Creating an indoor oasis

We have all seen beautiful homes and offices with sad plants lying neglected and dusty in some corner. Or a brown-at-the-edges plant greeting you at the entrance of a building. It is only after they buy plants do people realise that plants do need a lot of attention.
Some think it is enough to play concert music and add a dash of the latest fertiliser in town to create their own private rainforest. Reality: the plants wilt before your eyes. Factors like light, correct watering, timely pruning and temperature also play a major role in creating a green effect within your interiors.
So, how does an amateur create a mini-green feature area say on an office desk, a corner of his room or a balcony? Especially, with summer around the corner and the urgent need for a touch of green to soothe tired eyes.
"Plants need consistency in terms of temperature," emphasises Yamini Ved, managing director of Environ. "For indoor plants to settle and thrive, the temperature should ideally stand at 20-25 degrees. And it should stay more or less constant," she adds. Switching the AC on and off may help you cut down on electricity bills, but it will shorten the life of your plants.
Good indoor flowering plants include guzmania and neoregelia. Colourful but temporary survivors include azaleas and African violets, which are available from March to August. Once bought, azaleas and African violets, thrive for five weeks.
Verbena, portulaca, jasmine chryscalis and jasmine sambac, desert rose, frangipani, euphorbia mili and euphorbia mitis (or poinsettias), periwinkles, lantana and zinnias are good outdoor flowering plants for summer. They do well in the UAE heat.
Two plants that are extremely hardy and fragrant and great for the outdoors are occimum occidental and occimum sanctum (also known as tulsi in the subcontinent).
Plants like verbena can survive the glare of the full sun but Ved recommends an area which has a mix of some light and some shade. A note of warning: do not place your outdoor plants near or under your window ACs - the heat radiation affects the plants worse than the sun.
Asparagus plants thrive on ample sunlight. You could hang them up in a balcony or around your home in a sunny location. Then watch them trail. Other interesting feature plants include pennisetum grass and cactii, which are tough as nails. Ficus is a hardy plant too but it needs a shaded and well-lit area rather than the full sun.
You could create a rockery effect in a balcony with these plants using terracotta containers, pebbles, twigs and sand - just use your imagination. Add a fountain for a cool effect. Or you could array pots on an outdoor table or even in a wheelbarrow. Peperomia and fitonia are two plants that do well in areas that have little or no light, like bathrooms or corners. Spathiphyllum looks nice as a tabletop plant, says Ved. This plant is also a good air purifier.
Crotons are great for creating a lush look, but need lots of light. One must be careful while buying diffenbachias for homes - children might eat their poisonous leaves. They are best for offices.
Aglaonema and dracaena are good indoor plants too. The latter does not take kindly to overwatering, she warns. "Though dracaena is a hardy plant, it edges tend to go brown if you pour too much water, but this could apply to most plants."
"Dip your finger in the soil and if it comes away with soil sticking to it, it does not need any water at present", Ved says. A moisture meter is a handy device which cost Dh 238 to Dh 292. In summer, water around early morning and late evening. Once a day is sufficient in winter. Water indoor plants once a week and occasionally mist them as they love and thrive in humid atmospheres.
"Do not water flowering plants from the top. Potted plants too should be watered only in the soil," says Ved. Next winter, look for plants like geraniums, petunias, marigold, carnations and chrysanthemums.
Fertiliser sticks are an easy option for plant nutrition. Just stick them into the soil. The slow-releasing action is ideal for couch potatoes, who do not mind talking to their plants at a distance.