Guides / What to plant
What to plant in January
The garden is at its lowest ebb and the houseplants are carrying the month. Hellebores and snowdrops flower through frost outside, while indoors the useful skill is restraint, because a plant that has stopped growing needs far less water than one that has not.
These are Northern Hemisphere months. If you garden in the Southern Hemisphere, the equivalent month is July.
In the garden
Christmas Rose
Helleborus niger
How to grow the Christmas rose, Helleborus niger. Planting, soil, when to cut the old leaves, the diseases to watch for, and why it rarely flowers at Christmas.
Garden privet
Ligustrum ovalifolium
How to grow privet, Ligustrum ovalifolium. The suburban hedge that takes any abuse, when to cut it, why the berries are poisonous, and its reputation for starving a border.
Leatherleaf mahonia
Mahonia bealei
How to grow mahonia, Mahonia bealei. Scented yellow flowers in the middle of winter, blue berries for jelly, and where to put a plant with spines like holly.
Snowdrop
Galanthus nivalis
How to grow snowdrops, Galanthus nivalis. Why to plant them in the green, how to divide a clump, and how poisonous the bulbs are.
Witch hazel
Hamamelis mollis
How to grow witch hazel, Hamamelis mollis. Why the graft matters, spotting rootstock suckers before they take over, the soil it needs, and why the flowers survive frost.
Indoors
Alocasia
Alocasia amazonica
How to care for Alocasia x amazonica. Recognising winter dormancy rather than death, getting the watering right, treating spider mite, and why it drips water.
Areca palm
Dypsis lutescens
How to care for Dypsis lutescens. Watering a palm sold as a clump of seedlings, why the tips go brown, treating spider mite, and never cutting the growing point.
Arrowhead plant
Syngonium auritum
How to grow syngonium, Syngonium auritum. The arrowhead plant, why the leaf shape changes as it matures, and keeping it bushy rather than climbing.
Cast iron plant
Aspidistra elatior
How to care for Aspidistra elatior. The Victorian parlour plant that survives dark corners and cold hallways, why it grows so slowly, and the two things that kill it.
Chinese hibiscus
Hibiscus rosa-sinensis
How to grow Chinese hibiscus, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis. Flowers that last a day, why bud drop happens, and keeping it through a British winter indoors.
Croton
Codiaeum variegatum
How to care for Codiaeum variegatum. Why it drops every leaf when you move it, the light it needs for colour, treating red spider mite, and settling a new plant.
Kentia palm
Howea forsteriana
How to care for Howea forsteriana. Watering a palm that hates wet feet, why the brown tips appear, never cutting the growing point, and the one island it comes from.
Snake Plant
Dracaena trifasciata
How to grow a snake plant, Dracaena trifasciata. Watering, light, why variegated cuttings turn green, and what the air-purifying claims are worth.
Spider Plant
Chlorophytum comosum
How to grow a spider plant, Chlorophytum comosum. Fixing brown tips, rooting the babies, and whether it is safe for cats.
Zebra haworthia
Haworthiopsis fasciata
How to care for Haworthiopsis fasciata. The succulent that tolerates a shaded windowsill, watering it correctly, removing offsets, and telling it from Haworthiopsis attenuata.
ZZ Plant
Zamioculcas zamiifolia
How to care for Zamioculcas zamiifolia. Why the rhizome makes it almost unkillable, the only mistake that does kill it, how to propagate from a single leaflet, and the cancer myth.