Quick tips to a healthy home

Indoor plants not only enhance the beauty of the interiors, these also have health benefits. Here’s how to maintain their freshness.

When it is scorching hot outside, cool off your interiors by keeping some plants in your house. It will make the space seem fresh and green, and give you a sense of being close to nature. Indoor plants require adequate light. Place them near windows where they can get natural light.

If a plant is indoors for many days, do not expose it to strong sunlight immediately. Keep it in the shade for a day or two. Ensure timely rotation of plants. It is better to rotate plants before they show light deprivation symptoms.

When transplanting the plants to new pots or replanting, use fresh soil. Make sure the soil is free from pests. While indoor plants require water like outdoor plants, it is important to keep the water level optimum. Over-watering the plant can result in collection of water, thereby hastening the plant’s death due to rotting roots.

Winters are sure to result in dehydration of plants due to lack of humidity. To keep your plants moisturised you can spray them with fine mist. It is very necessary to identify the food requirement for your plants. Plant food containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium should be used to ensure proper growth of foliage, roots and flowers and fruits respectively. Check for pests like aphids, spider mites, mealy - bugs, scale insects, thrips mould and mildew. Isolate sick or infected plant until it recovers.