Time for a rosier outlook
ROBUST COLOUR : WAY TO SOFTEN LOCKDOWN BLUES
Deep rose-red blooms warm up a room, making a strong statement.
Pink may not be the first or even second choice when it comes to decorating a home, but it can make an unexpected statement when used sparingly, in the form of scatter cushions, a drapery cuff and, of course, pink indoor flowering plants.
“Pink is a lively colour and different shades of pink, whether it is cool cyclamen pink, hot pink mini-roses, or ruffled salmon-pink begonia, give off different vibes,” says Leonie Coulson, of Plantimex Indoor Plants.
Soft pink is delicate, nurturing, and tranquil, while brighter shades of salmon or cerise are stronger and masculine. The use of pink certainly helps to shift to a rosier outlook that helps to soften those lockdown blues. Pink flowering plants for decorating the home in winter include cyclamen, orchids, begonias, roses and calandiva. All like bright, indirect light and moderate watering (once a week at most) which makes them easy-tocare for plants that flower for two to three months. By the time summer arrives, they can be replaced with a different coloured flowering plants or cooling foliage plants. Cyclamen flowers range in shades from soft pink to luminous lipstick pink and many have a light fragrance.
Leaves can be heart shaped, frilled, and round with silvery markings that contrast beautifully with the butterfly-like flowers. The softer pink shades tone in particularly well with natural colour schemes and earthy textures, even with other neutrals like charcoal, cream and white.
Besides making a feature of them on kitchen counters, bedside tables or in the living area, consider displaying them in hanging baskets at eye level to appreciate the beauty of the flowers. Removing dead flowers encourages them to produce more flowers and extends the flowering period.
Pot roses make up for the lack of rose blooms in the garden, with miniature blooms that are just as perfect as their larger garden counterparts. Deep rose-red blooms warm up a room, making a strong statement that steers clear of any possible feminine
clichés of sweet floral patterns and ruffles. This robust colour works well in a richly textured interior, where it may pick up the colour in a rug, or the shade of a lamp.
Each pot contains three to four mini-roses, which is why a single pot is so full of blooms and buds. Having been grown in warm, light controlled greenhouses, they are perfectly acclimatised for displaying close to a windowsill or on the patio.
When the flowers are over, cut off the stems to 5cm above the ground, and when new shoots are visible, feed with a liquid fertiliser. Plants come into flower quicker if kept outside in the sun and watered every day.
Salmon just slips into the pink category, and according to New York interior designer, Caleb Anderson, using salmon or peachpink tones in a masculine room is “captivating and smart…that is hardly subtle, but it has a decadent vibrancy that looks handsome with darker greys and blacks”.
Salmon coloured tuberous begonias are particularly handsome and show off well against the large dark green leaves. Plants thrive in a warm, bright room indoors.
Pop the plant into a beautiful container and enjoy it as an indoor flower arrangement. Keep the soil moist (not soggy). Depending on the temperature, half a cup of water a week in winter should suffice. Avoid wetting the leaves. Feed with a liquid fertiliser once a month and remove dead flowers.
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