Winter Winners

Add energy to tired rooms with indoor flowering and foliage plants

- Alice Spenser-Higgs

As decor elements, indoor plants are versatile, affordable and easy to move around, when you want to change the look. Like books, plants help to furnish a home and are natural air fresheners too. Best of all, indoor plants require minimal care. Just make sure they receive the right amount of light, then watch them thrive.

USEFUL TIPS

Treat flowering plants like long lasting flower arrangements; when their time is up, after three or four months, replace them with fresh ones.

Group three or more flowering plants in a large, vase-like container and use moss to hide the pot edges and retain moisture. Lift the moss when watering.

In winter, opt for warm flower colours such as yellow, lavender and bright red.

Flowering plants don’t mind low light for a day or two, if they’re returned to a high light position eventually.

Remove dead flowers and feed once a month with a liquid fertiliser to promote flowering.

FLOWERS

CYCLAMEN are cool, classical beauties, producing flowers in shades of pink, mauve, bright red and sparkling white. The flowers resemble butterfly wings and are carried above decorative, heart-shaped leaves. They look best in simple, stylish containers. Plants remain compact making them easy to use as centre pieces anywhere in the home. 

Light and care: Place in a cool room with good, indirect light. Keep the soil moist, but not waterlogged. Remove dead flowers to lengthen the flowering period.