Houseplants are hot, so hot that they now have a presence at all of the main RHS plant shows, starting with the Malvern Spring Festival and the Festival of Houseplants. In collaboration with Green Rooms Market visitors were treated to an indoor oasis transforming the newly built Kildare Hall into an immersive experience of contemporary greenery. Bringing together big-name influencers from the industry and the houseplant community to showcase plant collections, workshops, demos and talks. So, just what is on trend for houseplants?
Vertical planters
Make the most of your home space and go vertical! Many plants in their natural habitat cling to rainforest trees and cascade from branches. Mimic this natural phenomena by using macramé plant hangers and moss poles, suspend plants in Japanese moss balls aka kokedama, utilise shelves or use household furniture to elevate displays.
As visitors entered the Festival of Houseplants, they were greeted with a giant houseplant installation adorned with a mass of stag horn ferns, bromeliad foliage and Spanish moss. Epiphytes clung to lichen-clad branches, the centre piece being an enormous tree trunk.
Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) is a soilless air plant which is super easy to look after. It is an epiphyte which means it obtains its moisture and nutrition from the humid air around it so simply dunk it in a tub of rainwater overnight once a week, shake off the excess water then hang it back in situ, job done.
Staghorn ferns (Platycerium bifurcatum) and blue star ferns (Phlebodium davana) mounted on bark featured heavily at the show. These exotic epiphytes provided an ethereal contemporary display. Dunking and misting is a must to keep these plants thriving.
Give epiphytes a boost once a month with a pipette of feed such as Plantsmith’s Nurturing Orchid Feed & Tonic; add to rainwater and increase humidity in between waterings by regularly misting either with rainwater or to deter plant pests and aid growth try Plantsmith’s Perfecting Houseplant Care Mist or Invigorating Orchid Care Mist.
Terrariums
The show had a fascinating emphasis on terrariums with expert advice on hand from the terrarium king himself Ben Newell of Worcester Terrariums.
A terrarium is a mini-garden in a sealable glass container. Terrariums can be closed to create a warm, humid ecosystem or open to provide dry conditions; it just depends what type of plants you want to grow. Terrariums have become incredibly popular over the last few years, opening doors for many urban dwellers who may not have large spaces or gardens to plant.
Other highlights were an innovative display of planted windows by Plantvoq made from recycled glass and Micro Exotic’s stall of mini beasts to complete your rainforest ecosystem in a jar.
Hydroponics
Festival of Houseplants showcased many hydroponic vessels from test tubes to glass jars for a funky laboratory vibe to conduct your houseplant propagation experiments.
Hydroponics is the process of growing plants in nutrient-rich water without soil. Many houseplants grow very well simply in water. Hydroponic systems save space, save water and look cool so are a hip addition to the home. Nothing could be easier than taking cuttings and popping them in a glass but the satisfaction and pride of creating a new plant from one stem is immense.
Large foliage
Foliage was BIG at Malvern’s Festival of Houseplants. Leaf Creative welcomed visitors with the dramatic arching foliage of Strelitzia nicolai; monstrous Monstera deliciosa, alocasia and rubber plants rubbed shoulders with divinely variegated Monstera deliciosa at Urban Tropicana whilst Jurassic sized bromeliad erupted out of displays alongside colocasia and palms.
Visitors were also treated to enormous plant installations designed and created by Sarah Gerrard-Jones, the Plant Rescuer and Adam Critien, Earth Champion featuring an indoor planted water feature, a grand cacti and succulents display by Hayley Stephens from Mint Plants and rare, tropical houseplants by Jacob James from Grow Tropicals all demonstrating that big is brilliant… I might need to build another extension to house some of these wonderful plants though!
Wild about houseplants
Sprouts of Bristol highlighted the importance of considering where plants grow in the wild as a guide to how we look after our plants at home showcasing four distinct biomes, tropical rainforest, tropical grassland, temperate forest and desert, to demonstrate light, rainfall, humidity and temperature requirements in different regions. So, if you have any exotic summer holidays planned make sure you check out the native plants and take note of the conditions in which they are growing, it will stand you in good stead with your houseplants at home.
Adopt a houseplant
Cacti are definitely still on trend with a wealth of dedicated stalls and an impressive cacti and succulent feature installation. Being a houseplant parent is a responsibility but ever wondered what happens to plant collections once the owner is unable to care for the plants any longer? Well Mint Plants have set up a plant adoption service for pre-loved plants which keeps these precious specimens from disappearing or even being binned! Some of the rare plants they have been asked to collect can be around a hundred years old such as a very special Euphorbia obesa ‘Cristata’.
It is comforting to know these houseplants will go to good homes for the next generation to enjoy. If you are looking to give a houseplant a home why not try adoption?
It was great to see houseplants recognised in such a major way at the Festival of Houseplants at RHS Malvern 2024 show and I am sure this festival will grow from strength to strength as the trend for houseplants is here to stay.
