Get ready to cocoon
SUNROOM: PLANTS TO ADD SOMETHING SPECIAL TO YOUR INDOOR LIVING SPACE
The chilly mornings have prompted me to search out the sunny areas in the home, where all of us (dogs and cats included) can cocoon this coming winter. Why not make a winter sunroom, or a sun corner, with everything to hand, like your most comfy chair, books, music, and plants, of course, to bring it alive? Sunshine is an immediate mood lifter and in winter it is even more important for our wellbeing because vitamin D strengthens the immune system even if it is only for 10 to 15 minutes a day. Sunshine fights off depression and reduces stress because it boosts the levels of serotonin in the body. Combine that with the benefits of what plants do to improve air quality, adding oxygen and removing household
toxins. Not to mention their beautifying effect, especially as the garden outside enters its winter dormancy.
Fanciful foliage
Suitable houseplants for a sunroom are those that hail from the tropics and like warm, humid rooms, with bright indirect light but not sun on their leaves. These include deep green leafy varieties like the mini Monstera Adonsii, Ficus benjamina and other Ficus varieties, Philodendron Shangri-la, Areca palm and ferns (Maidenhair).
Monstera Adonsii is a smaller, and slower growing version of the delicious monster. Although smaller in size, it certainly makes a big impact. Use it in a hanging basket, to trail up a staircase or just as a feature in a pot. Water once a week. Do not let the soil dry out but keep its slightly moist.
Blooming colour
Colour always warms up a room, especially flowering plants. Daffodils, lavender and Zantedeschia would be my pick for the sunroom as they can all take filtered sunshine.
Zantedeschia (also called Calla lilies) have petite trumpet-shaped flowers and their colours are vibrant; from deep red (almost black) to salmon, orange, yellow and dusky pink. They like bright light and can take early morning sun. Water the plants as soon as the soil’s surface is slightly dry. Normal room humidity is acceptable.
Another leafy plant with beautiful colouring is the rose-painted Calathea (Roseopicta). The variegated leaves of the young plant have pink stripes and a pinkish midrib that mature to white.
The leaves fold slightly in the evening and open the next morning.
Quaint and quirky
Some plants are just happy plants, and one such is the Polka dot plant. It is a fancy leaf begonia with white polka dots on its olive green leaves, and a warm-reddish brown underleaf. Display Polka dot in any area that receives bright indirect sunlight. It even does well with less light. It will thrive with watering once every two weeks in winter, depending on how warm the room is.
“String of Pearls” (Senecio rowleyanus) has a designer look, and its round, fleshy leaves look almost artificial. It is one of those plants that you sidle up to and surreptitiously feel to see if it is plastic.
Its most important requirement is plenty of bright light or direct sunlight, up to six hours a day, in a sunny room, window or sheltered patio. Let the soil dry out moderately before watering.