The current housing market is intense; houses are hard to find for buyers or renters, but easy to sell for those wanting to move on.

If you are selling, making sure each room looks appealing to potential buyers is important. Adding gorgeous greenery is an easy way to bring any room to life.

Plants in winter may scare away most but finding plants that thrive in the cold climate is a guaranteed way to ensure they will stick around.

Steven Spiller the owner and director of Exotic Botanic says there are many plants that are easy to maintain in the colder months, but the following five are his recommended picks for any home.

1. Happy plant (dracaena fragrans massangeana)

This vibrant plant would fit perfectly in a dining or living area, to add a welcoming feeling to any open-plan room.

Steven explains this plant has low watering requirements, especially in the larger sizes.

“If you have this plant, and it is on the smaller side, it can be watered every 3+ weeks in winter, and the larger ones can go even longer”, Steven explains.

“You can get these guys in small sizes, but I always recommend getting a bigger size because the main stumps don’t grow taller only the new offshoots do.”

Steven also shared that this beauty labelled the happy plant, can deal with medium light but will grow best in a brighter position.

2. Snake plant (dracaene trifasciata formerly sanseveria trifasciata)

3. ZZ Gem (zamioculcas zamiifolia)

These two gorgeous smaller plants would flourish on a bedroom side table or in a bathroom, bringing life into rooms where other décor options are limited.

Steven says both plants have similar care requirements, with both being extremely tolerant to underwatering, only needing watering once over the winter.

“Be careful when watering because if they come potted in peat moss, as the plant is very water retentive, and they more often than not rot and die before the peat dries out in the colder months” Steven explains.

These plants can easily tolerate low light situations, but again will do much better in a brighter spot if possible.

Being extremely low maintenance, these plants can be placed in your chosen spot, and forgotten about. Perfect for preparing to sell your home!

4. Devils’ ivy (epipremnum aureum)

This hanging plant is perfect for a window spot you don’t know what to do with, adding to curb appeal with a lovely view through the window.

Steven says this plant would do fantastically in front of a window, with watering only required every 3+ weeks when it’s cold.

This plant is also often potted with peat moss, so remember to not drown it when watering.

5. Cast Iron Plant (aspidistra elatior)

Steven mentions this is an underrated option when picking plants, however, this plant offers large green foliage that is easy to match with any pot.

This plant can go for a while without watering, like the Snake plant and the ZZ Gem.

This is another set-and-forget plant that adds a large statement to a room that otherwise might be lacking that wow factor.

Steven has some other general winter plant tips to remember.

Watering

Steven shared that we all can get away with a bit of over-loving when watering our plants in the warmer months, but that won’t fly when winter rolls around.

“Once it gets cold your plants won’t be so forgiving and you will be blessed with an abundance of root rot and dead plants if you incorrectly water” Steven explains.

“If you were watering your plants every two weeks in the warmer periods then you can add another week or two minimum for when it gets cold”.

An item Steven swears by is a moisture meter, which provides a clear indication on the optimal watering of your plants.

“To save some stress a moisture meter is the best tool you can possibly get for your indoor plants and for under $15 it won’t hurt your wallet”, Steven said.

Steven’s golden rule is that it is always better to underwater an indoor plant than to overwater it.

Light

Winter brings with it gloomy skies and limited natural sunlight, dampening the atmosphere of any room.

As Steven explains there is a lot less natural light, at a lower intensity over winter so it is best to position all plants in locations where they can capture as much as possible throughout the day.

“The cosier your plants are to windows the better and make sure the windows are obstructed as little as possible,” he said.

Steven mentioned it may also be a good idea to supplement some plants with grow lights until more favourable conditions return.

Steven and his partner Laura have always been interested in plants, having started their business selling plants from home.

They soon outgrew their home and built a large enough customer base to open their first store location, on North East Road in Modbury.

Exotic Botanic has now expanded to a second location in Royston Park, further providing hundreds of varieties of both plants and pots.