COLUMNISTs favourites
We asked some of our columnists to tell us which houseplant was their favourite.
“My favourite houseplant has to be my Schlumbergera, the Christmas Cactus. Whilst working at Greenbank Garden a visitor brought in her rather sad looking Christmas Cactus and asked if I could help revive it. Together we took cuttings of the plant and repotted the sickly looking parent. A few weeks later the visitor returned with a few pots of very healthy looking plants and gifted me three. Four years on, the plants are thriving and I am always reminded of the generosity of gardeners in sharing favourite plants with one another every time I look at it. And at this time of year, who doesn’t love the cascade of pink flowers the plant produces?”
“My favourite houseplant is the Purple Shamrock, Oxalis Triangularis. I’ve had it for a few years on my kitchen windowsill as it likes a warm, sunny spot. It ticks all the boxes for me: it’s low maintenance, has pretty pink flowers throughout the summer, and you can’t beat the foliage - both the shape and the depth of colour. Its leaves remind me of a butterfly’s wings, I love how they close at night, signalling the end of the day. All in all, the perfect houseplant!”
“My favourite houseplant is the Peace Lily, Spathiphyllum wallisii, I’ve got 5 of them dotted around the house. Not only is it a great air purifier, the glossy foliage is lush, and it flowers with the most gorgeous white flowers. It’s a great plant for beginner houseplant enthusiasts as it tells you when it wants watered: the leaves literally droop!”
“Spider plants are my favourite houseplant because they make babies that you can plant on and gift as presents to others. A gift that keeps on giving.”
“My favourite houseplant is mother-in-law’s tongue, Sansevieria. The reason I like it is firstly, because it’s a really structural plant, it looks amazing and sets off a room. The other reason is that it absolutely thrives on neglect, only needing watered once a month so it’s perfect to be left on its own, you can even go away on holiday and not have to worry about it!”
“My favourite houseplant is Scindapsus Pictus, the Silver Pothos. The silver markings to the foliage makes this an extremely versatile plant for interior design. Alongside this, it is easy to maintain: a bright location out of direct light and a water when the top inch of soil has dried, will keep this plant and its gorgeous hanging foliage looking rich and striking in any room!”
“I only have one houseplant, it’s an Aloe Vera my mother-in-law gave me as a gift. I like it as I completely neglect it and it still looks fine, it’s also good for small burns. I’m not good with houseplants - embarrassingly for a gardener I’m the kiss of death to them."
“My favourite houseplant is a pot of Frangipani, Plumeria, which my friend gave me two years ago. It is easy to care for, just water once a week and keep it by the windowsill to get some sunshine. In winter, it loses its leaves but they come back at the end of spring. When it flowers, the flowers are so fragrant and beautiful. This plant because it reminds me of home, Indonesia.”
“My favourite house plant is a Satin Pathos, Scindapsus pictus. It’s not because I have a thing for trailing plants, it’s that one single plant which is very special to us as it was sent to us by two YouTube viewers as a thank you after watching our gardening videos. It lives in the bathroom, climbing a moss pole and loving it there, so much so that there are cuttings from that plant in various other places throughout the house. It has stunning foliage with deep green leaves and silver flecks which makes it pretty special.”