Indoor Plants and Lighting

Artificial can be easily controlled to suit your plants.

It’s nice to have beautiful plants indoor while in order to get the best result what you need to know is the best lighting condition for the plants. Different plants require different amount of lights. It some cases when it is necessary, you also can consider the artificial light in order to make sure your plants get enough amount of lights.

Even though in general the flowering plants need more light than the foliage plants yet croton (foliage plant) needs lots of light to keep its vibrant leaf color. At the same time most plants with thick, fleshy leaves need less light yet the cacti do very well in bright light. Total amount of time spend in light also can influence (not necessarily the intensity) for some flowering plants like Christmas cactus, chrysanthemum, kalanchoe and poinsettia. With proper care of soil, water, and humidity, most plants can do better with less proper lighting.

It is easier if you have window with enough amount of light.

Natural lighting always the best for plants to grow properly as it’s contains all spectrum oflight. Still proper lighting condition need to be aware – not to expose your plants directly to the sun. The positioning of your windows also important if you home located in Northern or Southern hemisphere. There also other factors that will influence the amount of light entering your room if the window is blocked by buildings or trees, so check on your plants changes often to notice any changes.

Artificial light on the other hand can be a good source of light for your indoor plants. Even if you have room with no windows artificial light can still provide some amount of light for your plants to grow. There are plenty of artificial lights suitable for growing plants indoor – mostly for the hydroponics grower. These lights designed specifically to focus on helping the plants to increase the photosynthesis – and to help the plants to produce flower. The blue light and the red light are two lights spectrum that need by plants to grow healthily. You need to check on the supplier’s manual to suit your need. The new LED grow lights are the best for result and save more energy.

LED lights can produce good result and save energy.

Too much light and too little light can cause unhealthy effect to your plants. It can cause burning or bleached effect on the leaves. These leaves will permanently damage – just remove it and keep your plants away from direct sunlight. While when you plants showing yellowish old leaves and spindly new leaves – indicate too little light. Move it to little brighter area but not to direct sunlight.

Beautiful Begonia for Your Home

Healthy vigorous begonia can turn into something like this.

Begonia (Begoniaceae) is wonderful indoor plant, instead of beautiful leaves they also have beautiful flower in some species. Flower enthusiast has breed new cultivars that producing wonderful flowers. This plant is native to moist and warm regions of south-east Asia and makes it suitable to be out in moist area such as in the bathroom or kitchen.

The mark on B. masoniana.

For wonderful color of leaves the B. masoniana (iron cross) has the wonderful dark purple cross mark on their leaves, while the texture is little bit hairy with heart-shaped. The size can be up to 5 in across and 8 in long on a hairy pink-red stalk.

Large amount of begonia cultivar.

While B. rex has a larger leaves with longer shape heart shape. The colors are richer with silver, cream, pink, purple and darker color.

They’re huge amount of cultivars for begonias. Since the hybridized can be done easily within the genus, the number of cultivars will keep on growing. There are few major groups that classifies by the American Begonia Society;

• -          cane-like
• -          shrub-like
• -          rhizomatous
• -          semperflorens (wax or fibrous rooted begonias)
• -          Rex
• -          trailing-scandent
• -          thick-stemmed

Young begonia-semperflorens.

Buying hints: Plants that reach 6 inches tall is the best size since it has good chances to grow healthy with more reasonable price. Inspect the leaves to be well in shape with no signs of browning or curling. It is also important to make sure that the plant is not infected by any fungal diseases.

General care: Grow in peat or loam-based potting compost and make sure the good drainage always maintain. The need to repotting is when roots put through the drainage holes.

Light: To help begonias produce more foliage put the plants in the areas with filtered lights. Bright areas but not with direct sunlight are the best ideas. They also can be grown with artificial light.

Hanging is one of the best way for begonia.

Temperature: The low temperature for begonia should not be lower than 50 °F even though the best temperature is 60 °F.

Humidity: It is important to get the air surrounding the begonia humid to imitate the tropical forest. The suitable ways to do this are the double pot technic and the pebble trays. Mist sprays may cause die-back.

Watering and Feeding: Watering the plant only when the soil feels dry to avoid crown rot if the soil is soaked for a length of time. During the winter only watering when the plants show obvious signs of wilting. To maintain continuously healthy growing begonia use liquid feeds every two weeks.

Flowering begonia will strikingly beautiful. 

Propagation: Sow seeds in early spring at the temperature of 65 °F. Take cutting from healthy leaves and root in propagator.

Disorder: Do regular check on your plants for grey mold can cause blackish-brown blotches on the leaves. Mildew also can grow underside of the leaves. While root knot eelworm attacks the roots leads the plant to die.

Araucaria Beautiful Pine for Indoor

Araucaria grows healthily in pot.

Araucaria (Araucariacae) native to the Norfolk Island in the Pacific Ocean (next to Australia) is actually a big tree than grows up 200 ft. in the wild. It’s a fern-like tree valued for its delicate foliage and horizontally tiered shoots. It will grow very slowly in the pot and seldom reaches more than 6 ft. in height and 3 ft. in diameter, this tree suitable to decorate the porches, halls and stairways – usually in pairs or more indoor or outdoor. Thrives well both in indirect sunlight or shade. It is also being used as a Christmas three. The other species of this tree can also be found in eastern Australia, New Guinea, Argentina, Chile, and Southern Brazil.

It has bright green, awl-shaped needles form thickly on the tiered shoots and have a soft mossy feel on young growth. It will turn stiffer and pricklier as they age. When the needles drop from the trunk they will reveal a scaly bark.

A closer look at the top part of the Araucaria tree.

Buying Hints: Available from garden centers and florist. Even though in can be little bit expensive they are durable. Select the tree with size around 12 – 18 in young pot plants with perfect leading shoots and symmetrically arranged tiers of bright green branches. Any discoloration on leaves or broken trunk should be avoided.

General Care: Araucaria is a tolerant plant and grows well in a peat or loam-based potting compost. Young plants should be potted on annually until they are in 8 – 10 in pots. Mature plants are easily kept healthy by changing an inch or so of the top compost.

Light: Best in light shades area with well-ventilated such as big hall or in front door areas. As long as not place into direct sunlight that can scorch their leaves. High moisture also can be very good for it.

A healthy leaves of mature Araucaria leaves.

Temperature: Lower temperature can be tolerated until 45 °F and it still can retain a good its bright green color. It is not so sensitive to temperature as long as not too hot or too cold.

Humidity: Moisture is very important especially during growing period from spring to late summer. Whether sprays with water or to be set above moisture tray of pebbles and water.

Watering and Feeding: Water freely from March to September and keep the soil moisture. Feed can be applied every twice a week with dilute manure. Foliage feed also can be used to spur new growth especially for the plants that have not been potted on. In winter just make sure that the compost is not dry.

Bonsai Araucaria.

Propagation: Propagation by seeds starts in spring, or by cutting of 3 in long side shoots in spring and summer. These should be raised in propagator at temperature of about 65 °F.

Disorder: With a good care Araucaria is very durable plant, avoid placing it too near a radiator or bright light source which may cause the leaves to shrivel.

Best Indoor Plants to Have Inside Your Home

Scindapsus the easiest to take care for indoor plant.

Indoor plants can be soothing for the eyes of the owner so on to the visitors. Usually the indoor plants that we choose for the purpose of decorating should fulfill few characteristics depend on the owners. Having decorating plants indoor mean that you should have enough time to take care for them to make sure they can survive longer.

In many cases foliage plants can be much easier to take care for their characteristics will remain for a longer period of time. Since many plants from this type are also tropical and sub-tropical plants, taking take of it during the winter can be little bit tricky – as long as there are not keep it the freezing cold.

Here in this article, we are going to see some plants that suitable to be planted inside your house or office. Foliage plants in this list are popular types of plants that keep by most of plants lover and can be found at many suppliers.

- Aglaonema (Araceae)

- Araucaria (Araucariacea)

- Asparagus (Liliaceae)

- Aspidistra (Liliaceae)

Some Begonias also have beautiful flowers.

- Begonia (Begoniaceae)

- Caladium (Araceae)

- Calathea (Marantaceae)

- Ceropegia (Asclepiadaceae)

- Chamaedorea (Palmae)

- Chlorophytum (Liliaceae)

- Cissus (Vitaceae)

- Codiaeum (Euphorbiaceae)

- Coleus (Labiatae)

- Cordyline (Agavaceae)

- Cyperus (Cyperaceae)

- Dieffenbachia (Araceae)

- Dizygotheca (Araliaceae)

- Dracaena (Agavaceae)

- Fatshedera (Araliaceae)

- Fatsia (Araliaceae)

- Ficus (Moraceae)

- Fittonia (Acanthaceae)

- Gynura (Compositae)

- Hedera (Araliaceae)

- Heptapleurum (Araliaceae)

- Howea (Palmae)

- Maranta (Marantaceae)

- Monstera (Araceae)

- Pandanus (Pandanaceae)

- Peperomia (Piperaceae)

- Philodendron (Araceae)

- Philea (Urticaceae)

- Plectranthus (Labiatae)

- Rhoeo (Commelinaceae)

- Sansevieria (Agavaceae)

- Saxifraga (Saxifragaceae)

- Schefflera (Araliaceae)

- Scindapsus (Araceae)

- Selaginella (Selaginellaceae)

- Sonerila (Melastomataceae)

- Syngonium (Araceae)

- Tradescantia (Commelinaceae)

- Zebrina (Commelinaceae)

Sansevieria can easily transform your indoor decoration.

Those lists above contain many types of indoor plants that suite all your indoor plants need. Whether you want it to be little shorter such as Asparagus, Begonia and Pilea or you can choose something unique such as Gynura, Monstera, Pandanus (scented) and Sansevieria, all of these indoor plants are easy to take care. In most cases the easiest and what I always choose is Scindapsus – since it can be planted only in water (so you can put it in beautiful glass vase).