Choosing plants to grow indoors can be a little like chicken and egg: Do you buy your plants and then find a good spot to put them, or do you first evaluate your indoor space to see what growing conditions you have to work with? It’s tempting to buy a fabulous plant at the garden centre and then try to find somewhere to put it when we bring it home (and many of us have done that!), but it’s a bit of a risk. If your home doesn’t have a window that will provide sufficient sunlight for the plant to thrive, you’ll end up with a lackluster specimen unless you spend more money on artificial plant lights to give the plant what it needs.

Sometimes we start growing plants indoors because we want to grow edibles. Sometimes we just want to add some greenery to our home decor. If you know specifically what plants you want to grow, then your task is to ensure you can provide the growing conditions they need to thrive. On the other hand, if you just want to add some plants here and there but you’re not sure which ones to buy, then you have more flexibility.

You’ll first need to evaluate your home for appropriate spaces; what are the natural light levels from windows in various rooms, and where are the heat sources and air conditioning units? By planning your indoor garden, you’ll know what growing conditions your home can provide for plants. Once you know what growing conditions your home can provide for plants, and you’ve decided how much space you’d like to use for indoor gardening, then you’re ready to choose your plants. You’ll be looking for plants whose requirements (e.g., amount of light) and growth habit (e.g., maximum height and width) match the spaces you have available in your home.

This segment will introduce you to the different types of plants you might consider, and walk you through what information to look for when making plant selections for your indoor garden.

What You’ll Learn in This Guide

A concise introduction explaining that this guide covers everything you need to know about selecting the right indoor plants, growing them successfully, and using effective techniques to propagate and pair them for mutual benefit.

Learning Objectives

• Discover different categories of indoor plants for aesthetics, air quality, edibles, and blooms
• Learn container gardening techniques, including choosing the right containers and exploring vertical setups
• Master indoor seed starting, propagation methods, and seed-saving best practices
• Understand the principles of companion planting indoors for improved growth and pest control

Step-by-Step Content Sections

Building a thriving indoor garden starts with selecting plant species that will truly flourish in your unique living space. Follow our step-by-step framework below to explore different plant categories, understand specific growing needs, and confidently choose the perfect greenery for your home.

Step 1: Types of Plants

Get an overview of the three main categories of plants for indoor gardening: tropical houseplants, outdoor garden plants, and edible plants. We will take a closer look at these different categories and explore how these plants may—or may not—be suitable to grow indoors.

Step 2: Matching Your Plant Choices to Your Indoor Garden Space

Whatever plants you choose to grow in your indoor garden, you’ll need to match each plant’s needs with the growing conditions—and space—you can provide. Learn what information to look for in a plant description, including light requirements, humidity, and plant size, and master how to accurately read a plant tag.

Step 3: Matching Your Plant Choices to Your Time Commitments

You’ll need to consider how much maintenance each plant will need and whether or not you have the time to commit to ensure the health of all your indoor plants. Discover the regular and occasional tasks your plants will require, such as watering, pruning, repotting, and maintaining the foliage.

Step 4: Plant Safety and Toxicity Considerations

When growing plants indoors, it’s important to keep in mind the health and safety of all family members, including pets. Understand how certain plants can be toxic if ingested, while others may pose a risk of physical injury through pointy spines or sharp leaf edges.

Step 5: Indoor Garden Design Ideas

What plants you choose to grow indoors—and how many—will depend on your space and home decor. Get a brief overview of basic design principles, such as grouping plants with similar needs, before diving deeper into our upcoming dedicated indoor garden design guide.

Curated by Our Botanical Expert

Kathy Goddard

Kathy is an independent garden designer and consultant. She obtained her BSc in Botany/Environmental Sciences from Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. She worked in the gardening retail industry for several years before running a small garden design and installation business on the West Coast for eleven years. She then moved to the East Coast where she now works at a nursery and continues to consult with clients about all their garden and houseplant needs.