The quest for the garden inside

Image from Moon to Moon, blogspot.pt 

We are at the brink of revolution.
A revolution against the evolution of the distance between us and the old habits we had.
The habits of health that we used to cultivate and now separate.
We distance ourselves from society’s lung and hence are left exposed to the artificial corrosion and it’s tempting simplicity.

 
Image from Bohemian Homes, tumblr.com 

Let us bring back our roots and nature itself into our lives!
Today we are showing you how to recreate the natural landscape without losing the charm and elegance of your own home.
You dont need those old pots and the chaos of the traditional indoor thicket!
Indoor gardens can have any shape or size, fit to any taste and demand, even those with minimalist houses may find that nature itself has bent into the squares and circles we drew ourselves into.

Image from JH Interior Design 

You just need to find the right light, give them a little bit of love and water and you can have these small Nephrolepis exaltatas giving you the hint of tropical forest you wanted in your home.
The trick to keeping the plants healthy is to study their original habitat and trying to recreate their original surroundings without having to reproduce their scale.
A small flowerbed can become the difference maker for a room’s atmosphere.
Never underestimate the power of flora.

 
Imagem de Nature Maker 

And when we talk about flora, we include trees.
Here we find the Ficus Benjamina, an ideal choice for first-time indoor gardeners.
An imposing statement in any room, without all the hassle of maintenence.
These trees arent too big. There is always a terrace or balcony waiting for the luscious 2-meter-wide canopy and it’s 3,5 meter height.
They usually last years under indirect sunlight, a watering a week and a well-drained soil, but watch out!
These trees usually protest when you move them!
They spread their leaves all over the place as soon as you try.

 
Image from M Architecture 

For those who like the full garden experience but refuses to take it outside, we have a slightly bigger aproach. A cube made out of plants and light ready to be the centerpiece of any house.
Even if it looks like its avant-garde, its absolutely revivalist since we’ve had interior patios for centuries invading us with it’s sun beams.
All you need to worry about is finding the right glass, screen or windows and maybe even a door to bring you the fun outside-and-inside contrast of this wonderous idea.

 
Image from Uttara & Await 

But there are more artistic solutions out there, with an even greater sense of openess.
Each region of the world has it’s own tradition about indoor patios, but rarely you see a teak woodwork like this.
Originating from the inner rural and tribal areas of India, this simple yet captivating work of art surrounds the patio to give that antique and traditional feel some search for their homes.
In India its a common practice to have an indoor patio with na open ceiling without any protection whatsoever. At the most you’ll see a thin sheet covering the opening for the harsher rainy days.

 
Image from Studio Bergtraun 

But why settle for living rooms and other still places when you can spruce up all of your passages and hallways with a good old green lung?
With some vegetation covering up the floor, you can turn a corridor into a cute children’s playground or a relaxing reading lounge with lots of sunlight and none of the wind.
The only worry to have here is about the lighting, try to avoid direct sunlight.
Reflected light is enough to quench the hunger of this Soleirolia soleirolii.

 
Image from Clever Homes by tobylongdesign

Speaking of light, few places in our homes have as much of it as the staircase.
We can take advantage of these stairs to create a light tunnel and use it to plant some bamboo, a tree or a fresh new living corner of the house.
With the light and the height, you can do any type of green intervention.

 
Image from NG Arquitecta, houzz.com

While we’re talking about light, we can also talk about water.
As much as the staircases attract light, the bathrooms atract water.
For plants with bigger appetites for water, maintenence can be severely lowered.
For plants with stronger perfumes you can almost create a blockage for those undesirable smells…
And as we can see here, plants always complement a good rustic design with a hint of life!

Image from Portico Design Group 

Staircases, hallways, living rooms and bathrooms, we still have one very important and tasty room left to talk about: the kitchen!
Why use vegetables as decoration when you can eat them?
Vertical gardens are the future of indoor gardens made present.
Using some clever labeling and some good seeds, you can plant a whole diet on the wall!
To recreate this kitchen with your own two hands in all it’s functionality and simplicity, all you have to do is get some glass planters, some pipe clamps to hold them, some rubber bands to protect the glass from the clamps, a wooden board to keep this all neatly held onto the wall and some paint and chalk to decorate and lable everything to your tastes.

 
Image from Camille Styles

First of all, mark the placement of the planters in the wooden board with a pencil.
Then, paint the clamps with the best matching color.
Nail the pipe clamps onto the wooden board then put the planters on them and tighten them in with a screwdriver.
Dont forget about the rubber bands and dont tighten too much or else you’ll crack the planters!
Usually the wooden boards already have a way of hanging onto the wall like a painting or a shelf with some rope or nails, think about the amount of plants you want beforehand and check the weight constraints of all of these materials.
To plant the plants themselves we suggest some activated coal on the bottom of the planters, on top of the soil to regulate the water levels more efficiently.
If all goes according to plan, you got yourself a beautiful piece hanging from your wall… that’s edible!

 
Image from Bright Green

You can also find pre-fabricated solutions for these small vertical farms to give life to your walls with minimal effort and great results!
Try to personalize the shapes and sizes of the different plants to create interesting patterns or tasty crops.
This model, on the other hand, needs more light than one made from glass jars.
Adjust the sunlight to your cultivation medium!

Image from Apartment Therapy

There are other varieties of vertical gardens made right at home, like this used wooden pallet solution.
For a more detailed guide about pallets we suggest our article: “Pallet Ideas!”

Images from Living Wall Art

But cultivation is clearly not the only example we have of this incredible invention, we have but only scratched the surface of the subject!
All we need to mention is the better air quality or the natural aestetics as a green wallpaper with an irresistable texture…
We can go even farther though and also mention the health benefits and even the financial benefits!
A vertical garden can be used as a mild substitute for the usual stuffy air conditioning. Plants naturally balance out the humidity and temperature levels whilst also reducing the overall noise  and even your stress!

Image from West Elm

You dont need to go as far as plant an entire garden in one single wall. You can be more subtle and use some ex-bottles or ex-glass decorations to hang around as small  receptacles for life in it’s most innocent and delicate state.
Here we find small examples of aeroponics, the cultivation technique to keep plants suspended on air.
These are easily maintained through small spraying of nutricious solutions on them.
The cost here is minimal since the oxigenated roots easily absorve the nutrients and need much less of them to grow and blossom.

Image from Justina Blakeney 

Honestly there are tons of different solutions for indoor natural landscapes.
Its all about using and reusing materials and plants creatively, personalizing them with their vivid colors and shapes in mind and using all of this for your bold ideas!
Bring the bohemian and tropical life into your own confortable house.
Lets make this green revolution happen!

PS: For further suggestions about gardens or small farms on your balconies, consult our articles: “Balcony Gardens” and “A vegetable garden in your balcony”