You don’t have to have access to an outdoor space to enjoy the benefits of gardening in your home. Indoor gardening is perfect if you live in the city or have limited or no outdoor space, as plants don’t need to take up much room and you might be surprised at what you can actually accommodate. Indoor gardening can also be a great alternative to growing plants outdoors during the winter months, allowing you to enjoy home-grown produce all year round, or to cultivate plants that can kick-start your outdoor summer garden.
Gardening indoors can be a very rewarding experience, as well as having many excellent benefits. Below we take a look at some of the perks of indoor plants and how you can take advantage of them.
You can easily reap the benefits of home-grown fruit and vegetables by growing them in the comfort of your own home. You don’t need a greenhouse or a designated vegetable patch to be able to enjoy vine-fresh tomatoes or crunchy carrots, as there are a wide variety of fruit and vegetables that can be grown on a sunny window-sill without much preparation.
Growing your own produce indoors will allow you to do so all year round, so you can have access to healthy and organic nutrition without being a slave to the weather. Not only will this ensure you are getting a balanced and healthy diet, but you will save money when it comes to doing your weekly shop. In addition, you know exactly where your fruit and vegetables have come from and what they have been exposed to, so there will be no need to worry about harmful pesticides or genetically-modified supermarket stock.
Readers Digest have a great article on the best vegetables to grow indoors.
One of the best ways to improve the décor of your home is to include some attractive house plants. Adding a touch of the outdoors to a room can instil a natural calmness that will not only look great, but will improve your breathing (see below) and convey a soothing energy.
Green plants can be a great space-filler, having the ability to occupy any spare corner without being an overwhelming presence. They are often low-maintenance and some species do not require a great deal of natural light, giving you extra flexibility in positioning them.
Flowering plants make for excellent decorative features, and with the huge diversity of shapes, colours, and sizes available, there is guaranteed to be a species that will enhance the look of your home. As well as being easy on the eye, your flowering houseplants often have a fragrant scent that will reduce the need for chemical-filled air fresheners.
Whilst some exotic species of flowering plant can be trickier to care for, there are many that are low maintenance and incredibly beautiful. One of these is the orchid, whose alluring and mysterious looks have made it a very popular choice as a houseplant. They can be very easy to care for once you have learned the basics, although each species can sometimes have different requirements. Wyevale Garden Centres have produced a detailed guide to caring for your orchid, which breaks down the care needed for each variety.
One of the main advantages of growing plants in your home are the benefits they can bring to your health. Plants make great partners for people during photosynthesis: as you breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, they are absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere. This makes them a valuable oxygen booster for your home.
They are also proven air cleaners, with their roots and leaves having the ability to remove toxic vapours, which are harmful to humans, from the air. This was first proven in an extensive NASA study in 1984 to determine whether plants could improve the quality of air indoors. You can even view the most effective house plants for improving air quality, as well as a breakdown of what substances each species excels in filtering, in a handy infographic from Love the Garden.
Go forth and grow
The practical benefits of adding some greenery to your home are vast, and extend far beyond those discussed in this article. The experience of gardening in your home can be extremely valuable and once you have got the hang of it, you will probably never look back. So, embrace your green side and get planting.
Here’s another great read, 35 of the Best Indoor Plants For Your Home!