A Plantsman's Plea

Spare a thought for your houseplants this Christmas, urges RHS gardening expert NIGEL EATON

- Nigel Eaton

EVERY year from late November through to Christmas Eve, millions of houseplants are given as gifts in the UK. As a horticultural retailer I am really pleased to see this trend, however, my biggest bugbear is how many people actually think about the recipient and the conditions they are going to put these plants in.

So many times in the past I have walked into homes where on the sideboard sits a bowl of elongated hyacinths strung up with a couple of knitting needles to stop them falling over, with the gas fire blazing away. Or even worse, a lovely cyclamen wilting over the side of its pot, gradually desiccating on a shelf over a radiator turned up full blast!

So here is my plea on behalf of Christmas houseplants everywhere: if you are giving an indoor plant as a gift this year, please, please take some time to research the best options and make sure they will thrive in the conditions they are given into.