Houseplants For The New Year
Here at Longacres we have an abundance of beautiful specimen houseplants to make your living space an oasis of calm – come in and see for yourself! It’s a great time of year to renew and refresh plants in your home. Looking after houseplants is a pleasurable indoor activity and incorporating flowering and foliage plants has the added benefit that plants soak up harmful carbon dioxide and emit oxygen.
The plant team at Bagshot have all come up with their favourite houseplants which should inspire you to have a few in your home - here are our top picks:
Calathea in general (now known as Goeppertia), are very decorative foliage plants, having attractive leaf markings. Easy to care for, and many different varieties are available, but particularly popular is Calathea ornata, with its dark green leaves with delicate pink stripes which look like they’ve been painted on the foliage.
Joseph’s Coat or Codiaeum variegatum var. pictum – has brightly coloured leaves with splashes of orange and yellow which are a cheery sight, especially in winter. This plant likes a brightly lit spot out of direct sunlight.
Beaucarnia recurvata (Nolinia recurvata) – ponytail plant or elephant’s foot: aptly named houseplant which has long leaves billowing out of a bulbous base (which holds onto water)
Sansevieria – snake plant, aka mother-in-law’s tongue! A virtually indestructible houseplant with the added bonus of air purifying qualities Can cope with any position and able to withstand extremes of temperature.
Cacti and succulents – many and varied with thousands to choose from and they’re very low maintenance. The money plant – Crassula ovata is always popular to bring good luck.
Swiss cheese plant or Monstera deliciosa – a retro houseplant which has come back into fashion because of its large cut leaves (on mature plants) and tropical look. Fast growing and easy to care for.
Ferns – from the delicate maidenhair to robust bird’s nest ferns, there are so many different foliage types to choose from. Great for lower light levels provided enough humidity is given. Every home should have at least one fern.
Rubber plant: Ficus elastica has regained popularity for its large, leathery leaves. Ficus ‘Tineke’ – has variegated leaves with attractive splashes of pink amongst the white and green foliage.
Bromeliads – brightly coloured flower bracts, which can last for many weeks, make these plants look striking.
Dracena fragrans ‘Lemon and Lime’ – dragon plant – is another favourite for its bright zingy colours which likes a bright spot away from direct sunlight but is generally an undemanding houseplant.
Spider plant – Chlorophytum has air purifying properties which help make this easy peasy plant a forever favourite
Purple peperomia – Peperomia caperata ‘Rosso’ Peperomia comes in many different foliage shapes. This one has lovely purple leaves and is easy to care for.
