Commons Ground: Indoor Green Thumb, Made Easy

Plants offer an inviting, friendly touch to any apartment home. While maintaining healthy green plants may sound like a pain, many plants thrive indoors—and are easy to sustain. Check out some vegetation that will add vibrant and natural warmth to your home with a minimum of fuss.

Peperomia, a.k.a. the “Radiator Plant”

Any plant that is described as “easy care” is a great place to start your apartment home ‘garden.’ That starts with Peperomia, a small houseplant defined by waxy, textured leaves. This species adds a pop of color to any room but better still, grows with a minimum of light exposure and tolerates temperatures between 60 and 75 degrees. As for watering, the plant requires just one wetting per week. There is only one caveat about Peperomia – the plant is poisonous for cats and dogs, if eaten, so they must be kept out of reach from curious pets.

Scented Geraniums
Thanks to scented geraniums, residents don’t need aerosol spray or air fresheners to enjoy a fragrant smelling home. These beauties can be found in a variety of delicious scents like apple and chocolate mint. They are great to look at as well, as the geraniums grow small, vibrantly colored flowers. Scented Geraniums come in different sizes, so be sure to ask for one that fits on a countertop or windowsill. These plants do need four hours of sun on average, but only need to be watered two times per week.

Fiddleleaf Fig

Saying fiddleleaf fig five times fast is a real feat but making a green statement to brighten up a room is easy-peasy with this tall, leafy plant. The “ficus lyrata,” know for a twisted trunk, is a popular houseplant because it tolerates low levels of light and requires minimal watering (every third day.) The only challenge is the plant’s size, which requires occasional pruning.

African Violet

The African Violet is a gorgeous plant that is easy to maintain. The plant blooms and thrives in filtered sunlight as much as bright light, so any window sill will do. When it comes to water, touch the soil and if it is moist, there’s no need to water. Usually watering every other day does the trick.  

Garlic Greens

How to grow garlic in five easy steps. 1) Buy garlic bulbs from the local grocery store. 2) Buy small plant pot with drainage holes and small bag of potting soil. 3) Fill pot with soil until it’s almost full. 4) Peel bulbs into cloves and push into dirt until pointy end sits just above the soil line. 5) Place in sunny spot and water every other day. One note: cloves will sprout in short order, but harvesting new cloves requires patience, up to six months … plenty of time to find a great recipe for spring harvest!

All of these plants and many more require occasional maintenance beyond sun and water such as fertilization and pruning. For more info, check out the links below.

http://www.bhg.com/gardening/houseplants/care/

http://www.guide-to-houseplants.com/house-plant-care-tips.html

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/houseplants.html