Indoor Tropical Plants

Most houseplants are usually tropical plants. These plants need a warm humid environment to grow, and this environment can be best imitated when tropical plants are grown indoors. Indoor tropical plants come in wide varieties, from large to small and everything in between, not to mention the vivacious to dark greens that can all spell a mood for your home decor. It is not just what these plants can do for home decor, it is their 'pollutant cleaning' attributes that have made them an absolute requirement in houses and offices. Tropical plants help keep the environment clean, and it is no surprise that tropical forests are such fresh air breathers. However, to ensure that the plants replicate the same attributes within the closed walls of a house, certain conditions regarding their health and care must be duly met.

Tropical Plant Care

This is not at all as daunting as it may sound. Plants are perhaps the only living organisms that don't need to be constantly fussed over. Just provide them with basic generic care, maybe, except an exotic species, and they will bloom and stay green for years to come.

The foremost requirement is an evaluation about its growing conditions. Even though some plants are tropical, they do not do well indoors, outside their native environment. Indoor tropical plants need adequate light, temperature, humidity, fertilization, watering and space. So while selecting your plant, study light and climatic conditions of your home. Place plants with little light requirement like philodendron in rooms that are north facing, while the ones like bromeliads and coleus in sunnier locations. For most common tropical plants, light need not be direct sunlight. Diffused or filtered lighting would be just fine.

As most indoor plants are pot bound, the right sized container along with the material of the container will make loads of difference to the plant's health. Container gardening is the best medium to grow these plants. Tropical plants thrive in soils that are rich, humus and well draining. So feed your plant well, with compost and coarse sand mixed soil. The pots should be large enough to allow root growth, and small enough to get the best out of the plant's appearance.

Tropical plants need to be kept clean, especially the leaves. Outdoors, nature takes care of this, indoors you need to do it. Sponge the leaves and stems to wipe out dust and grime. This will ensure that your houseplants breathe well. Healthy indoor plants don't just breathe life into dull corners, but purify the air we breathe, literally. Their process of photosynthesis is capable of cleaning nearly 80% pollutants found indoors.

Common Tropical Plants for Indoor Gardening

A wide range is available; from leafy green palms, to trailers and climbers, and seasonal as well as annual flowering plants.

• Kentia Palm
• Lucky Bamboo
• Chinese Palms
• Ficus (Rubber Tree)
• Spider Plant
• Bromeliads
• Ivy
• Peace Lily
• Anthurium
• Gerbera Daisy

Always look out for a sale, to get some exotic looking plant to add to your variety. Each tropical plant has its own needs, try to grow ones that have shared growing needs and habits.