of the plants in your Variegated Snake Plant. collection that can withstand a little neglect (as is the ZZ Plant).
Variegated Snake Plant.
Light and Temperature
The snake plant can cope with lower light levels and it can survive brighter light. As with a ZZ plant, you will need to water snake plants in lower light less often than the ones getting more light. Snake plant leaves are long and flat and catch a lot of dust and particles from the air. You need to gently wipe them down once in a while to allow them to photosynthesise properly.
Soil and Feeding
They prefer a cactus compost as this is drier and more free-draining than regular house plant soil. Repot every couple of years and make sure that the roots and base of the plant are nice and compact. Feed your snake plant once a month during summer months.
African Spear Plant.
AFRICAN SPEAR PLANT (Sansevieria cylindrica)
The African Spear plant is also part of the Sansevieria family. The care is exactly the same as the snake plant. These can also be placed in corners of the home with less light, and their tall tubular stems make for an interesting contrast to other leafier plants you may add to your collection. I like to include them in office installations as for a low care plant, they are slightly rarer and a great talking point. (See snake plant for care tips.)
SWISS CHEESE PLANT (Monstera deliciosa)
The Swiss Cheese Plant has been a house plant favourite since the 1970s, where its capacity to grow to ceiling height (2–3m) indoors with minimal care means it does indeed feel like a monster of a plant. In the wild they can reach heights of 20m. The large holey leaves have a jungle feel, making it also seem exotic and tropical, whilst it can live in a nontropical environment happily. The holes in the leaves give it the nickname ‘Swiss Cheese Plant’. Some early leaves grow without holes. Holes will not grow in these over time as some people think; the leaf design is actually predetermined at the birth of each new leaf. As the plant matures more leaves will develop and these will contain the holes.
Swiss Cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa).
Care
To keep your Monstera happy you do not need to do much. Just avoid the plant sitting in water when you have watered it, so if possible, stand it in the shower to water it and allow excess water to leave the grower pot before you put it back into its ceramic pot.
Water
This plant can tolerate being kept relatively dry, so water once a week, and less in winter. Make sure that the soil feels dry before you water it as it does not like to be in overly wet soil. If you over-water this plant then the leaves will develop brown edges. The plant likes to be misted once or twice a week too as it is a jungle plant and therefore enjoys humidity.
Light and Temperature
The Monstera does best in filtered light or indirect sunlight. If the leaves are turning yellow or fading, then this means that the plant is getting too much light. Too little light will mean that the leaves do not grow with the signature holes in them.
You will notice that the plant will grow aerial roots; this is completely normal as the plant is a climber in the wild. These roots can be wrapped back around the plant stem or if you have one, the moss pole. I like to make sure that these get a good misting when I do mist my plant. As the leaves are so wide, they will catch a lot of dust particles so wipe these down gently when needed.
Soil and Feeding
Free-draining house plant soil is best for this plant. You will only need to repot only every few years. The plant will still grow taller even when it is in tight pot conditions. If you buy a junior plant and notice that the leaves have started to splay with growth as it matures, then you can add a moss pole to the pot and gently tie the heavy leaves to this to maintain upright growth if this is what you prefer. Feed the plant once a month in summer months.
EXPANDING YOUR PLANT COLLECTION
Once you start owning a few standalone plants in your home then you can feel as though you need more to create the ultimate indoor garden. Once the house plant bug hits you it can be hard to imagine life without indoor greenery. You should then consider creating a terrarium to add some interest to your space whilst still working with a low maintenance plant collection. The next chapters will explain what a terrarium is, and how to create your own at home.
