By Katie Vance
Today I’m going to share three secrets for finding cheap house plants. And by cheap I mean indoor plants that are inexpensive, high-quality, and beneficial.
House plants are a lovely way to add green to your home while eliminating toxins and purifying the air. You don’t have to break your budget, though! In this article, we’ll share three easy ways to fill your house with house plants on a budget.
Last year, I decided to add more house plants to help purify the air in my home. I started with one large green Pothos and that one led to an English Ivy, which led to many more. Before I knew it, every room in my house had at least one plant!
Some of my house plants do more than purify the air, like my aloe which I use for burns and skincare. Others are just beautiful to look at, like my Cyclamen with gorgeous purple flowers and deep green foliage.
You might be surprised to find that adding plants to my home cost me very little. I’m very frugal and watch my budget carefully, so I found three creative ways to add cheap house plants to my home. Here’s how I did it.
Cheap House Plants: 3 Ways
Here are three ways I fill my home with cheap indoor plants that are beautiful and beneficial.
Propagating House Plants
This is probably the easiest way to add more house plants to your home. While it won’t help with variety, growing house plants from cuttings is very simple. I did this with both my Pothos and English Ivy and it took just a few weeks.
The process of propagating house plants is very basic. It is also my favorite way to get cheap house plants because they’re free! Lastly, this process works for many house plants, including ivy, African violets, verbena, Philodendron, and more.
- Simply cut a healthy 3-8 inch section of your plant,
- Remove most of the leaves at the base, leaving a few at the top
- Place the stem in water, all the way up to the leaves
- Place the jar of water in a sunny windowsill and change the water every 3-5 days
- Wait until a good root system has grown (this can take several weeks)
- Plant the stem and root system in potting soil or compost
This is my preferred method because I use house plants that are already thriving in my home. This makes them not only cheap but free! It also means the cuttings will have more success with the existing conditions. Lastly, I already know I love how these plants look!
Cheap House Plants by Trading with Friends
This method is great to add variety to your home! I love trading plants or giving cuttings to friends because sometimes a plant that isn’t working well for me will thrive at their home. Also, plants make lovely gifts. Instead of taking cut flowers as gifts, I will often take a houseplant instead. It will last longer and will be able to be enjoyed for years to come!
When trading plants, it is important to keep your eye out for common houseplant pests like spider mites, whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs, and common brown scale. Generally, some insecticidal soap or a strong stream of water will be enough to get rid of these bugs, but it is important to do this right away because an infestation can quickly spread and cause damage to all house plants.
Buy Indoor Plants on Clearance
One of my favorite places to shop for cheap house plants is the clearance aisle at my local greenhouse. Many plants that aren’t thriving can be found there. All these house plants need is a little TLC and they will be beautiful again in no time.
Common issues that make house plants die are over or under watering, too much or too little light, and being in the wrong temperature. When I buy cheap indoor plants on the clearance aisle, I research exactly what the plant needs and try to put it in the ideal environment.
I generally avoid buying plants that I think may have root rot, because once that starts, you really can’t save the plant. I look for plants that might have signs of neglect, under watering, are small, or that have damaged leaves. These ones will likely come back with a little TLC.
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Do you have other ideas for finding cheap house plants? Tell us about them!
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