3 Best Smelling and Temporary Houseplants to Perfume Your Home
Plants are a wonderful way to bring a little bit of nature inside, especially during the cold winter months. Decorative plants have become an integral piece of interior design, and now it's even better when those houseplants smell good! In this video and blog post, we'll introduce you to three of our favorite plants that you can use to perfume your home.Daffodils
First up, we've got daffodils (also known by their botanical name, narcissus). With their delicate, symmetrical petals, daffodils are a favorite spring flower because they're so unbelievably beautiful. They also smell wonderful! Though their scent is difficult to pinpoint, it strikes as a naturally playful floral scent that is not at all harsh or overwhelming. They perfume rooms in a way that feels very pleasant and nice to be around, almost comforting but not super sweet. Trust us when we tell you that these smell amazing!
Freshly cut yellow daffodils in bloom, without bulbs.
However, there’s one distinction that we truly recommend looking out for. Yellow daffodils may smell wonderful, but paper white daffodils have a polarizing reputation as the ‘cilantros of the flower world.’ Though some people can’t get enough of white daffodils, they have a tendency to smell foul, almost like cat urine to others. White daffodils have a different chemical composition from yellow daffodils that cause them to give off different scents, so we would recommend comparing both in person before you choose one to fragrance your home. If you enjoy the look of white daffodils but not their fragrance, consider placing them outside of your home. Whichever color you choose in the end, we’re confident that you won't regret purchasing this plant!Care guide
Daffodils are very easy to grow and can last all year with the right care. When keeping daffodils and other bulbs as houseplants, keep these ideas in mind:- You can force your bulbs to bloom through cold treatment. This is achieved by keeping them in the fridge and then at a cool, sunny window in your house.
- Choose pots that have good drainage and are six to eight inches deep.
- When buying bulbs make sure that they are mildew and mold-free.
- Plant the bulbs close together in your pot. Remember to use new, commercial potting soil and not garden soil.
Miniature Roses
Next on our list are miniature roses. So many things are simply more appealing when they come in a miniature size, and roses are definitely part of that list! These are an adorable plant to have in your home. Keep in mind that they are not meant to be a houseplant, so your miniature roses will have a short life cycle inside your home.
Potted miniature pink roses.
Care guide
A master key for keeping these healthy and blooming for longer periods indoors is using grow lights for indoor plants that mimic the light of the sun. Aside from proper lighting with the plant light, these minis also require consistent temperatures. Ideally, temperatures should be within the mid 60s during the night, with warmer mid 70s temperatures during the day. In addition, avoid placing your roses near a radiator or a draft. Guide to Houseplants provides a comprehensive article on caring for indoor rose bushes for anyone interested in delving deeper into the topic.Primroses
Last but not least, we highly recommend purchasing primroses to perfume your home. They give off a deliciously soft, sweet and tangy aroma, which is comparable to that of a lemon candy or an orange lollipop. If you enjoy citrus scents, the primrose may be for you. Visually, primroses also add an adorably bright touch to any space. They come in a myriad of colors to suit almost any color scheme.
Red and yellow are just a few of the many colors that primroses come from!
Care guide
Primroses are not technically meant to be grown indoors and kept as houseplants. Typically, they are meant to be enjoyed while their blooms last for a few weeks and to be kind of either replanted or tossed after the flowering period is over. Though primroses are considered a long living plant, encouraging them to rebloom indoors is an incredibly difficult task. Because of this, many people simply choose to plant their primroses in a garden after their flowers wilt. If you decide that you want to keep your primroses indoors, here are a few helpful tips to guide the process:- They need bright direct or indirect light.
- Indoor primroses are highly susceptible to root rot, so a fine balance of moisture in the soil is key. Water whenever the top of the soil feels dry, and ensure that the whole planter of soil never dries out completely as primroses wilt and die quickly in dry soil.
- High humidity is also essential, which can be improved by placing your plant on a pebble tray.
- Primroses enjoy temperatures below 80 F, with ideal temperatures between 50 and 65 F.
- Fertilize your plant about once a month except for when they are in bloom. This is when they should not be fertilized at all.
- Once again, encouraging a primrose growing indoors to bloom again is difficult. We recommend moving your primrose outdoors during the summer and bringing it back inside for the winter for a dormancy period of one to two months.
- These tips will improve the chances of blooming, but even a strict adherence to these guidelines will not guarantee that your primrose houseplant will bloom again. However, they do significantly improve the odds of your blooms lasting longer!
