SUSIE’S GARDEN

What are the easiest houseplants to grow? Susie takes us back to her enthusiastic early days of plant propagation…

When I was ten, I bought a plant of Kalanchoe at a jumble sale. Known as mother of thousands, it produces numerous tiny plantlets on the edges of its leaves. I loved how easy it was to make new plants by just detaching them and laying them on the surface of compost to grow.

I then moved on to spider plants which also multiply easily too! It’s a great way to get children interested in growing things. Studies show that houseplants reduce stress levels, improve concentration and mood and they’ve grown hugely in popularity in recent years.

I’m really keen on succulents because of their form and the interesting symmetrical patterns made by their rosettes of leaves. My favourites are drought resistant echeverias, which range in colour from green to silver. One called ‘Lipstick’ even has red edges to its leaves. I plant them in a very gritty compost and only water them when the soil has completely dried out.

The other succulents I grow are aeoniums for their dramatic black-purple sculptural leaves. Leaf colour is also amazing in coleus, a very easy plant to grow or to take cuttings from, and one that likes moist compost. For flower colour you can grow pretty cyclamen – give them light but not direct sunlight – and streptocarpus, perfect for a shady conservatory.

When the weather turns colder, I bring tender plants into the house. Having had a summer outside, they become houseplants, our windowsills crowded with succulents and the air delightfully scented by cherry pie plants. You can do the same with pelargoniums; these are best cut back and kept somewhere frost-free but with very good light until next spring.