Expert Tips: How to Display & Style Indoor Plants
Indoor plants are a fabulous way to liven up your home – here, a pair of experts share their top styling tips
Georgia Madden
6 October 2020
Stylist Alana Langan and her co-founder at Ivy Muse Botanical Emporium, Jacqui Vidal, reveal how to style your indoor plants like a pro.
What do indoor plants add to a space?
Plants add softness, warmth and remind us of nature, which in turn makes us happy. They’re a budget-friendly way to liven up our homes and create a sanctuary for us to retreat to.
Here’s how you can accessorise with plants
Plants add softness, warmth and remind us of nature, which in turn makes us happy. They’re a budget-friendly way to liven up our homes and create a sanctuary for us to retreat to.
Here’s how you can accessorise with plants
Image: Ivy Muse for Dulux
Can I create my own pots?
You don’t have to apply paint to create an eye-catching display; a collection of pots and vessels with interesting shapes and of different heights can look fabulous when displayed with greenery.
Another idea is to propagate plants from those you already own and simply add the cuttings to glass jars for a budget-friendly yet effective green display.
Find a landscape architect to design your outdoor garden
Can I create my own pots?
You don’t have to apply paint to create an eye-catching display; a collection of pots and vessels with interesting shapes and of different heights can look fabulous when displayed with greenery.
Another idea is to propagate plants from those you already own and simply add the cuttings to glass jars for a budget-friendly yet effective green display.
Find a landscape architect to design your outdoor garden
How many is too many plants in a room?
Just like styling with furniture and objects in a space, it pays to take a considered approach to displaying your plants, otherwise the effect can be haphazard and somewhat unsettling.
Just like styling with furniture and objects in a space, it pays to take a considered approach to displaying your plants, otherwise the effect can be haphazard and somewhat unsettling.
If there are too many things happening in a room, it can be hard for your eyes to settle on any one thing at a time. Take the time to think about displaying your plants and you’ll create a more restful, relaxing space.
These 5 plants are best suited for Indian homes
These 5 plants are best suited for Indian homes
What are some of your favourite indoor plants?
Devil’s ivy (Epipremnum aureum)
Hardy, low maintenance, and easy on the eye with its climbing and trailing heart-shaped leaves. Devil’s ivy looks best hanging from shelves or in a plant hanger suspended from the ceiling or wall.
Philodendron ‘Hope’
With its busy, wide-reaching appearance this plant is great for creating a graphic look. It looks especially good paired with a slimmer, taller plant, such as a fiddle-leaf fig (ficus lyrata).
Krimson queen hoya (Hoya carnosa ‘Tricolor’)
When potted into a small footed ceramic planter this plant looks undeniably cute. The pale pink and white on its leaves add a soft, romantic effect, making it the perfect bedside plant.
Devil’s ivy (Epipremnum aureum)
Hardy, low maintenance, and easy on the eye with its climbing and trailing heart-shaped leaves. Devil’s ivy looks best hanging from shelves or in a plant hanger suspended from the ceiling or wall.
Philodendron ‘Hope’
With its busy, wide-reaching appearance this plant is great for creating a graphic look. It looks especially good paired with a slimmer, taller plant, such as a fiddle-leaf fig (ficus lyrata).
Krimson queen hoya (Hoya carnosa ‘Tricolor’)
When potted into a small footed ceramic planter this plant looks undeniably cute. The pale pink and white on its leaves add a soft, romantic effect, making it the perfect bedside plant.
Could you share a couple of smart styling tips?
Keep the pots simple so the plants remain the focus. And make the most of whatever space you’ve got. Look around your home for surfaces where you can display plants – there may be more than you first realise.
Keep the pots simple so the plants remain the focus. And make the most of whatever space you’ve got. Look around your home for surfaces where you can display plants – there may be more than you first realise.
Picture rails, mantels and even windowsills are like gold dust to stylists, so if your home has them, use them.
As a general rule of thumb, it’s best to use odd numbers of pots (such as three, five or seven). This helps keep the arrangement looking relaxed and uncontrived.
As a general rule of thumb, it’s best to use odd numbers of pots (such as three, five or seven). This helps keep the arrangement looking relaxed and uncontrived.
What’s a common mistake people make?
Not caring for succulents properly is a common mistake. Most succulents need as much direct sunlight as possible, which can be hard to attain indoors. Your best bet is to display them on a sunny windowsill or in a spot close to a window that is often bathed in light. If you don’t give succulents enough light, they simply won’t thrive.
Check out this cheat sheet for bringing flora inside
Not caring for succulents properly is a common mistake. Most succulents need as much direct sunlight as possible, which can be hard to attain indoors. Your best bet is to display them on a sunny windowsill or in a spot close to a window that is often bathed in light. If you don’t give succulents enough light, they simply won’t thrive.
Check out this cheat sheet for bringing flora inside
What’s good to know?
All plants need some degree of light to thrive. If you want to add greenery to a room that gets very little sunlight, consider rotating plants to a sunnier spot every few days. The key is to ensure plants only go into indirect sunlight – direct sun can shock the plant and cause it distress.
All plants need some degree of light to thrive. If you want to add greenery to a room that gets very little sunlight, consider rotating plants to a sunnier spot every few days. The key is to ensure plants only go into indirect sunlight – direct sun can shock the plant and cause it distress.
Photo by Annette O’Brien
Styling by Alana Langan
Read more:
Clever Hacks for the Lazy Indoor-Plant Lover
Tell us:
How do you display and care for your indoor plants? Share your ideas and tips in the Comments below.
Styling by Alana Langan
Read more:
Clever Hacks for the Lazy Indoor-Plant Lover
Tell us:
How do you display and care for your indoor plants? Share your ideas and tips in the Comments below.
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Species that have served me well over the years (since the 1960s), include hoya carnosa, (57 year old plant adorns my sunroom), Spathyphylum, aspidistra, ficus benjamanii, and marata. I grow succulents facing north and west indoors successfully. I also have a coffee plant thriving in my sunroom! Cool south facing windows with indirect sun and no direct heat are great for cyclamens in winter. Put them outside after flowering. The species varieties will come up again the following year. Maidenhair ferns and aspleniums (bird nest ferns) are great for big bathrooms! Boston ferns are also very tough and easy to grow indoors! Over the years some of my house plants have thrived to the point that they outgrew their location and have had to be rehomed and occasionally sold! These have included monsteria deliciousa, ficus benjamanii and an aralia! Feed with a dilute seaweed solution the colour of weak tea in spring. Do not overwater, test to see if the soil is dry before watering with your fingers. Repot when your plant outgrows its container or get burned or yellowing tips or margins. Dust or wipe the leaves over with a damp cloth four or five times a year! If your plant doesn't seem happy in its initial spot, move it to a different place with more shade or light. Group plants together., in a few areas where light meets their needs rather than having one or two dotted here and there! Vary height and leaf textures, forms and colour for the best displays!