MUCH as books clothe a room, plants bring warmth and life to conservatories and orangeries. Not only is there something much friendlier not to mention natural-about being surrounded by greenery, scent and colour, but they also address the problem of echoey acoustics.
Plants need to be positioned where they will thrive; some like it hot and sunny, others need shade and if you're inexperienced, stick with easy-going varieties that won't sulk. Visit a nursery that specialises in indoor plants where they will be able to tell you all you need to know about how to keep the plants healthy and happy. The plants will be better grown, too, and get off to a much better start.
There are plants to suit every kind of mood from elegant and minimal; go for greens with complementary and contrasting foliage to build up a tapestry of different tones and shapes and place them in simple statement containers. An exotic look is easy to create with large-leaved rubber plants, palms and bananas and add drama with colourful stippling, whorls and striations. Or start a collection of painted-leaf begonias, pretty streptocarpus or sculptural succulents. It won't be long before you are hooked.
A green tapestry
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning
