Easy To Grow Houseplants

Houseplants Have Benefits

Houseplants are a wonderful addition to any home. They add beauty, improve indoor air quality and uplift our spirit in the dead of winter. Some houseplants are difficult to grow, others not so much. Lets focus on a few inexpensive examples that are both common and easy to grow.

Some different variations of snake plants that I grew in my greenhouse.

One of my favorite houseplants is the snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata). This plant is very forgiving. You can forget to water it, and it will still survive for days being completely dry. In fact, it’s better not to water it too often. Let it get almost completely dry and then thoroughly water it. The only issue you might have is if you let the snake plant get too cold. It doesn’t like to freeze. For example, don’t place it too close to a window in the wintertime, because if the window freezes the cold could damage the plant. Other than that the snake plant is pretty hard to kill. NASA did a study on it and concluded that the snake plant did a great job removing impurities out of the air. So having a snake plant around could potentially improve your health!

Golden Pothos is another plant that I propagated in my greenhouse this year.

Another one of my favorite houseplants is Golden Pothos also commonly known as the money plant. They make wonderful hanging baskets. And, like the snake plant, they are hard to kill unless you freeze them. They are also very easy to propagate. you can buy just one plant and end up with dozens more within months. So this can save you money. Maybe that’s why they call it the “money plant”?

These arrowhead plants were all grown in my greenhouse from one small and inexpensive plant within six months time. I simply bought one from a local nursery and divided and repotted it; and then repeated the simple process every two months.

I really like the arrowhead plant (aka syngonium and nephthytis) because it grows so fast and is easy to divide into more plants. It doesn’t need to be fussed over and can tolerate some neglect. I like to water it well once or twice a week and let it get almost dry before I water it again.

Let’s Talk About Light

I have personally used this light and was happy with it. It’s full spectrum; therefore, I was able to get my houseplants to flower even in the dead of winter with very little natural light.

All of the above houseplants can survive in low light; however, if you want better growth, then you will need to supplement light and add a little fertilizer. Regarding the fertilizer: don’t overdo it. A little goes a long way, so be sure and follow the directions on whatever houseplant fertilizer you purchase. During the winter I only fertilize once every two months with a time release fertilizer. Make sure any excess water can drain out of the bottom of the pot. I make my own soil mix. It’s really simple: one part peat moss, one part perlite and one part sand. I mix the three ingredients well and dump the soil in a pot. If you don’t want to make your own, just simply purchase an indoor potting mix from the store. The above houseplants like the room temperature to be above 60F, so please keep that in mind. Most do very well in 75F, but not too close to the fire where it gets overly hot and dry. And if the indoor humidity is low, you should probably mist them every few days.

Well friends, that should get you started. Happy growing!

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