Laidback Gardener Tip of the Day

For a Beautiful Living Decor, Rotate the Plants

20150290B
By switching these two palms, one in sun, one in shade, every two weeks, you can maintain this indoor decor almost forever.

Any indoor decor looks better with the addition of a few artfully placed foliage plants, but… the sad truth is that few rooms are well enough lit for plants to be happy anywhere but near the window, where the light is brightest. So, over time, the plants that aren’t near the window slowly decline and that “straight out of House Beautiful” look is lost. But there is an easy way of keeping up an indoor green space going almost indefinitely.

20150209The secret is to buy two identical plants. Place one in the “decor” and the other near the window in a well lit room, then… change the plants every two weeks. (If the plants are heavy, remember that there are trays with wheels you can push from one room to another.) Foliage plants will remain in perfect condition almost forever if they receive basic care (even watering, reasonable humidity, and the occasional pinch of fertilizer) plus at least 2 weeks of good light per month.

Great for Foliage, but…

This works fine with foliage plants, but is not so effective with flowering plants. Yes, rotating even a flowering plant from its role as a decor item into good light every 2 weeks will keep it blooming for as long as possible, but, once it finishes blooming, this regime will rarely stimulate it to flower again. For this, just cheat a bit: every two months or so, buy 2 new flowering plants in bud or in bloom and then move them back and forth, from decor to light, every 2 weeks.

Garden writer and blogger, author of 65 gardening books, lecturer and communicator, the Laidback Gardener, Larry Hodgson, passed away in October 2022. Known for his great generosity, his thoroughness and his sense of humor, he reached several generations of amateur and professional gardeners over his 40-year career. Thanks to his son, Mathieu Hodgson, and a team of contributors, laidbackgardener.blog will continue its mission of demystifying gardening and making it more accessible to all.

1 comment on “For a Beautiful Living Decor, Rotate the Plants

  1. Pingback: What to Do With a Wimpy Dracaena? – Laidback Gardener

Leave a Reply

Sign up for the Laidback Gardener blog and receive articles in your inbox every morning!