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Easy Houseplants To Fight Winter Blues

Winter is coming, and that means the winter blues. Seasonal depression can hit people hard when the snows come and the nights are long and cold. The best way to fight the attitude slump is to bring nature right back into your home. If you don't know what to grow, then let The Indestructible Houseplant be your guide.

Houseplants can provide people with so many benefits mentally and physically. They make your air fresher with filtration, they take toxins out of the air, they reduce anxiety, and can even increase attentiveness and productivity! The best reason to incorporate some plants indoors is that they really do make you happier. Nature has a positive effect on people.

I had always wanted a houseplant but I live in one room of a house. I kept saying, when I move I am going to finally get a plant. Then I had a realization; I deserve to be happy now! From then on my attitude and positivity improved. I bought two plants and caring for them provided me with natural beauty in my space and the joy of a new hobby.

You may be saying, I don't have a green thumb. So you kill plants, big deal. Mother nature does that all the time! You won't get it right on the first try and that's totally fine! Certain people are better at growing different things! A big problem with winter is low light, and you might find that you don't have windows facing the right direction for the plants you want. Still there are so many options, and try to think outside the box!

Here Are The Best Houseplants To Try Out This Winter

African Violet

The Indestructible Houseplant

These violets will bring more than green into your home with their colorful flowers. These are short plants that prefer filtered light, preferably a west or east facing window. They like to dry out between waterings, but they don't like their leaves to get wet so be careful watering.

Aloe*

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A multi-use plant! Great for looking at in the winter and for sunburns in the summer. These are succulents so they like lots of sun and very little water. They like bright indirect light so south is best but west or east should do well too. Plant them in soil that has plenty of drainage, and is preferably dryer than most potting soil. You can just add some sand, succulent soil, or perlite to lighten up the mixture. Watch out putting this outside, aloes can actually get a sunburn of its own- mine turned a weird grey color but perked right back up once it was inside!

Christmas Cactus

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A true colorful survivor, these plants prefer bright indirect light but will adapt to low. Watch out for too much sun exposure burns just like aloe! North and east windows are perfect, south or west is great if you don't over expose it to sunlight. This is a tropical cactus so don't think it likes the desert and forget to water it! Water less in winter and you will have a colorful blooming cactus!

Croton

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Stunning color with this tropical plant. They love direct sunlight and the more of it they get, the more colorful the plant will stay. Too little light will have the plant start to turn more green. Plenty of water for crotons so keep the soil moist and don't let it dry out.

Ferns

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There are so many ferns out there to explore! Buttons ferns, holly ferns, maidenhair ferns, boston ferns, and so there are plenty of options to find the one that matches the climate of your home. All ferns prefer moist soil so don't let them dry out and remember frequent watering with higher humidity. They are used to shady forest floors so they prefer moderate filtered light.

Hoyas

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The waxy plant porcelain plant. Fans of bright indirect sunlight so east or west light is best. Let your hoya dry out but keep in mind tropical plants can get a bit of a shock from cold tap water so let it be room temperature. This is a great site for finding out what hoya would work best for you.

Marimo Moss Balls

houseplanthappiness

Actually a form of algae, there was a legend of forbidden lovers who threw themselves in the water and their hearts became Marimo balls. These plants are beautiful and incredibly low maintenance. Plop these in water and make sure they get low to indirect medium light. Direct light can raise the water temperature and overheat these little guys. Change the water about every 2 weeks.

Peace Lily*

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The perfect low light plant. These are tropical so low light and higher humidity is their favorite. Water well with a chance to dry out inbetween. Misting the plant is a great way to add in some humidity. These are also a great way to add some flowers to your home with its beautiful white and pale yellow blooms.

Pothos*

My second pothos- RIP first pothos

An adaptable plant that can handle most conditions. This is a great starter plant because they like both low and moderate light and can be grown in soil or water. It can handle being a little neglected and will be okay for a while in dry soil. Be careful switching the plants over because a plant growing in soil will want to grow in soil, and a plant used to water won't want to switch over.

Snake Plant*

philodendro

You won't kill a snake plant, no way. This versatile plant prefers indirect bright light but can do well in a variety of settings. Don't water too often because the roots are prone to rot. These are desert plants so they like more dry sandy soil.

Spider Plant

My beloved 1st Houseplant

The first plant I ever bought and my buddy is STILL alive, so they are pretty durable and adaptable to the learning curve. These guys are great at filtering air and the long shoots of babies feature small white flowers. These like bright to moderate light and like to dry out before you water them again. These can get brown tips easy due to light or mineral buildup from tap water, just pinch the burned bits right off.

* A starred plant means it is TOXIC TO PETS. Some are more toxic than others but think hard about which you want in your house. It just isn't worth the expensive vet bill or the tragedy of your pet getting seriously ill if you aren't careful about what you're buying.

Giphy

Some Key Tips

Brown Leaves- Get rid of brown or yellowing leaves, they aren't even doing anything. They aren't helping the plant, they're just dead weight.

Standing Water- Don't let water accumulate underneath your plant. Sitting in water will lead to root rot and all kinds of problems for your friend, RIP my beloved first pothos I'm so sorry I had to find out the hard way.

Watering with the Seasons- Less water in the winter! Fertilize in the spring or spring and autumn for plants that need a boost but lower the water level to match the seasons. Still, keep an eye that the plants are getting what they need.

Dried Out Plant- If you forgot to water and have a plant with dried out soil then don't just water it like you normally would. The water will just run right through the soil or down the sides of the pot. You need to submerge the bottom in water to fully incorporate it back into the soil.


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