So you or a loved one is enjoying the benefits of moving into an assisted living community.
But you’re looking for easy and fun hobbies or tactics to make your new home homier. Well, if you are looking for a good way to brighten up your senior living community, plants are an excellent option!
Unfortunately, many seniors may not have the energy or mobility they once had. This can make gardening and taking care of plants difficult. Luckily, there are many very easy to care for plants that are perfect for people who live in senior communities.
Low-Maintenance Indoor Plants
If your senior facility allows plants in resident rooms or in common areas, you want to ensure they are super easy to take care of. A plant that requires tons of sunlight and regular watering is probably not ideal for this situation. Luckily, quite a few plants are built to withstand low-light conditions and inconsistent watering schedules, making them perfect for indoors.
Pothos
The Pothos plant is an excellent option for those who want to bring more green into their space. It’s also an excellent choice if your senior center doesn’t have the best lighting or you don’t water often. This plant will thrive in conditions that may otherwise seem impossible thanks to its ability to grow in dark conditions and survive both over and under-watering. These are also one of the best plants for purifying your air naturally.
Aglaonema/Chinese Evergreen
The Aglaonema or Chinese Evergreen plant is another great option for bringing more life into their seniors center. This low-maintenance plant can survive in a wide variety of conditions. If you can never remember if you watered it already or not, it can survive excess watering no problem. It also won’t mind the lower light levels that many places with elderly residents have inside.
Ponytail Palm
If your resident has a nice sunny window, you can place a ponytail palm in it, and it will thrive. It does have a little more touchy watering schedule, and overwatering can cause it to drown because it actually lives off its reserves in the roots, which is why it can go long periods of time without watering. This plant can get a little cold in the winter months, so make sure to move it to an interior wall away from windows!
Jade
The jade plant is an adorable plant with little bulbous leaves that actually reserve water and can live for up to a month without water. But when it does get watered regularly and gets plenty of sun, it will explode and grow week by week.
Spider Plant
The spider plant is another excellent option for those who want to make their space a little greener. This plant also thrives in low-light conditions, which means it’s perfect if your resident rooms don’t have tons of natural lighting or plenty of windows.
Non-Toxic Houseplants
Some plants can be toxic to both humans and animals. Therefore, it’s important to know what you’re bringing into your senior community to keep everybody safe—humans, kids, and pets alike. We should mention that the pothos plant mentioned above should not be eaten and can make you sick to your stomach. The same goes for lilies, English ivy, and snake plants. However, the plants below are perfect if you’re concerned about toxicity!
Christmas Cactus
The Christmas cactus is one of the best non-toxic plants you can grow indoors, without a doubt. It’s also very easy to care for and doesn’t require much, if any, sunlight! The fun thing about these is you can time them to bloom at Christmas time. Just cut back on watering for about two months before then, and only water when the top inch of soil is completely dry. It should time it, so they bloom just in time for the holidays!
Boston Fern
One of the easiest plants to grow indoors, with little direct sunlight required. Boston ferns thrive in low light conditions and love moist soil with plenty of humidity. Keeping these in a tray with pebbles or spritzing it with a water bottle every so often can help them thrive in the colder months where humidity is down.
Parlor Palm
These beautiful plants require very little light and only need to be watered every few weeks or so! They also do well in higher humidity environments which is another plus for seniors who might already live with a humidifier in their rooms. Their palms will love it!
String of Pearls
The String of Pearls is a very low-maintenance plant that loves sunshine and warmth. Their beautiful draping pearls will hang over the edge of the pot, so this plant is perfect for a hanging basket or to sit on a shelf by the window. Never leave them sitting in water, and only water them when the soil is dry, and you should see it grow like crazy.
Prayer Plant
Another easy-to-care-for plant, the Prayer Plant thrives in lower light areas and can be watered when the soil feels dry. This is a perfect option for those who might not have time to water regularly or don’t want to worry about remembering a watering schedule!
Scent-Free Flowers
Maybe you have residents who are very sensitive to smells, but you still want to introduce some floral arrangements into their space. There are a few flowers that are scent-free that are perfect for such a thing.
Sunflower
Sunflowers are a beautiful, simple flower to add to your floral arrangement. They have no scent and will last for quite a few days without dropping too many petals and making a mess.
Dahlias
Another excellent, non-scented flower that will last a long time and smell great is the dahlia. You can choose any color you want for this type of blossom, which means they’re perfect if your resident likes to match their flowers with their favorite colors!
Hibiscus
The Hibiscus is a bright and cheerful flower that won’t give off a scent but will definitely brighten the space. They come in a wide array of colors and are the perfect addition to any senior living space.
If you’re looking for low allergen plants, try carnations, orchids, roses, and tulips.
Other Alternatives
If your senior community does not allow plants in resident rooms or wants an easier alternative to maintaining the space’s decor, here are some great options to go with.
Fake Plants
Fake plants are fail-proof for anyone. Places like IKEA and Target sell fake plants that look like the real thing! Residents and visitors alike can enjoy the beautiful color and energy these bring to the spaces without the hassle of planting, watering, or throwing away the dead ones.
An Outdoor Garden
If you want to incorporate a more interactive piece of plants in your senior living community, try growing an outdoor garden. The residents who once owned their own homes with gardens would love to tend to the garden and see what grows. You could use flowers, plants, or even vegetables and make it a fun group project.
Plant Art
And for the ultimate ease, hang up pictures of your residents’ favorite plants! Those will never have to be watered, planted, re-planted, or cared for. Instead, simply hang their favorite photos of plants in their room for splashes of color and a little nostalgia to brighten their day.
Check out the Sunflower Communities locations and what is included in your room here. We also allow pets so you can feel right at home!