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Boudoir boosters

modern houseplants
A hardy foliage plant, like Sansevieria, adds stress-free style – as long as it doesn’t mess with your feng shui!

Good Bedroom Companions
Hydrangeas, azaleas and cyclamen enjoy the cooler temperature of a bedroom, and this cooler atmosphere also helps to prolong their flowering time. For a splash of exuberant colour, try a begonia, hibiscus or cheerful potted chrysanthemum. Potted-up annuals can also be used as short-term flowering bedroom plants for a few weeks, with the idea they will be discarded when flowering has finished. Consider using Primula obconica, P. malacoides or Impatiens species.
If you have a particularly sunny bedroom or windowsill, you could try a lavender plant or two as it is known to be a remedy for sleeplessness; it’s also a handy moth repellent.
Because the bedroom is a less-used space than the front room, it would be wise to consider how often you will notice your plants. If you feel you may neglect them, choose more forgiving plants such as Aspidistra elatior, called the cast-iron plant for obvious reasons. I have five big pots of these that can be used just about anywhere in the house, including the guest bedroom. They make a good ‘emergency’ filler plant. Also forgiving is Epipremnum aureum (golden pothos), which makes a good plant to hang off a shelf or use in a plant hanger. A basket or bowl with a few ivy plants in it would be simple to achieve. If you have a sunny bedroom or windowsill, you could consider using easy-care succulents.
I like the idea of using softer, more rounded foliage in the bedroom rather than sharp-edged spiky plants; it just seems more conducive to relaxation. Maybe that is a kickback to the feng shui period I went through years ago when, apparently, sword-shaped-leaved plants gave off the wrong sort of energy.
Bedrooms are often shadier rooms, so this will steer your choice of plants. If you can commit to watering and misting, then ferns would look lovely; they would like the cooler bedroom air more than the drier air in a hot living room. If you were looking to have just one or two plants, then a sizeable palm such as a Kentia palm (Howea forsteriana) would look handsome, as would a small ‘tree’, such as a weeping fig (Ficus benjamina) or a Fatsia japonica (particularly the good-looking variegated one). But try out different plants, as long as you think about their heat, light and humidity requirements.

flower in pot in front of grey wall
Indoor plants can offer attractive flower power as well as oxygenate the room.

Be Attentive To Their Needs
Keep a small watering can in the bedroom/en suite for top-up waterings – and perhaps a small pair of secateurs or scissors for any repair work. Every so often, plants could be put in the bath or shower for a good dousing. Repot or top-dress as needed. Liquid feed regularly or use a long-term fertiliser for container plants. Turn the plants occasionally to avoid lop-sided growth.
One of the advantages to having plants in your bedroom is that you can do what you want as it will mainly be you who sees it. There will be no judgement – it could even be in ‘bad taste’ – it doesn’t matter, as long as you enjoy it. Choose your boudoir plants to suit yourself and your plant-growing capabilities.

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