Hardy houseplants offer indoor greenery

Lauren Bethke

It’s starting to cool down here in south Minneapolis, and you might be thinking about houseplants to provide some indoor greenery all year. Most houseplants are native to tropical climates and can be hard to grow indoors during a Minnesota winter. If you think about it, the environment inside our homes this time of year is more or less the opposite of a tropical jungle!

Read on for tips on choosing hardy houseplants and giving them the best conditions to thrive.
First, if you brought your houseplants outside for the summer, it’s probably time to bring them back indoors. Most houseplants prefer temperatures above 50 degrees. When you bring houseplants inside, give them a good spray with the hose first to clean the leaves and dislodge any pests, and consider using a systemic insecticide to make sure no bugs are hiding in the soil. It’s also a good idea to acclimate them slowly to indoor conditions, if you can. One simple method is to place plants in an enclosed porch or temporary greenhouse for a few days before bringing them all the way inside. Even setting houseplants near an open window can help them transition to the indoors.

If you’re interested in expanding your indoor jungle this fall without committing too much time to plant maintenance, look for houseplants that can tolerate a fairly wide range of light conditions and temperatures, can withstand irregular watering, and don’t need a lot of humidity.

Pothos is a great option – I like to grow it in a self-watering pot to keep the soil evenly moist without much work. Sansevieria, or snake plant, is another great low-maintenance option. It’s very tolerant of neglect, and in fact, overwatering is the most common problem. ZZ plant is another good choice for a dim corner or an office with fluorescent lighting – it does well even in low light conditions, and it stores water in its rhizomes so it can go quite a while between waterings. If you want something a little more forgiving of cold drafts near a door or window, cast iron plant lives up to its name and can tolerate the temperature swings that come with a Minnesota winter.

Like I mentioned at the beginning, one of the reasons it can be hard to grow houseplants indoors during a Minnesota winter is that our climate is basically the opposite of the jungle environment most houseplant varieties prefer. So another thing you can do is try to make your house a bit more like the rainforest!

Our short winter days mean many houseplants don't get enough light no matter how sunny the window. A simple grow light on a timer can make up the difference. There are lots of options for grow lights at a wide variety of price points, but even a basic LED clip light aimed at a plant for 10-12 hours a day will help keep growth steady through the darkest months. You want the grow light to be quite close to the plant without touching the leaves.

Forced air heating also dries out the air fast, and most tropical houseplants want more humidity than a Minnesota living room offers in January. A small humidifier placed near your plants can help significantly. Another option is to set pots on a pebble tray filled with water so the moisture humidifies the plants as it evaporates.

If you're ready for a bigger project, consider converting an old cabinet or bookshelf into a mini greenhouse. Add glass doors, put a small grow light and humidifier inside, and you'll have a self-contained tropical microclimate that can house more finicky varieties that might otherwise struggle in the open air of your house. Ideally, you could start with a metal cabinet that’s coated or painted to avoid rust, and add waterproof caulk to seal up cracks and seams. You could even add a plant-specific warming mat to gently raise the temperature inside your greenhouse.

With a bit of planning, you can keep your indoor jungle thriving right through a Minnesota winter. It doesn’t need to be too complicated - start with hardy varieties, then add a grow light or humidifier if you can. Either way, a little greenery indoors is a welcome reminder that spring will come back around!

For more information, check out the University of Minnesota Extension Yard and Garden website. Extension resources are written by experts and contain the latest and most reliable research-based information. Happy gardening!