How to style indoor hanging plants — The Wayward

Intro Emma Vidgen // @emma_vee

Imagery, words and styling Lisa Eldred Steinkopf // @houseplantguru

I’ll be honest; when it comes to indoor plants, my track record is patchy. For every lush Monstera, I’ve had three failed Fiddle Leaf figs. It’s not uncommon for me to send a failing Ficus to my mother-in-law’s place for emergency resuscitation (aka: plant rehab).

But one kind of greenery I’ve had reasonable success with is hanging house plants. You know the kind that don’t need much light and grow long, spindly tendrils that taunt any passing-by cat? I’ve never quite known what to do when they really take off, so I awkwardly wrap the leaves around each other. The result is underwhelming to say the least.

Turns out there is another way, and it’s kind of amazing! Hanging plants can be trained to frame windows, shelves and recesses, and they actually look pretty too. Here, house plant guru and author of Grow In The Dark Lisa Eldred Steinkopf reveals how to turn your hanging house plant into a living, breathing frame for your life.

VINING WINDOW DÉCOR

Is your pothos or heartleaf philodendron getting out of hand? Are the vines trailing to the floor and the cats are batting at them? Why not move your vine to a stand or shelf by the window and frame your window with vines.

There are a few ways to accomplish this. The easiest way is to just pound nails in the wall and drape the vines over them. Cup hooks may work better and are easily screwed into the walls. If you don’t want to make a large number of holes in the wall, or if you are renting and it isn’t allowed, you can find adhesive hooks at a local hardware or home store that stick to the wall but come off easily when they need to. What a wonderful way to frame your view out the window!

Adhesive hooks are a perfect solution to help train a plant around a window or up a wall. But be sure the strip is large enough to accommodate the plant’s future growth, or else the hooks may harm the plant. Check the plant often to prevent this damage from occurring.

If you have a window you would like to frame with vines, use small nails—or adhesive hooks, if you are renting or don’t want to damage your walls—to rest the stems where you want them to climb.

Grow in the Dark_CVR.jpg — *Grow In The Dark* by Lisa Eldred Steinkopf is available now through Murdoch Books ($32.99)

Images and Text from *Grow in the Dark* by Lisa Eldred Steinkopf. Cool Springs Press RRP $32.99’. Out now