Tips & Tricks for Adding Plants Into Your Home

The queen of plants herself is on the blog today! Ariel from Better Earth Gardens & Tropics is sharing all the tips and tricks for adding plants to your home, including a round up of my favourite indoor plants.

Better Earth Gardens is a family-owned and operated greenhouse and nursery located in Kelowna, BC. Ariel has been helping make my home EXTRA stunning with her green thumb for a while now, and is a true expert in this area. She is graciously sharing some of her wisdom today on the blog; I am also so excited to share all the beautiful spaces she brightened with indoor plants. P.S. Make sure to use the code FRAICHE15 for 15% off on their online shop or in-store if you live in the Okanagan!

Take it away Ariel!

Pictured: Olive Plant in Aged Terra Cotta Dish

What Is Plantscaping?

Interior Plantscaping is like landscaping … but inside! Plantscaping is important to guarantee healthy long living plants while also achieving a cohesive aesthetic for your home or space. Our team has over five years of plantscaping design under our belt as well as 20+ years of plant care and horticulture knowledge.  We have assisted thousands of people in taking home the right plant that will jive and thrive in their space! We also offer design, installation and maintenance of tropical indoor plants customized to YOU! Learn more about that here.

Pictured: For Tori’s master bathroom, we added simple and elegant mini roses in an assortment of planters like this small pot (SO CUTE) and this textured white pot. 

How to Pick Indoor Plants

Lighting, Lighting, Lighting!  Tori’s home has a distinct style, and with no shortage of windows, the plants needed to work with the light sources but also the traditional aesthetic. The plants that go with the style of her home will not all thrive in low light. For the spaces that didn’t have the best lighting, we suggested faux plants (her favourites are the faux olive trees!).

A few tips when shopping for indoor plants:

1. Pay attention to the lighting each spot or room gets. For example, does the sun shine directly at a certain point of the day? In a room with blinds or curtains, do they normally stay closed or are they always open?
2. Is there a vent above or below where you would like to have a plant? Can you close that vent? Another thing to consider is a cold or hot air draft from a doorway or window. Avoid these spaces where possible.
3. Ask your local expert.  When you visit a small business plant shop we can almost guarantee there will be an expert in there that can guide you on the requirements of a given plant. I bet they might even have that same plant at home!

Pictured: Tori used an existing faux olive of hers and paired it with our stunning Fett Basket Planter with preserved sheet moss (available in store only). 

Health Benefits of Indoor Plants

There are so many great things about having plants indoors; one of the best things is that they give off oxygen and purify the air. Some of the most purifying plants are Snake Plants (Sansevieria), Ferns (pictured below), Ficus, Pot Mums (Chrysanthemum), Dragon Tree, Lady Finger Palm, and so many more!  Not all plants purify to the same extent, which is something a lot of people don’t know.  Again, ask your local garden centre if in doubt!

Picking Pots & Planters

Since we have been working with Tori for the past few years we have really learnt her style so it has been easy to pick up on items (planters for instance) that she might like. We like to look at the whole aesthetic of a home or a person’s style when choosing something like a planter. Although it may seem simple, it has a HUGE impact. I look at a planter as the foundation (lots of them are heavy and made of cement so this makes complete sense haha), and everything good starts with the right foundation! You may have decided on a plant, but what is going to pull the whole look together is the planter.

Although the look of the planter is important, keep in mind that you want your planter to have proper drainage. You may find that some planters don’t have a drainage hole; if that is the case you will have to create one with a substance like pumice rock (available in store) or our personal favourite, the UPS-A-DAISY (also available in store).

Pictured: In Tori’s office we went with two classic Italian Terra Cotta Planters for these cute Myrtle Plants.

How to Keep Indoor Plants Alive

The key to keeping a plant alive is giving it the environment and care they need, but the main thing is don’t over-water! Did you know that most plants will come back from a wilt (depending on the severity) but 99.9% of the time a plants has been overwatered they will not come back to their previous healthy state. As part of our Custom Plantscaping Services we help you with understanding proper maintenance for each plant as well. Giving you some peace of mind, knowing you know how to properly care for your plants.

Pictured: Faux Olive Trees in Aged Terra Cotta Pots on Tori’s kitchen island. 

Indoor Plant Watering Tips 

Our top tricks for taking care of plants are:

1. If you are unsure of when to water – our rule of thumb is to stick your finger two inches into the soil. If it is dry at the tip of your finger then you should water.
2. Keep your plants away from any type of drafts or vents. Vents will dry your plants out very quickly. Most indoor plants like humidity, so this will not do them well. Drafts, especially cold ones, can upset your plants. With winter on its way (dare I say that) it’s not a bad idea to slide your plants a few inches or feet away from any drafts that may wisp in from doors or windows.

Better Earth Gardens

You can learn more about our Kelowna shop home decor online, get inspired through our Instagram and Facebook. Some of Tori’s favourites are these adorable Full Hearts Prayer Beads  and this Hand Woven Tray. 

Use code FRAICHE15 online for 15% off your purchase from Sept. 18 until October 6th!

 

Thank you to Better Earth Gardens for this blog post.