The happy house plant guide

In the first of a seven-part series, Jane Perrone shares expert advice on how to give your house plants the best start to a long and healthy life in your home

- JANE PERRONE

Part 1: Choosing your plants

Do you fling an orchid into your basket at the supermarket checkout? Or spy a fern at the house plant shop and go weak at the knees because it's been on your wishlist for months? House plants are so beautiful and appealing that the occasional impulse buy is inevitable, but your success rate will be roughly equivalent to how much thought you put into your choices.

The key is getting to know what the conditions are like in your home, and finding the plants that can thrive there, from among the thousands of species from all over the world that can grow indoors.

Before you get anywhere close to splashing cash on new greenery, it's worth taking time to think about what you can offer plants - as well as what they can offer you. Start by considering how much spare time you have for caring for an indoor jungle. Don't believe the hype that 'you cannot have too many plants' - this is not true. I believe that every one of us has the right number of house plants, bearing in mind our expertise, the characteristics of our home and how much room we have. That number could be one, ten or 200.

Right conditions