15 HOUSE PLANTS ANYONE CAN CARE FOR

MY apartment is full of plants, and I get no direct sunlight from Sep thru April...but I have plants that I have kept over the years, put them on my balcony in warm weather and bring them in when it gets cold. My geraniums are over 30 years old, my corn plant and snake plants are over 20 years old and my snake plants bloom every couple of years. I have spider plants, shamrocks, a pineapple plant (stuck the top of a pineapple in a pot of dirt and it took!), cactai, and a few other things....I enjoy my indoor and balcony apartment garden. Here are some suggestions for indoor gardening.

This should be an interesting blog for those who have no green thumb, yet long for plants to adorn your home or apartment. There is a joke in our family that if I want a plant killed I give it to my daughter-in-law. Notice I said joke, for as our family stories go, they tend to gather personal bents (according to who is telling the story) until the original story is not as funny as the new one.
Who has time to fuss over a lot of house plants, you say? “Then by all means give it to me in plain English.” Remember these are only suggestions, therefore choose 5-6 and see how it goes before adding more.

1. How about the Peace Lily? The Peace Lily has commonly been referred to as the closet plant due to its ability to live without direct light. Watch for discoloration of leaves. This may mean it is getting too much light. Though lighting is an easy care, it does require lots of water. This plant needs plenty to drink.
2. The Mother-in-law’s tongue is one I grew up knowing. It for sure is a conversation piece, but in defense of Mother-in-law’s, it is also called a Snake Plant. Hereinafter I will refer to it as the Snake Plant. It needs moderate watering and it will tolerate low lighting as well. It is a very tough plant to add to others for the garden effect of your room.
3. The Ficus Tree is very adaptable to the indoors. With its leathery foliage which is dark green in color and covers the weeping branches, the Ficus Tree needs consistent moisture or otherwise you will experience the loss of leaves.
4. Aloe – Aloe is not just a popular ingredient in hand lotion, it’s a common houseplant as well. Easy to take care of, aloe is a succulent plant with thick, juicy leaves. A medicinal plant, aloe can be used to treat superficial burns. Simply break off a leaf, and squeeze the Aloe Vera gel onto the afflicted area. They do need bright indirect light however.
5. Philodendron is another easy to care for plant and a handsome one to boot. It can be set just about anywhere as long as it isn’t in direct light. As for watering, the type soil it is planted in should be a soil that drains well. The Philodendron should not set in soggy soil.
6. Virtually impossible to kill is the Cactus. After you purchase your Cactus plant, change the soil even if you place it back in the same container. In the right soil, it will need no fertilizer at all. Also it needs very little water. Never use tap water. Use collected rainwater instead. This is a house plant that will love direct light. NOTE: A Cactus does not necessarily mean it has the awful prickly needles. There are other varieties that do great inside in containers.
7. Ivy Plants. There are many variations of the ivy plant, but the most common ivy houseplants have bird’s foot leaves and are probably Glacier and Irish Lace. Don’t over water an ivy plant, and watch it thrive in low light.
8. Spider Plant is often seen in front windows. It is known to reproduce baby spider plants, and thrives with little water and a little sun. The baby spider shoots can be picked off and repotted for additional plants.
9. Wax plant – Along with the ivies and spider plants, the wax plant does well in a hanging basket. Wax plants need a little more direct sunlight than do the ivy and spider plants, but otherwise are easy to care for.
10. Wandering Jew – This could easily be my favorite because of the pictures it evokes. While this house plant does best in moist soil, it is also an easy plant to grow in a bowl of water as well. My favorite way is in a hanging basket so the branches eventually cover the basket growing toward the ground. It is purple in color.
11. Bamboo Plants – now here is a novel idea. Plant in a bowl of water. Talking about difficult to kill, here is one I’ll give my daughter-in-law. All jokes aside, this plant housed in a glass bowl, (Ceramic bowl is not suggested) needs water refreshed on occasion. These also work great outdoors in soil as a border plant.
12. Let’s turn our eyes toward flowering plants. Even though going green is in, I enjoy color whether outside or in. The African Violet is a native of Africa where the tropical temperatures create a beautiful flower. Planted in a tea cup type dish and set on the end table where they will receive bright, yet not direct, light it should do well. Water from below; meaning allow the container to set in a saucer of water, thus it pulls the water up through the roots.
13. What a lovely powerful smell the Jasmine has. It produces white flowers and is great for windowsills with bright light. Keep soil moist but not wet making sure it doesn’t dry out between watering.
14. Oxalis is associated with St. Patrick’s Day in March as one of the varieties is called the Shamrock. The stem has a three pronged leaflets that grow from a tiny bulb; the leaves close up at night; flowers almost constantly in shades of yellow, white and pink. Thrives best in a sunny window with moist soil.
15. Again here is one of my favorites, the Geranium. I have these planted outside in large pots. They also will thrive all winter, blooming as well as when on the patio. They do need sun, and moist soil, just not too wet. Allow the top two inches of the soil to get dry before watering again. In the spring after all fear of frost, they can go back out side.

For sure, these are not all of the easy care plants. However this will give you a start. Happy house gardening.