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herlife | homeThe 10 Best PlantsFor The Busy Home Gardenerby linda r. priceHouse plants are fairly reasonableand will grow under indoor growingconditions. Indoor conditionsmay not be ideal, but most plants willadapt and survive. The basic elements forplants are light, soil, water, temperature andhumidity.LightPlants must have light to survive. Lowlight is usually found when windows facethe north and receive no sun. Mediumlight comes in windows facing east or west.These windows receive the early morningor late afternoon sun. High light comesfrom southern exposures, is intense andshould be avoided. The length of the dayand the number of hours the sun shinesin the window affect the amount of lightreceived. Light is also reduced or increasedby buildings, trees, shrubs, air pollution,and curtains or shutters which restrictlight coming into the windows. Learn tojudge your plants’ health by observing theirgrowth. Plants which receive sufficientlight grow compact forms while those withinsufficient light will be leggy with widelyspaced leaves.run-off after 30 minutes. Judge the amount of moisture available to the plant by touching thesoil. If it feels dry, the plant probably needs watering.TemperatureHouse plants will grow well in the average home temperatures of 68 to 74 degrees and willbenefit from a temperature drop of up to 10 degrees at night. In the summer, as the afternoonsun is considerably stronger and hotter, you will probably need to move plants farther awayfrom the window. Winter temperatures are generally not a problem unless plants are kept incold, unheated rooms.HumidityLow humidity can be a problem. Both plants and humans benefit from raising the humiditylevel. A humidifier is a good idea if your apartment or house is constantly dry and overheatedfrom central heating. If this is out of the question, try placing plants on pebbles in low traysfilled with water; keep plants above water line.SoilThe plants on our list like either asandy soil or an all-purpose one. Both areavailable in garden centers.WaterPlants need water to survive, but mostdo not like their feet kept wet so pour out42 HERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
The ten best plants1. The cast iron plant (Aspidistra Elatior) is virtually indestructible.The plant has tall, dark-green broad leaves. The cast iron plant growsin any light, needs an all-purpose soil and moderate watering.2. Spider plants (Chlorophytum Comosum) are solid green or greenand-whitewith grassy leaves; plantlets develop on tips of long runners.The plantlets can be left alone or broken off to give to friends. Theplant looks great on a tall table or in a hanging pot. It likes low-mediumlight, sandy soil and light watering.3. The rosary vine or string-of-hearts (Ceropegia Woodii) is a smallleavedvine, purplish in color with tiny flowers (bright light) or mottledgreen (lower light). The small bulbs along stems create new plants. Itlooks best in a hanging pot, adapts to any light conditions, likes sandysoil and moderate watering.4. Dumb cane (Dieffenbachia) has variegated tall leaves, is poisonousif eaten and is fast-growing. It likes low-medium light, all-purpose gardeningsoil and moderate water. Place on a window sill for best results.5. Dracaenas have elongated striped leaves and are variously known asthe corn plant, the ribbon plant, the gold dust plant, etc. They grow inany light, need all-purpose soil, like light watering and look fabulous asfloor plants.6. Peperomias are low-growing round leaves in various colors andtextures. Two of the most popular are “Emerald Ripple” and the watermelonpeperomia. Peperomias like low-medium light, all-purpose orsandy soil, light watering and look beautiful when placed in a window.7. Philodendrons are large-leaved shrubs or heavy vines requiring supports.The most well-known are the heart-leaf philodendron, the splitleafphilodendron, the fiddle-leaved philodendron and the velvet-leafphilodendron. Philodendrons grow in any light, all-purpose soil andlike moderate watering. The small-leaved plants do well in a windowsill and the bigger varieties on the floor.8. Snake plants (Sansevierias) are another hardy, virtually indestructibleplant with spiky, mottled leaves edged in yellow or green withyellow edges. They like any light, all-purpose or sandy soil and lightwatering. They can grow in a windowsill.9. The umbrella tree (Scheflera Actinophylla) has shiny, long, ovalleaves. It likes medium light, all-purpose soil and moderate watering.Schefleras look best as floor plants.10. The arrow-head plant (Syngonium Podophyllum) has mediumsized,veined, dark or light green arrow-shaped leaves. It is fast-growingin bright light, but will grow in any light. It likes all-purpose soil andmoderate watering. The plant grows well as a window sill plant or in ahanging pot. ■Source for this article: The Lazy Indoor Gardener by Roberta Pliner 1976HERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM 43
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