As we head into the colder winter months, you may find yourself wanting to brighten up your home. House plants are such an easy solution and good for your health.
Stepping into Moscarillo’s Garden Shoppe in West Hartford is an instant mood booster. Sometimes decompressing and breathing easy is as simple as adding a house plant.
“They bring wonderful purification qualities to the air,” said Marissa Agostini, house plant specialist at Moscarillo’s Garden Shoppe. “Essentially the plants will turn the carbon dioxide that we exhale in the air and turn it into oxygen.”
With people spending more time at home, what better way to brighten your room.
“Most people have their house plants at the office at work so if people are bringing those home so they can kind of keep tending those throughout the winter months and basically yeah it’s a great morale booster,” said Agostini.
And if you don’t traditionally have a green thumb, don’t worry.
“There is the right plant for every person," Agostini said. "Just like we as people, every plant has their own characteristics and their own wants and needs. And plants are amazing at telling you how they’re feeling.”
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When it comes to watering, less is always more. And indoor plants are actually easiest to care for in the winter.
“They essentially kind of go to sleep. So they don’t drink as much and they don’t need to feed as much as well.”
Hopefully by now you’ve brought in any plants you hope to over winter, but there’s one key step you don’t want to forget.
“Being outside they’re susceptible to aphids, white fly, mealy bug any kind of pest,” said Agostini . “So when you bring them in make sure you kind of quarantine them off and check them for bugs you can spray them as a preventative it’s not going to harm the plant whatsoever.”
A simple pesticide will do the trick. And if you’re new to house plant parenting, always check the toxicity level of the plant before you bring it home. Common plants, like poinsettias, can contain toxins.
“It’ll just irritate either your child or your pets throat. Won’t necessarily pose a lethal threat to them. But there is an irritant in some plants that I do recommend if you small kids or some pets to kind of air against.”
When in doubt you can always ask a professional at your local garden shop if a plant is safe.
