I absolutely love plants. To me, they symbolize life, rebirth and renewal. Today I'm sharing how to incorporate plants into your home décor to make it and you feel more alive.
To help me with this topic, my good friends Ang & Jeff Zomer of Zomer’s Greenhouses, stepped up to provide me with all the plant care information (listed at the bottom of this post) so that once you’ve decorated your home with plants, you’ll know exactly how to keep them alive.
Alright, let’s get to it. Here are…..
5 Tips for Adding Life to Your Home by Decorating with Houseplants
1. CHECK YOUR LIGHT
First and foremost you need to determine what kind of plants will work best in your home based on the amount of light each area receives. Some plants require loads of light, some thrive in darker areas and some need a moderate amount light. You can use all kinds of plants throughout your space, just be sure you place them mindfully based on their light requirements. Here are some houseplants that are currently in season and a handy little chart to reference the care of them.
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2. CREATE BALANCE
Plants are actually my favourite way to add décor to a home. Not only do they add life, but they’re also beautiful, inexpensive and work perfectly with any design style. When using plants throughout your home, make sure to place them thoughtfully around the room so that your eye travels from plant to plant creating movement and balance.
For example, note the colours in the room below. See how the left side of the photo feels heavier because of the navy chairs? Note how blue is present in the planters and pillows on the right side of the room to balance the use of colour. Now, look at the plants. See how some plants are placed high, some low, some left and some right? Note how there are more plants on the right of the design. Placing more plants on the right side of the design further helps to balance the heaviness of the left side of the room without being forced to use more blue in the space.
Design by Orangetree Interiors
3. CONSIDER VARIETY
When styling any space you always want to use a variety of shapes, sizes, colours and textures to achieve an interesting design. The same is true for houseplants. Use various heights, shapes and sizes of plants to fill in areas where other décor might not make as much sense. For example, this kitchen sink area would be pretty plain without the addition of the two plants to the left and right of the sink. A kitchen is one place where the décor you choose should definitely be practical. Think decorative serving bowls, dough bowls, canisters, platters, etc. Then liven up the space with fresh herbs or an aloe vera plant in the case of a burn or cut finger. And to keep it interesting, without taking away from the functional space, make sure to use a variety of houseplants.
Styled by Orangetree Interiors
4. ADD STYLE
A great way to really make your plants impact the space in your home is to put them in a stylish vessel. You can use hanging baskets, plant boxes, crocks, beautiful bowls or plant stands to help each plant make a statement and add style to your space.
5. BE INTENTIONAL
Plants can be placed pretty much anywhere in your home – the key is to be intentional about where you place them. As already mentioned, keep in mind how much light is needed for your house plant before you decide where to place it. This might require that you move some of your other decorative pieces around to accommodate the lighting needs of your plants. Some of my favourite places to use plants are on coffee tables, side tables, bookshelves, mantles, console tables, countertops, desks, window ledges, nightstands, empty corners and even on the back of toilets. You can literally place them anywhere. I also like to use plants when I have two pieces of décor where there is quite a difference in height between them. I use a plant to bridge the gap.
Of course, there are definitely other ways to use plants in your decor, but these are my top 5 tips for decorating your home with houseplants. If you have any tips that I missed, I’d love to hear them. Be sure to leave a comment below.
FULL PLANT CARE DETAILS
Montgomery Ivy - All types of ivy are good air cleaners. They are a fairly low-maintenance plant. Montgomery Ivy needs moderate light. Note that variegated varieties may fade in low light. Ivy plants will get dusty over time. It’s a good idea to put them in the shower occasionally to rinse the dust off and reduce the chance of getting pests. It’s also a good idea to fertilize once a month in the summer and fall with a houseplant fertilizer. Do not fertilize in the winter, as this is their dormant period. Water when the soil is just dry to the touch.
Pothos - Pothos is one of the best house plant options if you don’t have a lot of light. Variegated varieties may revert to green in low light situations, but this is not a problem. They’re also great air cleaners. Pothos plants don’t like to be wet. It’s best to let the soil dry out between waterings. Black spots on the leaves indicate over-watering. Dry, brown edges means this house plant has dried out too much. You can cut back runners to keep your pothos full, or let the runners grow long.
Spider plant - The spider plant is one of the easiest plants to grow. It can be grown in a wide variety of conditions (eg. low, moderate and bright light). The only real issue you see from this house plant is the potential of brown tips. Brown tips can be caused by fluoride in the water. If your spider plant experiences brown tips, try watering with distilled water or rain water. Spider plants prefer to dry out between watering, so be sure not to over-water them. Make sure your pot has a hole in the bottom to allow for drainage. Spider plants like to be pot-bound (tight in their pot). Do not re-pot them until the roots are highly visible and your plant becomes hard to water. Spider plants are great air purifiers. Spider plants will eventually produce babies or spiderettes. You can remove them or leave them on your plant. Babies can be planted in soil to make new houseplants.
Succulents- Succulents need about 3-6 hours of sunlight a day. In bright light situations, it’s important to rotate your succulents periodically so that the same side is not always facing the sun. Succulents don’t need much fertilizer. You can feed them lightly in the summer, but you should be careful not to over-fertilize. Make sure soil is very dry before watering. Succulents will need less water in the fall and winter. A drainage hole at the bottom of the pot will help avoid your succulents from becoming too wet.
Aloe Vera - Aloe Vera is in the succulent family as well. It needs plenty of light and infrequent watering. It is a very low maintenance house plant that is also handy to have around to care for cuts, burns and other skin irritations. Make sure soil on your aloe vera plant dries out completely before watering. The most common mistake is to over-water. This house plant also needs a drainage hole at the bottom of its planter to prevent it from becoming too wet. Note that aloe plants can get very top-heavy. You may need to stake this plant to give it support if this happens. Aloe vera is very high on the list of air-cleaning plants. Fertilize once a month during the growing season (April to September) with 15-30-15 fertilizer.
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Happy decorating!
Val Malnar
Principal Designer | Orangetree Interiors
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