Indoor House plant roundup

Come January when the holidays are over, the weather is unpredictable, and we're stuck inside a lot, it's nice to have some greenery to brighten up the winter months.  I never quite knew how many plants I had until watering them became part of my weekly to-do list. Today I thought I would photograph my house plants and talk a little about each one. They're all pretty cool and easy care plants. One thing you will notice is that all of my plants live in a pot, set inside another solid pot and also on some type of plate. This ensures no leaking plants or ruined furniture or flooring.  So let's do a little plant round up.

Of course we have all seen these, the Fiddle Leaf Fig in magazines. They were all the rage a few years ago. They can come at a hefty price tag if you buy them this size, but I suggest finding a small one at your local nursery. Repot if every few years as it grows. Provide it with some fertilizer every once in a while and water it when if feels dry. They love a nice sunny window East or South facing. And when they are little they love being in the shower for a nice rinse.  When they grow up and harder to move, they like a little spritz of water and dust the leaves to keep their pores open.

Here in my upstairs bathroom I have a Pothos plant. This is the by far the hardest plant to kill. It can survive in low-light to bright light.  They can grow tall and vine up stuff, so if you have space you can let them go wild.  

I have a few Christmas Cactus' around the house.  They all love being inside with me during the winter months. In the summer I bring them outside in a place that gets afternoon shade. They are tropical plants, not cactus, so they love being in humid air.  When I bring them inside in the fall I put them in a colder more shaded area of the house so that by Christmas they are ready to bloom.  I feed them once a year before they bloom.

These Christmas Cactus are living their best life in a small glass terrarium where another houseplant lives in a dish of water. They can't get enough of this humid air. 

This watch chain plant is not technically a house plant in general, but in my growing zone (7b) it does not survive the winter.  I generally hate plants that I have to bring inside and out, but these were so cute at the nursery and I didn't have to heart to just let them die. So inside they came. I actually repotted them into terra cotta pots so I can bring them back outside easily. They were in a very large outdoor pot before. 

This is a type of Dracaena, still in the same pot I brought it home in.  I will repot it once I find a pretty pot. It's loving the bright afternoon light. 

My Snake Plant is doing pretty well. I have killed some of these because I did not realize they need a lot of sun and regular waterings. 

I don't have too many cactus type plants, but this little guy is doing pretty well. He's growing at a nice and steady pace. He also loves being near the West sun-setting side of the house.

An Aloe plant is nice to have around. If you're an 80's kid or just love natural healing plants, this one is nice. If you have a Sun-burn or cut you can take a cutting, splice it open length wise and slather the Aloe directly on. It's soothing and anti-microbial. 

A holiday house plant that is not really a house plant, but a forced indoor bulb is the Amaryllis.  Mine hasn't opened yet, so I probably planted it too late. But once it opens it will be very pretty. Still not sure I can put this outside and have it come back year after year.

This guy, the Rubber Plant is on my list of plants that may not survive. At first he started dropping some leaves and then I read they like really sunny locations. So I moved him to this window and he seems happier. I'm hoping he wants to stay and likes it here. 

Another type of cool indoor plant is this Dracaena, or Dragon Plant.  At Christmas time I strung lights on him so he's recovering from that. But otherwise seems pretty happy.

This Norfolk Island Pine was one of those Christmas purchases a few years ago. It does not like the cold weather so it's an indoor plant for me. It's definitely on the finicky side -it loves a spritz of water and moist soil.  It can get pretty huge if you live in a warm climate. But here it will stay small, maybe even the size of the ceiling if this pot can hold the roots.   So if you got one of these for Christmas, don't throw it out.  

We were gifted some white orchids about 6 months ago.  Normally people just toss these out when they are done blooming. I hear if you give them a little cup of water each week they can survive and even rebloom. :)

This was my splurge Fall plant, I love it's dark leaves and really stands out among all the green plants. It's called a Raven House plant.  And I have to say it's probably my favorite. It even has little green leaves starting to grow. 

Here's a house plant you're all aware of, the Christmas Pointsettia.  A lot of people toss these too. You can keep them for a long time with the right care. Yes they will shed some leaves but they are not dead. 

 

I was a bit disappointed with my Paper Whites this year. It was my first time planting Christmas bulbs so I am still learning. I got one good white flower.  In some areas these can be put in the yard and naturalize. And apparently they make quite the show in the Spring garden. I will give it a try and see what happens. 

Maybe this one is my most beloved house plant.  This was from a clipping from my Mom's Jade plant. There are also two Haworthia Zebra plants. They are in the sunniest East facing window. In the Winter the sun stays over there the whole day because it is lower on the horizon.  In the summer he lives outside.

Probably the coolest indoor plant with variegated purple and pink leaves is the Calathea Dottie. Also known as the prayer plant. At first I thought this plant wasn't going to survive.  It turns out it's really thirsty in this particular window.  I will move it so it has indirect light. 

I hope you enjoyed this little house plant tour. Now someone please keep me out of the indoor plant section at the hardware store.  Or this place will soon look like a crazy-house plant ladies house.  But in all seriousness I love taking care of them and they bring me a sense of serenity and calm knowing they are making clean air.  Let me know if you have a favorite house plant. I could maybe squeeze one more in around here. 

xo

Cathleen