With the first real frost rolling in this week and the start of those ever familiar sub zero temperatures its time to batten down the garden shed and put away those outdoor tools but that’s not a reason to give up on gardening. Here are some of our tips to keep your gardening hobby alive this winter with some of the best indoor plants to keep you active and brighten up your home.
Hyacinths
- Strong fragrant blooms and gorgeous deep colours will easily fill the room with beautiful
fragrances. - Place in a cool but bright spot and after winter place the bulbs in the garden to enjoy these flowers all year long
Azalea
- Lush bright pink and purple flowers this plant is great for a cool room and should be watered sparingly with rainwater (lime-free water).
- Keep the plant flowers alive for longer by dead heading the plant
- Don’t place near a radiator as the plant will dry out and may die.
Cyclamen 
- With its red and white blooms this plant is a guaranteed fragrance filler for the room. Place on a cool windowsill and water from the bottom as directly on top could rot the corm.
- Keep the plant flowering by removing spent blooms.
Poinsettia
- Following on from yesterdays look at this Christmas wonder, this lovely festive plant will brighten up any home this Christmas.
- Avoid one in which the coloured bracts have discolouration or are not the trade mark bright colours as this can imply they were packaged to early and to tightly
- Avoid picking them up from places which have left them outside for to long and also have been tightly wrapped in their cling film casings.
Cymbidium
- Add some tropical winter-flowering orchids to your home with this lovely orchid originating from Asia.
- Place in a cool but bright part of the house and limit the plant to watering only when the bottom of the pot is dry.
Christmas Cactus 
- The simplest plant to take care of. Being incredibly low maintenance and versatile to surviving in central heated homes.
- The plant needs 8 hours sunlight and 16 hours in darkness to stimulate its flowers blooming
- This plant is a tropical plant and requires more watering than a standard cactus would. Try to keep the top inch of soil moist so check the soil every other day and water accordingly.
