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Plants, fruits add life to your home Flowering Plants
You can add beauty, fragrance and a sense of springtime to your home by decorating with lush plants and potted trees. Decorating with plants “kind of fell out of vogue” for a time, says California-based interior designer Molly Luetkemeyer. “It was such a ’70s thing, or I think people associated it with the ’70s,” but it’s become popular again in recent years. Today, “designer spaces pretty much always include some element of life,” says interior designer Brian Patrick Flynn, founder of decordemon.com. “While that can be anything from coral to tortoise shells, pressed leaves or even a tiny bowl with a goldfish, the most common way to add life is with potted plants and trees.” We’ve asked Flynn, Luetkemeyer and Betsy Burnham of Burnham Design in Los Angeles for advice on choosing the right plants, potting them perfectly and keeping them blooming.
“I love plants that flower in the spring,” says Luetkemeyer, who recommends daffodils, narcissus and hyacinth. She also loves gardenia plants for their heady fragrance and shiny leaves. “Any plant that’s a woody plant, with a wood that’s exposed, is going to be a little bit trickier,” she says. Consider researching gardenias online to learn how much water and how much light your plant will need.
Countertop Herbs “This might be a great time to put some herbs in your kitchen,” Luetkemeyer says. Many grocery stores and nurseries sell herb plants such as mint or basil that are already blooming in small plastic pots. You can re-pot them into more attractive containers, then cluster several together on a countertop.
Perfect Potting
Where To Start?
Fabulous Ferns All three designers like ferns,
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flanking a fireplace or focal point without growing out and over it.”
Melissa Rayworth The Associated Press
“Talking to someone at a nursery is a really good idea,” says Burnham, because employees at garden stores and plant nurseries are usually glad to answer questions about choosing and caring for plants. You can choose plants based on the spot in your home where you’d like to keep them (sun-drenched windowsills, shady corners or in-between spaces that get a mix of sun and shade). Or you can select a plant you love and then ask for advice on where to place it. If you have pets or small children, ask whether a plant you’re considering is poisonous. And if you want plants that need very little attention, don’t be shy about saying so.
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Brian Patrick Flynn, Sarah Dorio/The Associated Press
To add life to dark, well-shaded rooms, Brian Patrick Flynn is a fan of the fiddle leaf fig tree. such as the maidenhair. “They’re so delicate and soft,” says Luetkemeyer. “They’re fresh, and they’re that pale green that’s the beginning green of spring.” Maidenhairs are fairly easy to care for: “They need to be watered,” she says, “but if you water them, they hang around.” Consider grouping several together in small pots or buying just one large fern. “They can g round a space grouped together in odd numbers in pots of varied heights on the floor,” Flynn says. Or “you can use them to add life high up in a room with hanging basket planters. And then they also look excellent potted and placed on a pedestal, coffee
table or console table.”
Potted Trees “A statement tree,” says Burnham, “adds height to your room, and plays with the light at a window.” Her clients often opt for the colour and fragrance of small citrus trees in their homes or at the entrance to a patio or yard. “They require light and require water,” Burnham says, “but they have fabulous floral blooms in addition to the colour of the fruit. Flynn also suggests fig trees: “They’re super architectural and almost kind of minimalist. Since these grow straight upwards, they’re perfect for cor ners or
“What you plant something in makes just as much of a statement as the tree or plant itself,” says Burnham. Take time shopping for exactly what you want. “Add a little extra effort,” she says, “and you get a really chic little addition to your room.”
Non-Plant Greenery If you don’t wish to commit to even a low-maintenance plant, Flynn suggests you “work in fruits in decorative ways.” “Oranges, clementines, apples and limes ... look excellent grouped in vessels,” he says. “The key to getting it right is to separate them, and not have different types of fruit within the same grouping.” Whatever kind you choose, Flynn is sure you’ll be happier if you add some kind of greenery to your home.
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What is Old is New. Porchscape is a traditionally styled neighbourhood in Harbour Landing. The urban design includes, attractive street-trees, post-top street lights, and sidewalks separated from the street by boulevards. Front porches and pedestrian friendly streetscapes are key traits to this style and are sure to create a warm and safe place to call home.
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