Dear LPG, 

I read recently that one in eight families live in a home that does not have access to a garden which makes me feel quite guilty, because until recently I had one which I always saw as yet another space in the house that I needed to keep clean.

Keeping the lawn mown and the plants in order was the way I saw my duty, and while I was happy to spend the odd fine day out there with the barbeque and a few friends, I never really saw the plants as anything else but the border that kept the place looking tidy.  I think that I noticed the plants and grass more because they needed so much more attention than anything else and I must admit that I left watering them to the good Lord and his weather systems, most of the time.

Now, I find myself living alone although in a much smaller but tidier space than for a long time and, when I look through my windows, there are beautifully kept grounds that I can spend time in.  The problem is that you never really miss something until you don’t have it anymore. 

I have never been blessed with green fingers, but I recently read that watching plants work their way through the growing process can be therapeutic and, now I feel the need to have a few of my own again.  A quick look at the internet informs us that there are many valuable reasons for having plants in your house including healthier air quality, they can even improve your mood and, in an environment which does not allow pets they do give you something to look after.

I suspect that there are a lot of older people who make the move to sheltered accommodation where one of the first things that they really miss is their garden, even if it was taken for granted somewhat when they had one, so I have decided that having a few plants in the house must be the next best thing. 

I have left it a bit late to get started but they say that we older people should be prepared to try something new and keeping a plant tidy is so much easier than working on the whole garden. So, I have been to my local gardening shop and invested in a couple of pot plants which they recommended when I asked for help with a choice of plant that is hard to kill.  They also recommended plants that are happy with limited light for indoors and, to get me started on a care routine, I have even set my Alexa to remind me to water them regularly.   

The internet has also taught me that today, July 27th is celebrated as ‘National Take Your Houseplant for a walk Day’ in some parts of the world and, though I don’t think I will be ready for that this year, I live in hope that I can schedule at least a short trek to the entrance of the building for late July 2023 because my plants are still alive and kicking (as best a plant can).

GM. Nunhead 

GM has found a bit of information on the virtues of having plants in the house and the best plants to get started with… 

(►►►)   (►►►)     (►►►)   

(►►►)    (►►►)  

(►►►)