Factors to Consider in Selecting Foliage Plants for a House
Plant Care GuidesWhen grown inside a home or office, indoor plants that originate from tropical or arid climates must adjust to less-than-ideal conditions. The plant’s natural environment and the conditions created by the grower can impact the plant’s health, for better or worse.
When choosing plants for your home, it is essential to consider the environment in which they will be placed. Some plants will only survive in certain environments, so it is important to choose plants that will thrive in the location where they will be placed. You can find more information on the specific care of plants in your local library.
In this article, you will learn about essential factors to consider when picking foliage plants for your home. Read on.
Humidity
Tropical plants come from areas with high humidity and need moist air to survive. The humidity in most homes is much lower than that, so you have to take steps to raise the humidity around your plants.
If the air is too dry, your plant’s leaves may turn brown and crispy. One way to raise the humidity of your plants is to put them close together so they can share moisture. If you have a humidifier in your room or house, turn it on to help your plants.
Make sure to water your plants properly and keep them away from drafts or hot temperatures. Another way to help is to set your plants’ pots on top of a layer of pebbles in a tray. The water should reach just the top of the stones.
Lighting
The intensity of light is a major factor in how well a plant will grow. Southern exposures typically provide the strongest light, while western, eastern, and northern exposures provide increasingly less light.
Variegated plants usually need more light because they have less chlorophyll. This means they can’t make their own food as easily as plants with green foliage. The plant may lose its color variegation if there’s not enough light. Flowering plants also need more light to grow well.
As winter approaches and the days get shorter, the amount of sunlight your plants get will decrease. Move plants to other locations as necessary to make sure they’re getting the right amount of sunlight.
The quality of light refers to the range of available colors. For example, sunlight contains all colors of the spectrum, while an incandescent light bulb gives off limited colors. When growing plants under artificial fluorescent light, most indoor gardeners combine a cool and warm tube in a fixture to provide good quality light for many interior plants.
Additionally, duration refers to the length of light exposure a plant needs to carry out its processes. If a plant does not get enough light exposure, it will experience symptoms such as small leaves, spindly stems, and older leaf drops.
Soil
Healthy roots are essential for a plant’s survival. The roots provide anchorage for the plant, absorb water and nutrients, and help the plant absorb oxygen. If the roots are not healthy, the plant will die.
When potting a plant, it is important to use the correct soil type. The soil mix should not break down or degrade over time. There should be a mixture of particle sizes for good drainage and aeration of the plant’s roots.
Temperature
The ideal temperature for most house plants is between 16 and 27 degrees Celsius. These temperatures are similar to those found in the understory of a tropical forest. Chilling injury, which is the damage from when a plant is exposed to cold temperatures, occurs below 10 degrees Celsius for most tropical plants.
The temperature in your home or office can vary greatly, depending on the time of day or year. Keep in mind that windows that face the south or west will be warmer because of the sunlight, while those on the east or north will be cooler.
Conclusion
There are many factors to consider when choosing foliage plants for your home. Light and water requirements, as well as soil type, will all play a role in determining which plants will thrive in your space. By taking the time to research your options, you can find the perfect plants to create a lush green oasis in your home.
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