Top Tips for Plants in Shaded Rooms

As I have mentioned in my previous posts and my about page, I have a long narrow flat so the rooms can get quite shaded the further away you are from the window.

My living room is south facing and the light that it does get is powerful and bright but just not much of it gets far in. My kitchen and bathroom are north facing and also get quite bright light but bathroom is small and does not have many surfaces I can put plants on (the ones that can survive on north-facing light).

I have moved my plants around a few times trying to work out the best locations. Earlier on in my plant journey, I would just wing it but more and more I have been reading up on the needs of individual plants and learning from other fellow plant enthusiasts. 

You obviously can’t change the amount of light a room gets – unless you’re going to do some serious renovations! But there are a few things you can do to try to make the best of your shaded abode.

Three Tips for Shaded Rooms

• Invest in blinds or sheer curtains so that you maximise the amount of light you get. Heavy curtains can look beautiful but will obviously block out too much light until you open them up, whereas blinds or sheer curtains will allow light to filter throughout the day. An alternative is to use onscreen window filters (I will post more about this later), this is good for people who need to have curtains (for example to blackout) or other reasons.

• Position your plants near the window (depending on their light sensitivity). This is an obvious one but essential for your plants that need a lot of light. It can be annoying that you can’t spread your plants around the room but it is worth it in the long run.

• Make sure you are dusting and cleaning your plants’ leaves so that you can ensure every single drop of that shady light is getting through! Use a duster, a cloth or some water on a paper towel to get the dust of your leaves. Bonus is that they will look nice and shiny.

Those are my three top tips for now. I’ll update and add new tips as they come to mind.

Check out my Plant Introduction Series:

Aggie the Aglanoema

Callie the Calathea

Mary the Monstera

Alice the Alocasia

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