Trees that you can have in your living room

Trees are not usually plants that are kept indoors, since it is very easy for their leaves to touch the ceiling over the years and for the branches to bend in an attempt to prevent that from happening. But the truth is that there are some species that can be pruned so they don't grow that much.

Thus it is possible to have trees in the living room, a room in which, in addition, we spend a lot of time and that, just for that, it is interesting to have it well decorated with plants. Do you want to know which are the tree species that we recommend?

Selection of trees for living room

Trees are generally large plants. According to experts a tree is a plant that measures a minimum of 5 meters in height and that branches away from the ground. A common house measures, from the floor to the ceiling, 3 or 4 meters at most. Therefore, you have to think very well what species you are going to have inside, as not all of them tolerate pruning.

In fact, when in doubt the best we can do is look for trees that have small leaves, and / or that are very resistant, such as these:

Adamsonia (Baobab)

El baobab It is a tree typical of the arid and semi-arid regions of Australia, Africa and Madagascar. It grows slowly, developing a robust trunk up to 30 meters high, and a crown that branches away from the ground. It has green leaves, composed of 5-11 leaflets, which fall during the dry season in their natural state, or in autumn / winter when in a temperate region.

Camellia japonica (Camellia)

La camellia It is a very slow growing shrub or tree with beautiful red flowers, which reaches a height of between 2 and 11 meters in height, depending on the conditions in which you live. It has simple, glossy dark green leaves that remain on the plant for several months, until little by little they are renewed. It is very interesting for the living room, as it brings a beautiful oriental touch.

Coffea arabica (Coffee)

El Coffea arabica It is a plant that can measure between 9 and 12 meters in height. It has evergreen, ovate, glossy dark green leaves. What's more, produces white flowers and fruits that contain caffeine; in fact, these are used to make coffee, the beverage that many of us drink in the morning.

Ficus benjamina

El Ficus benjamina It is an evergreen tree that, although it can reach 15 meters in height when on the ground, in a pot and indoors, it remains much smaller. Even so, it has to be pruned regularly, trimming the branches to keep its crown compact. It has green leaves, although there are cultivars that have them variegated (green and yellow). There are even some "dwarfs", like the Ficus benjamina »Kinky», which does not exceed one meter in height.

ficus lyrata

El ficus lyrata, or ficus lira, is an evergreen tree that can measure up to 10 meters in height, but at home it will be difficult for it to exceed 3 meters. It has large, green leaves and grows slowly indoors.. That is why it is ideal to have, for example, next to the sofa or near the television cabinet.

Delonix direction (flamboyant)

El flamboyan It is an evergreen or deciduous tree that grows 10 meters tall. It has a trunk that tends to grow somewhat crooked from the beginning, and a parasolate crown composed of bipinnate green leaves.. It is a plant that in temperate regions must be kept indoors, at least in winter, since it does not resist frost.

Pachira aquatica (Pachira)

The pachira or Guayana chestnut is an evergreen plant that reaches, in its natural state, 18 meters in height. It has large green leaves and palmate, a feature that makes it look very pretty. It grows at a slow rate, and does not require much care. It is a plant that can be in your living room for a long time.

How to care for trees indoors?

Location

If you dare to have one in your living room, it is important that you provide it with some care so that it grows well. The first and most urgent thing is to put them in a room where there is a lot of natural light; hence the living room is a good option as long as it has windows.

Yes, You must not put them near the air conditioner or any other that generates air currents, since otherwise the leaves would dry and fall.

Flower pot

Another topic that we must talk about is the flowerpot. The roots must have enough space to grow. It is true that we are not interested in their growing too much, but if we keep them in a small pot the trees will end up dying. Because, try to plant them in one that is large, at least five centimeters wider and taller than the one you already have, and transplanting them approximately every 3 years.

Substratum

The substrate we use has to be good. A mixture of peat moss with a little bit of perlite mixed in will do.. Another option is to buy the ready-made mix, such as the universal plant substrate, or one for green plants. Of course, I advise choosing brands such as Flower (for sale here), or Terra Profesional (for sale here), since their mixtures are light and allow the roots to develop normally.

Irrigation

On the other hand, watering will be moderate in spring and especially in summer, but at the end of this and as the temperatures drop, it is necessary to space the waterings more and more. It is easy to fail, especially at the beginning, so what better way than to use a humidity meter to guide you.

Pruning

If we talk about pruning, it will be done in autumn if it is a deciduous tree, or in spring if it is an evergreen. We are interested in keeping them small, or at least not touching the ceiling, so it is crucial to prune them since they are young to keep the crown more or less compact and not too high. To do this, you have to trim the branches a little at a time (that is, every year), in this way we will force them to branch lower. But beware: do not abuse pruning. If we cut many whole branches we will weaken them, hence they have to be small pruning.

I hope you enjoy having trees in your living room.