Give Houseplants A Boost

Before you show your weary houseplants the door, Tamsin Westhorpe offers advice that will give lacklustre indoor species a new lease of life

- Tamsin Westhorpe

WHEN I was in my early 20s, I spent an entire year looking after houseplants. I studied interior landscaping and during that time I cared for plants in office blocks, shopping centres and hotels. It quickly became clear to me that so many of us are guilty of expecting houseplants to put up with neglect and harsh growing conditions. Dracaenas watered with coffee dregs, ficus mulched with cigarette ash and dieffenbachias placed in dark and draughty corners are quite the norm in many commercial locations. 

In our homes we tend to be more determined to offer our foliage friends the right conditions. However, there is often cause to give them a boost. There are many reasons why houseplants start to flag, but the most common include too much/little sunlight or water, lack of feed, disease and temperature.