How to Select Beautiful Houseplants



Plants make a wonderful addition to your indoor environment. If you are fortunate enough to live in a warmer area, then most likely plants are a part of your outdoor landscape year round. When you decide to buy some new houseplants, you need to consider where you will be putting your new addition. Is the area well lighted and suitable for the plant? You need to fit the plant to the area, not the other way around. There are several suitable choices when you are looking for a great flowering plant to add to your home. Go to your local gardening center and find a knowledgeable associate that can answer any questions you may have, when choosing your new plant.

Plants for your home

Bromeliads, Crypthanthus, Aechmea and Ananas, are called by their Latin genus, and any of these would make a great addition to your home. Bromeliads are fabulous houseplants, they thrive in brightly lit areas. The flowers can last for several weeks and they need to be place in a well drained pot, with a mixture of bark and coarse.

You need to remember to keep the reservoir at the bottom of the pot, filled with water. It is also very important that you do not over water this plant and to change the water weekly.

The proper choice of potting for your plant

You could add a choice from the Gesneriad family, such as a Hot Water Plant or a Cupids Bower. These plants flower from spring to early summer and throughout the fall.

Once they bloom, you need to move them to an area of reduced lighting and water them so the top of th4e plants dieback to the soil. You can store the dormant plants at 60 degrees over the winter and leave them in the pot.

When the springtime rolls around, you can start to grow or reproduce them by dividing tiny spouts and gradually increasing the watering amount and introducing more light.

When they are in growing mode, they need care that is similar to African Violets. You can also display them in the same places you would an African Violet plant.

A Zebra Plant is a popular plant, but it can be difficult to grow inside. No matter how perfect the growing conditions may be, the lower leaves always seem to fall off, mostly after blooming.

The Zebra plant requires high humidity levels and varying soil moisture, depending on what the time of year is, it can be difficult to keep your plant healthy looking.

It is better to replace dying or tired looking plants, you can start new plants by strategic tip cutting, after the flower dies and the spike tip is removed.

Great Table Top Plants

Clerodendrum thomsoniae are well know for their beautiful milky white, bell shaped buds with burgundy red tips. These plants are best grown on a sunny window sill, during March through September. They prefer soil that is well drained and lightly moist.

The Glower Bower grow best with a temperature are 65 degrees, with an average amount of humidity. You also need to ensure that it has the ability to climb as it grows. You can use them as a floor plant or they look just as great in a hanging basket.

The Flowering Maple plants are best known for their bushy, tailing folliage, with leaves shapes like maples. Some species in this family have yellow and green variegated leaves, while some have lovely flowers, shaped like hollyhock blooms. Flowering maples require a bright sunny location with soil that is moist, but not soggy and they prefer high humidity. The Flowering Maple thrives best in cool night temperatures between 55-60 degrees. You must remember to sink the pot in outdoor containers during the warm season, which allows the plant to continue bloom in the warmer seasons, and it makes a great accent plant.

Kaffir Lily

Clivia miniata produces long, leather-like leaves with beautiful, showy orange-red flowers, followed by ornamental red berries. Propagated by seed or division.

The Kaffir Lily, is a member of the clivia miniata family and its plants has long, leathery leaves with striking orangish-red flowers. You can get starters of this plant from the seeds or by dividing the plants. The grow outside during the summer, in a lightly shaded area with water, and need to be fertilized regularly.

During the first week of September, you need to bring the plant inside to rest in a cool location, until mid-January. Water this plant lightly and then move to a sunny and warmer location. Then begin to water and fertilize it regularly. The yellow variation of the plant is called, Aurea, it is harder to find, but beautiful. This plant is best used for accent on a tabletop, while larger ones can be put on the floor.

The Cape Primrose, is a member of the gesneriad family, produces lovely flowers in shades of pink, white, purple and blue. It grows best in an east or west window that allows for exposure to the most sunlight. You need to keep the soil lightly moist and just remember to provide adequate humidity exposure. The plant does best between between 55 to 70 degrees. The plant prefers to be put in loose, organic soil and needs to be checked periodically in the spring for repotting needs. The plant culture is comparable to that of the African Violets, and they can tolerate cooler temperatures quite well. You need remove the dead flowers and stalks to keep the plants from further growth. You can display it much in the same way as an African Violet.

Flame-of-the-Woods

Ixora coccinea is an evergreen shrub that produces dense clusters of tubular flowers with some varieties being scented. Colors of white, orange, yellow and salmon are available.

A are an evergreen flowering bush that produce a dense cluster of tubular shapes blooms and some types have scents. They come in colors of white, orange, yellow and salmon-pink. For the best growing conditions for house plants, the temperature should be between 65 and 75 degrees, with sun exposure coming from an east-west location. These plants need adequate humidity and moist soil, and to be placed in a draft-free location. There are also dwarf varieties available, these versions are perfect for a table top, while the larger variety is perfect for a floor plant.

Flame Violets are members of the Episcia family. This genus produces trailing tropical foliage with bright leaves and brilliantly colored flowers. Flame Violets grow best with minimal sun exposure with temperatures between 65 and 70 degrees. They thrive in high humidity and the soil should be kept lightly moist. Other requirements are similar to that of African Violets and can be displayed in the same way.