#30 Green your Decor

No, I'm not talking about getting organic bamboo sofas or 100% recycled wall art (although those things would be nice.) I'm talking about real green ways to decorate your home, with plants. In my opinion, there is no better way to add life to a room. Real live plants. The nice thing about indoor plants is that you can grow so many varieties that can't be grown outdoors (unless you live in a tropical climate.) There are also very cheap ways to get some plants. Yard sales, for one. Another is to get clippings off of plants from people you know. Many plants can be started from a clipping, and the ones that can do this generally are easy-keepers and require little care. You can grow plants from seeds if you wish, or shop the clearance racks at gardening centers. Most houseplants are fairly resilient-- trust me I know because I do not really have a green thumb. Generally I wait until they are looking a little droopy before I give them water. I've heard that more plants are killed by over-watering than underwatering, and maybe that's why mine do so well. My husband and I even have an avocado tree in our house that we grew from the pit of an avocado that we had eaten. This tree has survived about 7 years, a week-long trip in the back of a moving van, getting all the leaves stripped off by my son, several weeks without water, and all sorts of other abuse. As a bonus, you can use whatever old container that you want to recycle as your pots. Just make sure there are drainage holes in the bottom.

Pros: Beautiful, cheap, and natural air filters.

Cons: They do take some care, occasional fertilizing, pruning, and sometimes they just die.

By the way, I am going out of town this week and won't be blogging while I'm gone. Just so you know I haven't dropped off the face of the planet and I will be back!