How to Grow an Urban Jungle
Growing an urban jungle is essentially just picking the right plants for indoor containers and providing the best conditions so they can grow and thrive. Here are some indoor jungle ideas and tips to get your creativity flowing:
Use what you already have to arrange plants. Bookshelves and windowsills, for instance, are great staging points for jungle plants.
Use hooks in the ceiling for hanging plants and to create more vertical plant space.
Create different layers and textures. Put trailing plants up high, tall plants and small trees on the floor, and more compact plants at all levels from the ground up to the shelves.
Don’t neglect the bathroom. A few tropical plants in the bathroom will benefit from the humidity and give it a spa feeling.
Get the conditions right. Make sure you understand what your plants need, in terms of humidity, watering, temperature, and fertilizer, so you can help them thrive.
Choose low-maintenance plants if you don’t have a lot of time. The jungle will quickly wither if you use plants that need a lot of care, but you aren’t prepared to put in the time.
Ideas for Urban Jungle Plants
Any plant that grows well indoors and in a container will do, but some plants are more jungle-like than others:
Fiddle-Leaf Fig – The fiddle-leaf fig plant screams tropical oasis, with large leaves and sprawling, vine-like growth.
Peace Lily – For beginners, peace lily is a tough plant to kill. It needs regular watering but will bounce right back if you neglect it for a while. It has large, tropical leaves and pretty, white leaf bracts and can grow quite large.
Philodendron – This is another great choice for newbies or for a low-maintenance garden. The pretty foliage trails, so philodendron is good for hanging planters or for high shelves.
Sansevieria – For striking, tall foliage, try this one. Snake plants have long, spiky, upright leaves and are easy to grow.
Pothos – Pothos has beautiful foliage, and comes in a variety of colors and patterns. It doesn’t need a lot of light, so you can brighten up darker corners with it.
Succulents – A cactus or other succulent is not exactly a jungle plant, but it will provide more visual interest. And, these plants are very low-maintenance.
