Plants, plants, plants. Green, hope, life. I sincerely believe that I have “inherited” the passion for nature from my dear mother. She (and actually the whole family) grew up in the country. He worked in cotton fields, in the lands of Andalusia, but despite how hard it was, he has always loved (and still loves today) plants. As far as I remember, there has always been one at home, and when the plot was bought … do you know the first thing he did? An orchard with fruit trees and other edible herbs, and a path of rose bushes of incredible beauty.
She does not understand scientific names, but thanks to her I have learned a lot. One of the things is knowing how to care for indoor and outdoor plants. But I’m not only going to talk to you about the care, but also about which ones you can have both at home and in the garden. Will you accompany me?
10 indoor plants
Who doesn’t want to have a little piece of nature in their home? There are many plants that, in addition to being precious, fulfill an even more important function: that of air purifying, the one we breathe daily.
But you have to be careful when choosing the species, since if we have pets or small children for example, it is important to find out which ones are toxic or poisonous, not so much to avoid them, but rather so that if you want to buy them, look for them. a suitable place.
This is our selection:
Aspidistra
La aspidistra, whose scientific name is Aspidistra elatior, is a herbaceous and rhizomatous plant that grows about 50 centimeters tall, and that it can remain in a pot throughout its life.
In addition, it does not need much attention, since drought resistant and good in dimly lit rooms.
Get yours.
Calathea crocata
Image – Wikimedia / Assianir
La Calathea crocata It is a very interesting plant when you have, for example, a bedroom in which there is light but not too much. It has beautiful dark green leaves on the upper side and lilac on the underside., and also produces orange flowers which sprout from the center of each rosette of leaves.
By experience, it is quite easy to care: moderate waterings so that it does not dry out, ensure that the environmental humidity is high by spraying its foliage from time to time, and a regular fertilizer in spring and summer will be enough for your plant to be perfect.
Tape
The tape, known by the name of bad mother, and by the scientist Chlorophytum comosum, it is a small herbaceous plant with green or variegated tapered leaves (green with white edges) 30-35 centimeters tall.
It is one of the most resistant and easy to care for, since requires little light and watering from time to time.
Want a? Buy it.
Dracaena marginata
Image – Wikimedia / Digigalos
The plant we know as dracena or dracaena marginata, and whose scientific name is Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia, it is a tropical shrub with one or more trunks that has green or green leaves with pink margins. When grown in the ground it can be up to 5 meters high, but in a pot it is very difficult to reach 2 meters.
In addition, it has a very slow growth, and You just have to put it in a room with light and water it from time to time so that it has a good development.
If you would like to have one, get it from here!.
Spatiphilian
The spatifilo, whose scientific name is Spathiphyllum wallisii, It is a herbaceous plant that reaches a height of about 30 centimeters at most. It has dark green leaves, a color that when blooming contrasts with the white of its inflorescences (what we confuse with flowers).
Its main problem in cultivation is that we think that you have to be very aware of it. And no. It does not withstand drought, but overwatering is fatal too. So, I do not advise watering it more than 3 times a week during the summer, and weekly the rest of the year.
do not be without your copy.
Poinsettia
La poinsettia or poinsettia is a very Christmas plant, but it is a shame to grow it as a seasonal plant since, in reality, it is a shrub capable of living many years. The trick is in place it in a room with light, away from drafts, and to ensure that the ambient humidity is high.
For that, containers of water can be placed around the pot, and other plants placed nearby. It is also highly recommended to fertilize it every week or ten days with one or two tablespoons (depending on whether the specimen is in a small pot, or in one of the 15-20 centimeters) of nitrofoska.
Likewise, it is important to say that the latex it contains is toxic, so when handling it you have to put on gloves, and better if they are made of rubber.
Monstera
Image – Flickr / Maja Dumat
The monstera is a plant that I like to affectionately call “monstrous”, and in fact if we pull the etymology we will see that “monstera” is a Latin word that means precisely that: monstrous. The most cultivated species is the Monstera delicious, known as Adam’s rib, which has deeply divided leaves, and with a size of up to 60-70 centimeters long.
The height is 20 meters, but only if it has a support to climb on and as long as it is on the ground; in a pot it is rare that it exceeds 5 meters, and even so it is easy to control its development by pruning. But be very careful: it is a toxic plant for children and pets.
Buy it from here!.
Living room palm tree
Image – Wikimedia / Pluume321
If you want to have a palm tree at home, you have to look for small species, such as Chamaedorea elegans. You do not have to be fooled: although many seedlings are sold in the same pot, in reality each one of them is independent of the others, since the living room palm only has one trunk (that is, it is unicaule). East reaches 2 meters in height, and its pinnate leaves are about a meter long.
To live you have to put it in a room with light, and water it about twice a week.
Get it.
Homies
El pothosthe aureum, It is the typical climber that is had indoors. But although it is very common, it is one of the most interesting since you can fasten its stems to door or window frames, or grow it as a hanging plant.
The only thing you have to keep in mind is that it needs light and moderate watering, since excess water rots its roots.
You can buy yours here!.
Trunk of Brazil
The trunk of Brazil o water stick, whose scientific name is Dracaena fragrans, It is a highly recommended shrubby plant to have a room that serves as an office, or in an interior patio with lots of light. It reaches a height of up to 6 meters, but do not worry, because in a pot, even if it reaches the ceiling, you have the option of pruning it (a little) so that it sprouts lower.
Yes, have it in a pot with holes in its base and with soil, not with water: it is not an aquatic plant. You have to water it from time to time, but overwatering can be fatal.
Want a? Buy it.
10 outdoor plants
Outdoor plants are those that, as their name suggests, are grown almost always and especially outdoors, be it in gardens, parks or on the streets of a town or city. But it is important to clarify that all, absolutely all the plants are outdoors, what happens is that there are some that, depending on the climate of the area, are better indoors.
There are many that are planted in the ground, but there are others that live very well in a pot. Let’s know their names and their main cares:
Tree of love
Image – Wikimedia / Batsv
El love tree It owes this peculiar name to the heart-shaped shape of its leaves, which provide very good shade in spring and summer. During spring, before its branches are hidden behind its foliage, a few small but numerous pink flowers sprout. Its scientific name is Cercis siliquastrum, and reaches a height of 15 meters.
What do you need? Sun. Lots of sun. Also some space, since your crown can measure about 3-4 meters. The land has to be fertile, and also have good water absorption and filtering capacity, since it fears waterlogging. It resists very well up to -10ºC, and high temperatures of up to 35-40ºC if you have water.
Get seeds.
Hackberry
Image – Wikimedia / Sordelli
How beautiful the hackberry is, if it is allowed to grow on its own! It is planted a lot in the streets, but it is also pruned too much. It is a deciduous tree whose scientific name is celtis australis, which reaches 25 meters in height, with a glass which provides cool shade in summer, able to withstand drought.
The best we can do is plant it in a garden as an isolated specimen, and just water it from time to time. Nothing more. It tolerates pruning very poorly. But yes, it resists up to -10ºC.
Myrtle
Image – Wikimedia / Krzysztof Golik
The myrtle is an evergreen tree whose scientific name is Luma apiculata. It receives other names, such as Chilean myrtle or palo colorado, and it is a plant that generally grows up to 5 meters in height, although it can reach 20 meters. It has a very characteristic bark, reddish in color that attracts a lot of attention.
It grows both in a -large- pot and in the ground, but If you are going to have it in your garden, you have to plant it at a distance of ten meters from where pipes pass, since its roots require a lot of space. Resists up to -7ºC.
Giant bird of paradise
Image – Wikimedia / Forest and Kim Starr
If you love starlets, the most rustic is the Strelitzia nicolai. It is also the largest, as it is an evergreen shrub up to 10 meters high. It grows in groups, so it is highly recommended to plant it in the ground, full sun.
It resists drought quite well, high temperatures of up to 40ºC, and even lows of up to -4ºC.
Get your seeds here!.
Star jasmine
Image – Flickr / Cyril Nelson
El star jasmine it is an evergreen shrubby plant whose maximum height is 10 meters. It is widely used as a climber, for example on balconies or lattices. Although it is not a true jasmine, it produces flowers very similar to these: that is, white, small and very aromatic.
His scientific name is Trachelospermum jasminoidesy it is undoubtedly an ideal plant to grow in small gardens or in pots, always in full sun. It resists frosts down to -7ºC, and tolerates pruning.
Lavender
There are many types of lavender, so we are not going to recommend one in particular if not all of them. Why? Because They are very rustic plants, resistant, that do not have pests, and that in fact help to repel them. They are interesting even to protect an area of the garden from mosquitoes.
Of course, keep in mind that you have to plant them in a sunny area, with soil or substrate that drains the water very well. They need very little irrigation, and they support up to -12ºC.
Here you can get seeds.
Parajubaea cocoides
Image – Wikimedia / Kahuroa
La Parajubaea cocoides It is the typical palm tree that you look for photos of on the Internet and it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but then you see it in person and… things change. It is a plant with an approximate height of 15 meters and a trunk diameter of up to 40 centimeters. It grows quite fast, but without becoming invasive (it is not like Washingtonia, for example, that where a seed falls there it germinates).
It needs sun to grow, and fertile soil but without the need for it to be very rich in organic matter. It resists drought, although it grows best if watered occasionally during the summer. Nor do weak frosts harm it, down to -4ºC.
Rosebush
It could not be missed. The rose bush, in all its varieties and cultivars, is a plant that looks great in any garden (perhaps a little less in one of succulents, but in the rest, you can always make a hole). Blooms for much of the year, producing flowers of good size. Some even have a wonderful, sweet scent.
It can be grown in a pot, planter or in the ground, both in full sun and in semi-shade. But you need a soil rich in organic matter, which is also light. Also, you have to prune it very often so that it continues to flourish. But for the rest, the rose bushes that are grown support up to -10ºC without problems.
Always alive
A crass plant, belonging to the genus Sempervivum. It does not grow more than 5, 6 centimeters in height, but produces many suckers. Thus, it is very interesting to grow it in pots that are wider than they are tall, or in rockeries, either in full sun if the climate is temperate / cold or in semi-shade.
It withstands drought very well, so you only have to water when the soil is completely dry. Supports up to -18ºC.
Get your copy.
Tulip
El tulip is a bulbous plant that blooms in spring and that remains asleep the rest of the year. When it is in flower, it does not exceed a foot in height, so it is perfect to grow in a pot, either with other bulbous or other small plants.
You only have to have it in a sunny area, and water it from time to time from winter until its flowers fade. Withstands weak frosts down to -7ºC. Of course, you have to know that it is a toxic plant for dogs and cats, especially the bulb.
Which of these indoor and outdoor plants did you like the most?
