With houseplants becoming more popular and in-vogue, a lot of people are buying plants to cultivate and bring a meaningful activity into their life. While this is good for business, today we thought we’d open the curtains and share some open secrets of the world of horticulture that many first-time plant parents will find helpful -
1. Indoor plants need more light than you think
Most plants that are loosely termed as indoor plants need much more light than we humans can imagine. Very few plant species can truly thrive in a low light environment. Some of them are –
Image Caption – In this room, the only spot where the ficus lyrata can stay healthy is at the window sill.
In general, if your plant is variegated, it won’t survive in a low light environment. If you want to plan it scientifically, you can get a might meter like this.
2. Flowering plants take time and effort to bloom
Most nurseries have to give a lot of feed to their plants to get them to be full of flowers. Some people fall for the beauty of these flowers and expect the plants to keep blooming the same way even after they take them home. While many families of plants bloom freely in the right conditions, this is not the norm. Have patience with your flowering plants, give them sunlight, and make sure that you feed them every 15-20 days to ensure blooms.
3. Succulents in terrariums can be tricky
Succulents are among the trendiest plants that you can grow in a variety of conditions. However, the one thing succulents don’t like is too much water. Beginners who make terrariums don’t really know how much drainage they need to create at the base of the pot. If you’re making a terrarium for the first time, try generously using expanded clay aggregate or perlite in the bottom layer. Alternatively, use fittonia, cryptanthus or other water tolerant varieties in your terrarium.
4. You can propagate almost any plant
It might sound obvious but plants really want to grow and create offspring. While most woody stem plants will produce seeds, the almost all plants can be propagated using vegetative propagation. Put cuttings in water after a callous has been formed at the wound and just change the water every week. Growing new plants can’t get easier than that.
5. “Plants are good for the environment”, is not always true
While it is true that we need to protect our forests, mangroves, and natural ecosystems everywhere in the world, some practices in commercial nurseries are not sustainable and good for the environment. Growing saplings in plastic grow bags, using pure soil or earth as the growth media, over-fertilisation, and spreading of water-intensive and invasive species in natural environments are all unsustainable practices that don’t help our planet. When buying plants, make sure you insist on sustainable practices. Choose wisely in your every day life, every choice counts 😊.
P.S. Check out this great resource for more plant content