6 Outdoor Flowers You Can Bring Inside

This would have to be one of THE BEST hacks for having flowers in the house all year round without expense. The other day I posted on Instagram about how I love to buy potted plants from the garden centre and use them in the house instead of a bunch of flowers. The post was met with surprise and delight from a number of followers who had never thought to try this at home. Below are a few of my favourite outdoor flowers you can bring inside (and a couple of plants).

Why Would You want to Bring Outdoor Plants Inside?

I’ve been using outdoor plants and flowers in the house for a number of years now. The main reason is affordability. A bunch of flowers (if it can be called that) from our local supermarket costs $16-20 and is not enough to fill a vase. Sometimes, if you are lucky they last for a week. A potted flowering shrub such as a lavender costs me around $14 depending on size and lasts years! So not only is this hack cost-effective, it means there are blooms for much longer.

I typically put my potted colour into a galvanised bucket or a soup tureen so the plastic planter does not show but another trick is to wrap the plant in a large square of hessian and tie string or a scrap of hessian around the rim to hold it in place as if you are wrapping a bottle of wine. If you put the planter on a saucer it won’t leak when you water it. You can see one I had like this a couple of years back in the image below. (Sorry about the appalling quality of this pic. I took it a long time ago! Thank heavens I have improved since then)

Using Daisies indoors

Daisues would have to be my favourite outdoor flower you can use indoors. I pop them in a sunny window sill or on the island. I water them weekly and deadhead if needed. Daisies will last inside for around six weeks. Then I plant them outdoors. Sometimes I give them a day or so outside if I think they need extra sun.

Lavender

Lavender would be my second favourite of the outdoor flowers you can bring inside. In fact, 90% of the lavender in our garden was once an indoor plant. Lavender loves it hot and dry so even when you begin to have your heating turned on it will grow. A word of caution though. Don’t put them on the mantel above the wood heater. Ours wilted daily when I did this. It was just too hot.

Geraniums

Geranium, technically a tender perennial, is one of the most popular outdoor flowers you can bring indoors. In a bright, sunny window, this outdoor plant will bloom, even in winter. Don’t overwater them. Geraniums grow best if you allow the soil to dry out between waterings. My favourite geraniums are the white and pale pink ones but it is VERY hard to get Mr GGF to commit to growing them. He is not a fan so I treat them more as an indoor plant. When they expire, that’s it.

impatiens

The best reason to have Impatiens indoors is the good chance that you’ll get flowers off and on, especially when you put your plant in a sunny spot. Impatiens prefer evenly moist (not sopping wet) soil. Too wet and the plant will rot. You can dead head them for a longer bloom inside. My favourite colour is white (of course) but the pink add a pretty colour burst if you can find them.

rosemary

Liz Marie Galvan would have to be the queen of the rustic indoor topiary. I love this look. So much so that I grew one of my own. Growing rosemary in a pot is easy but you have to use a well drained pot as overwatering will kill the plant. You also need to remember to water it! (As can be seen from the sad state of mine) Growing a topiary the size of mine will take around a year but they look great in the kitchen!

Ivy

Would have to be the most bomb-proof plant ever. While techinically not a flower it will grow happily indoors in a pot. This one I started almost two years ago is thriving. I trim wayward stems off every now and again and sometimes put it out on the verandah but mostly it stays in the kitchen. I even dress it with a ribbon for Christmas!