Colourful Houseplants

During these damp and dark winter months, we all need some colour and warmth in our lives! This week we take a look at how you can add some cheer to your home with colourful houseplants. Here are my top picks!

Hyacinths:

A very popular bulb for indoor use. It is a spring flowering bulb with a lovely scent available in different colours. Also an ideal gift around X-mas time! It prefers a bright spot and you can pot them up or grow them in water in a decorative vase. Keep them cool during the growing season to prolong bloom.

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Cyclamens:

You can find them in shades of pink, red, white and purples. The foliage is attractive, having silver marbling on the top sides of the leaves. Keep moist but not wet.

Azalea:

You can grow azaleas indoors much like any other houseplant and you get them in shades of red, pinks and whites. Keep them damp and since they prefer slightly acidic soil, you may want to use fertilizer for that purpose.

Christmas cactus:

A beautiful plant that flowers at Christmas time known as Schlumbergera. Put into bright light and keep it on the dry side. Don’t overwater because that might cause bud drop.

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Poinsettia:

This is a traditional Christmas flowering plant that will last through the X-mas season. Be sure that your poinsettia is well wrapped when you take it outside on your trip home because you might get leaf damage with the cold weather. Water only if the soil feels dry and keep in a bright room.

 

We hope this has given you some great ideas for brightening your home this winter! For more ideas, drop in to see our team 🙂

Best wishes,

Monica Schmidt, Horticulturalist at Powerscourt Garden Centre, Wicklow

Looking after your houseplants

This week, Monica Schmidt, our horticulturalist at Powerscourt Garden Pavilion offers some great advice on keeping your houseplants looking fantastic:

First of all choose the right plant for the room you want to put it in, for example. houseplants that only grow in natural light or in light-shade would be: Aspidistra, Dracena, Bromelia, Spathiphlyum, Hedera, Helexine, Ferns, Orchids and Chlorophytum. Houseplants that can take very bright light or direct sunlight on a windowsill or in a conservatory would be: Plumbago, Bouganvillea, Cacti, Succulents, Kalanchoe and Citrus. For the bathroom with high humidity ferns, peace lilies and orchids would do well.

To keep your plants problem free keep in mind not to over water them. The soil should only be moist, not wet. Give them a regular feed in the growing season. There are many products on the market. Just follow the instructions on the packet and don’t be tempted to overfeed them. Decrease the feeding in the winter months and allow the plant to rest.

In Winter, central heating tends to dry out the air and misting the plant would be a good idea. A sign that your plant gets too little humidity is typically browning and shrivelling at the tip of the leaf and even yellowing of the leaf edges.

Another important point to keep in mind is to recognise any pests and disease early and treat them accordingly. Again, there are very good products on the market and usually a multi-purpose or all-in-one bug killer will do the trick.

Also after flowering, cut back all the dead flowers and hopefully you will get  a second flush of flowers. By doing that you keep your plant tidy. Prune or cut away any dead leaves as well. Wipe off any dust on the leaves, it just looks better.

After a period of time you may need to repot your plant. Ask us what soil to use; usually a houseplant compost will be most suitable. Choose a slightly bigger pot and repot into it. If in any doubt about what houseplant to buy, where to place it and how to look after it call in to see me Monica or any of our horticulturists.

See you soon,

Monica

Powerscourt Garden Pavilion, Powerscourt Estate Enniskerry, County Wicklow. Ph: (01) 204 6014. W: www.powerscourt.ie