Top Tips On Looking After Your Houseplants

Most houseplants will thrive in a well lit, draught free spot within your home where the temperature will be fairly even and humidity high. However, some houseplants will have more specific requirements to help them remain healthy.

African Violets need their water supplied at room temperature – otherwise water spots will make the foliage – and are ideally watered first thing in the morning.

If your houseplants include some Bromeliads (‘urn’ plants) you should try to water them as they would receive water in their natural habitats. This basically means watering into the ‘crown’ or ‘urn’ at the centre of the plant, whilst also making sure the compost they are growing in remains damp.

House plants with variegated foliage or which produce flowers generally will require more light than plain green plants.

Cacti, succulents and carnivorous plants like to be on a windowsill where they will catch the most light – however in the summer avoid putting them on a south facing sill as temperatures may become too high and the plants scorched.

Orchids also need bright light to grow – but for orchids this shouldn’t be direct sunlight so you shouldn’t place them on a windowsill. For healthy growth orchids also need lots of fresh air and high humidity.

House plants with thin leaves will need more watering than those which have thick, fleshy leaves. This is because plants with thick, fleshy leaves (such as many succulents) can store more water than their thinner counterparts.

Air Plants get their water from the air, so rather than watering them you just need to keep the air around them humid by misting.