I have a an obsession… and that obsession is with plants. The word ‘obsession’ has a negative connotation, I can assure you this is a healthy obsession and one I’d like to share with you.
What started with just a single plant purchased from Ikea over time, with some love and care grew into a jungle. House plant’s have become like everything else, a bit of a trend and because of their growing popularity you can now buy an abundance of different plants from all over the world right in your local shop.
They’re nice to look at and great for the mind if you look after them right. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve killed loads over the years by over watering, under watering or leaving them out to burn in the sun, but once you get the basics right, trust me, its easy to look after them.
House plants (as cheesy as it sounds) turns your house into a home and I want to show you 5 of the most stunning (trendiest) and easiest plants to grow in your home (and where to buy them).
1.The Almighty MONSTERA DELICIOSA (Swiss Cheese plant)
Monstera Deliciosa
The Monstera Deliciosa otherwise known as the Swiss cheese plant is what EVERYBODY wants right now… and there’s good reason for it. It’s super good looking, and just like the name, it’s a little bit of a monster. This plant is native to the South Mexico and it grow’s wildly and fast. The Monstera is found in the jungle and therefore can essentially fight for light, it doesn’t need to be in the brightest place in your house and can even grow well in more shaded areas. Direct sunlight will burn its huge leaves but essentially this plant looks after itself. Water once a week in a well drained plant pot and watch this plant grow literally week- by-week in all directions. By far my favourite plant in the house. So… these come in at around £40 upwards, however I bought mine for £10 in a really small and unknown shop called Morrisons. Yep, that’s right, the huge chain supermarket was selling these at £10 a pop (mine started with three leaves at the time) and so I bought two of them!
P.s. The Monstera like’s a good old facial, by that I mean a misting of its leaves every now and then. You can buy a plant misting spray on amazon for £3-5. Easy!
2. Devils Ivy (Epipremnum aureum)
The Devil’s Ivy, another self-sufficient plant and one of the most popular because it barely needs any attention at all. There’s a reason its called the Devil’s Ivy and its pretty much because you can’t really kill it. This will grow almost anywhere in your home and requires watering every 2-3 weeks. Under-watering really isn’t a problem for this plant. My tip is to position it high and watch it trail down week after week with new leaves, a real statement piece in any home that grow’s like crazy. I picked this up in Ikea for £7.
3. Monkey Leaf Monstera (Monstera Adansonii)
The monkey leaf plant is beautiful! It’s part of the Monstera family and has some of the best leaves I’ve ever seen. Again, this plant is in my list because guess what, it looks great, grows like crazy and doesn’t need much care or attention. So this monkey likes to live in low to bright-light areas (in my house it’s placed where it gets the afternoon sunshine near (not on) a southern facing window. Too much sun and you’ll burn the leaves. In terms of watering, it like’s a weekly water and you’ll notice when it wants a drink as its leaves will start to crisp slightly. It also loves a good misting every now and then. I found this little guy in B&Q for £6 and like the ivy he’s starting to trail.
4. Chinese Money Plant (Pilea peperomioides)
The Chinese Money plant is a little bit retro but that’s why I like it. It has leaves that are like little pancakes ( another thing I love) and is native to… you guessed it, the southern part of China. This plant loves it in light areas but again not in direct sunlight as you’ll burn those little pancakes and nobody wants that. A little bit more tricky but still very easy when it comes to watering. A weekly water should do fine, but the soil doesn’t want to completely dry out or be too wet so just remember to pop a sprinkle in once a week. Other than that… just leave it alone and watch it flip and toss more pancakes. I’ve seen these can grow absolutely enormous believe it or not and can grow little pancake baby’s as off-shoots, mines actually started doing that now. Morrisons again and for £5… BARGAIN!
5. The Money Plant/Jade Plant (Crassula ovata)
The easiest plant of them all… The Money Plant/Jade plant. Now mine started as one little shoot and over the past 3-4 years has developed in to some-what of a tree and believe me, I just forget about this guy. They are succulents and so need watering every 3-4 weeks, but don’t worry if you forget, I always do…these can hold up without been watered for ages. Apparently these do need full sun to grow properly however mine has been sat on top of those drawers without direct sunlight and is growing insane. That been said, follow the rules and give them more light than I’m giving mine. That is literally all you have to do with it. Leave it, water it if you want… but don’t expect huge growth in short time, these take years to grow but are worth it in the end. – I actually stole this from somewhere I used work so it was FREE! ( but you can get them literally everywhere for about £5).
I hope that has helped with your decision making process when you want to turn your house into a little jungle just like mine!
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