If your home is always cold, another option besides pets is planting! You can occasionally put a pot of greenery in the house to keep them company, it won’t be noisy, but it will take a lot of effort to feel its needs and presence, and eventually you will see the beautiful results of your care.
Don’t worry, my plant level is still in the newbie village, but my laziness level is very high.
Let me introduce you to five plants that meet the following criteria.
- Plants that don’t get rid of (or die) so easily when they are still growing
- Plants that take a little time to care for and are happy to be with you for a long time
- Once the soil is dry and the pot is light, water it again until it runs out.
- Fertilise in spring and summer, not too hard for a month or two
Sansevieria trifasciata/Snake Plant
- Indoor/Outdoor plants
- Indirect light
- water once per week
- Safe for pets
Every time I see a tigertail orchid with its vibrant, self-contained leaves, I think of “Gon Freecss”, who defies gravity and grows his hair upwards when he turns into an adult in “HUNTER×HUNTER”.
The biggest problem is not to water it too often. My colleague could not resist watering it two or three times a week before it died.
There are all kinds of species, my favourite is the grey and white Sansevieria trifasciata ‘Silver Queen’, perhaps you can find one with a similar personality to your own.
Ceropegia woodii
- Indoor/Outdoor plants
- Indirect light
- water once per week
- Safe for pets
The leaves hang down like little love hearts, and when the weather is colder the back of the plant emerges in a pinkish colour, like a girl. I decided to bring one home after seeing a video about it being on the list of pet-safe plants, and it has been growing like Rapunzel ever since it arrived at my house.
I’ve even cut many of them and given them to colleagues. It’s super easy to divide the plant, just cut it into sections and place them on the soil, sprinkle a thin layer of soil on top and keep it moist. I still water it at least once a week in the summer.
Mentha / Mint
- Outdoor plants
- Enjoy light
- Often water
- Not safe for pets
Last year (2020), I rushed to my sister in Tainan with a bag, and she introduced me to a whole row of plants on the balcony, she could cut them out and make tea with whatever she wanted.
I thought, “That does sounds great!” This is what I need!
I immediately gathered a group of colleagues to order the plants, and at first my plants were all fine, until the summer holidays came and things started to go wrong, the summer holidays in Taiwan were so hot that the plants on the indoor balcony were invaded by red spiders, the mint was the only one left in the race.
So you know how life vigorous mint is, right?
There are various varieties of mint, such as grapefruit mint, citrus mint… etc. Cut a few slices of mint and put them in your cup of tea for an aesthetically pleasing tea with a refreshing mint flavour. It is recommended to drink it with a tea bag during the day when you want to stay awake, but not before bedtime, so please put down your scissors.
Monstera deliciosa
- Indoor/Outdoor plants
- Indirect light
- Water once per week
- Not safe for pets
Super plants for KOL.
When I bought a small Monstera, I found that it was just like a normal lotus leaf, “You must have gotten a lotus leaf, right?” My colleague kept saying that.
It was only when I looked up the article that I found out that only mature plants would split open like the leaves in the beautiful photos, which is called ‘open back’.
It’s a tropical rainforest plant that needs to be kept in a moist environment, and many of you will be rushing to fill it with water to take care of it. A moist environment for rainforest plants is the moisture in the air, not the moisture in the soil underneath! Use a spray bottle once a day to keep the air humid for your bamboo, and water about once a week to twice a week. (I am very lazy,lol)
I keep it in an office without a window and move it temporarily to a window at weekends and then back to the seat on work days. I don’t want to wait for it to grow up, so I went to a famous bamboo shop to buy mature plants.
Euphorbia lactea ‘White Ghost’
- Outdoor plants
- Enjoy light
- Water once per month
- Not safe for pets
It was easy to mistake it for a cactus, but when I saw it on the shopping platform, I was amazed, it looked so much like a white cactus covered in doughnut icing. So I ordered it right away and took it home. It lived up to my expectations and escaped the miserable fate of succulents in my hands. I always water it on the first day of the month so that I don’t forget it exists.
Compared to the succulents that put me in a desperate situation where I don’t know whether to water them or not, the ‘White Ghost’ is very self-reliant, “Water? Then I’ll drink it! No water? No problem, no problem, I can live on my own for two months.”
Living strong in the sunny front terrace.
There’s always a plant for you
Let’s start with these five starter plants to fill your home and build a little forest at home.
If you don’t like plants on this list, that’s fine, maybe next time there will be some plant you like on the list and I will continue to experiment with some easy plants and recommend them to you if I succeed.
