Choosing Indoor Plants-How Do You Choose The Right Indoor Plant for You

Choosing indoor plants can be difficult for some people, but not anymore after reading this article. You know it, you enter the garden center looking for a plant and are overwhelmed by all the offers that can be found. Perhaps when you see all the plants you think: ‘Which plant suits me?’, or you immediately fall in love with a certain plant. 

How do you find the perfect plant for you and your home from all that greenery? In this article, I tell you what to look out for and how to make sure you come home with a plant that will make you happy.

Choose the right plant for the right place

A good place in your home is, next to watering, the most important recipe for happy plants. If you place a fern in full sun, there is a chance that the leaves will burn. And a  cactus in full shade will grow very thin. The first step in choosing a plant is therefore to consider where it will be placed. But what should you pay attention to?

Cold draft, Brrr!

No plant likes to be in a draft and it is also questionable how much sunlight will reach your ideal spot. Do you have a spot in front of the south-facing window, with plenty of direct sunlight in the afternoon? Then choose sturdy plants, such as cacti and ssucculents. Yuccas and  Dracaenas can also withstand this. Plants with a more tropical appearance and a greater urban jungle vibe that can withstand full sun are the bird of paradise and the banana plant . It is important that you let them get used to the direct sun by placing them a little closer to the window every day.

Watch out for too much light

Many tropical plants with large leaves, such as the Monstera, the spoon plant, and the Alocasia, like places with indirect light. They are never in direct sunlight, but also not in a place with a lot of shade.

Too much sun can damage the leaf, burns can occur or the leaf discolors from beautiful green to pale yellow. It is best to place a ZZ plant, Sansevieria, or a fern in the real shadow spots. Choose a beautiful artificial plant if you have a place where there is no daylight at all because a real plant will only slowly wither there.

Take a different look at your home. You can not only put plants down, you can also let them hang. For example from a cupboard, or in a beautiful plant hanger on the ceiling. But with all these choices, the amount of light on the spot determines the plant that can stand there.

Some plants are easier to care for than others

Are you going for a large houseplant that completely fills an empty corner or a small one that you can put in the cupboard? If you have found the perfect plant for that one spot in your house, it is good to also check how much care your green roommate needs. 

Are you very punctual and don’t forget to water your plants twice a week? Then go for a beautiful tropical plant such as the  Alocasia,  Calathea, or ferns. They do not like to be skipped at all and also want to be sprayed every now and then with the plant sprayer. 

Are you someone who always overwaters plants? Then choose a Peace Lily, which grows wild in swamps and is used to standing with its feet in the water for a long time. A sturdy plant like the Yucca needs enough once a week. And the ZZ plant,  Rhipsalis, or a  cactus requires little care at all. Ideal if you are often away from home or if you regularly forget to water your plants.

Choose a pot for your plant

And while you’re at it, choose a new pot for your plant right away! It is good to check the roots of your new plant. Are roots already growing out of the drainage holes? Then it is definitely time for a larger pot. 

Remember that there are holes under the pot. If you give too much water, it will run down. In a closed pot, excess water can accumulate and damage the roots. For example, you can opt for a plastic pot in a decorative pot. I myself also love beautiful terracotta pots. They have a hole at the bottom, so don’t forget to put a saucer under it.

Bought a new plant, now what?

When your plant comes home, it will first have to adapt. Usually, a plant has to get used to the new environment, a different amount of light and humidity for a while. Sometimes the leaves may hang down pathetically for a day. It often recovers on its own. 

Check whether your plant does not need some water. Feel the soil, not only the top layer but also a little deeper into the pot to see if your plant needs a drink of water. If necessary, spray the leaves with the plant sprayer, and then it will be all right.

In short:

Sometimes you immediately fall in love with a beautiful plant and I love love at first sight, but it is always good to check whether that plant will really be happy in the place you have in mind for it. By checking how much light and water a plant needs, you quickly find out whether a plant will be happy with you. 

So take a good look at the labels that hang on the plant and check for yourself where in your house you want to place the plant. Is it a place without drafts and is there the right amount of light for the plant you have in mind?

If you are just starting your jungle adventure, choose a sturdier and easier plant such as the pancake plant  (Pilea peperomioides) or the  Clusia, if you have already mastered watering, you can also get an Alocasia or my personal favorite: the plants from the Philodendron family!

Have fun with your next visit to the garden center, leave a comment below if you have brought new plants into your home and have any questions about them!