INCREASE YOUR MOOD BY BRINGING NATURE INTO YOUR HOME

Did you know that flowers can boost our moods and can help reduce stress?  To see what all the hype is about, start with some easy ways to surround yourself with fresh blooms, plants and nature. Here are some simple and cost-effective ways to bring more nature into your home.

Start a Container Garden

Whether you're short on space, or just want to infuse more greenery and flowers around the house, you could start planting a container garden. Grab an old wine crate and line it with newspaper or burlap before planting herbs, lettuce or your favorite flowers. Place your plants in the window or on the deck or rooftop apartment.

Plant Blossoms for Butterflies

Head to your backyard or rooftop garden and plant a garden with butterflies in mind. Choose flowering plants and blooms native to your geographic region, to help butterflies get the nectar and foliage required to blossom into adults. Color matters to butterflies, much like humans. They're usually attracted to red, yellow, pink, purple and red. To keep butterflies around, stagger your plants so that when one stops blooming, another one starts.

Create a Greenhouse

It doesn’t take much space or supplies to put together a small greenhouse. Buy a kit at your local hardware store, or you can always make one yourself. Use PVC pipes and clear plastic sheeting and place it in a well lit room. Put glass shelves in a window frame and place your plants on the shelves for a simple and easy-to-remove greenhouse.

Build a Home for Bees

Another idea you could do is to plant a garden for bees, similar to how you can create a garden for butterflies. To create a space with clean water in a shallow container with pebbles for bees to land and drink when thirsty. Like your butterfly garden, pick native flowers and also select single flower tops like marigolds. Double flowers are harder for bees to draw pollen. Designate an area of your garden in a brightly lit spot for bee burrowing with extra soil. But not all bees like to nest in the ground. Pile pieces of wood and bamboo sections for your wood nesting bee friends.

Start Composting

Now that you’ve brought more green and colorful blooms into your home, what should you do with them once they die? Start a compost bin and throw in your old stems, blooms and leaves along with discarded fruit, coffee grounds and grass clippings among others. Use the compost to add to your gardens and indoor plants and watch them flourish.