There’s no doubt that houseplants are in fashion. Once seen as a hobby for the middle aged, indoor plants have been given a make-over and are now seen as the cutting edge of gardening. Forget soil, it’s succulents we want.
This change is driven partly by the fact that people are renting for longer; houseplants are easily portable when you move and the only option when you have no garden. For years, they were the main way I ‘gardened’. My teenage bedroom, student room, first flat, all were filled with plants in lieu of space to grow outside.
Houseplants also fit with today’s love of the visual and a lot of what is written is as much about how to display as how to grow, driven by a plethora of carefully framed Instagram images.
So, I admit to being a little sceptical when Houseplants by Lisa Eldred Steinkopf arrived, expecting it to be yet another book exploiting a current trend. What I discovered was a comprehensive overview that covers the fashionable ‘how to display’ element but also goes into the equally important ‘how to grow’ aspect.
Pot size, soil type, how to water, when to feed and light requirements are all covered in depth with photographs giving extra clarity to the advice.
There are step-by-step instructions on how to repot – even down to outlining what materials you should assemble before starting – an overview of how to water and different methods, and hints on how to tell if your plant is in the wrong position.
Advice includes quarantining new purchases to ensure they are pest-free, ‘tagging’ plants with details of when they were bought and repotted, and how it’s better to check plants regularly than water according to a schedule: “Watering practices are the biggest killer of plants,” she tells us.
I particularly liked the suggestion of growing Paperwhite Narcissus in pebbles and water with alcohol added to keep them compact and stop them flopping.
Problems ranging from pests to plant sunburn are covered and there are instructions for creating miniature gardens and the currently popular terrariums.
Possibly the most useful part of the book is the section that deals with individual plants. Divided into easy to grow, moderately easy to grow and challenging, these give everything from the light needs and watering to size and the correct botanical name – essential if you’re trying to source something specific, as common names vary wildly across the country let alone the world.
Despite dividing the plants into categories, we’re told that the most challenging are not necessarily more difficult, they just need more time and attention.
It’s this ‘can do’, encouragement that I liked best about the book. In her introduction, Lisa assures us that “There is no such thing as a natural green thumb.”
And she goes on to say: “killing a plant is only a learning experience and shouldn’t discourage you from trying again.”
Houseplants the Complete Guide to Choosing, Growing, and Caring for Indoor Plants by Lisa Eldred Steinkopf is published by Cool Springs Press, RRP £19.99. Buy now (If you buy via this Amazon link, I get a small payment. The price you pay is not affected.)
• Review copy supplied by Cool Springs Press.
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