“When I walk into somebody’s home that doesn’t have plants, it’s like a house without pets. There’s a life force that’s missing,” says Christy Dailey. Dubbed one of New York’s best landscapers by New York magazine, Dailey oversaw the installation of the rooftop plants at David Zwirner’s Chelsea gallery, has designed gardens in Madison Square Park and at Columbia University, and has landscaped gardens at town houses around the city, including the Zwirner’s.
Professionally, Dailey focuses on exteriors. Personally, she believes that bringing plants inside the home is “always a great addition.” Since taking care of a living organism can seem daunting, Dailey has a few tips.
First off, “do not buy plants from Home Depot.” Its plants “are drenched in pesticides and fertilizers, and they’re kept in lighting conditions that are less than ideal. They all get diseases because they’re all jammed into trucks.” Instead, Dailey suggests going to a local florist or a plant nursery. In Manhattan, she heads to “what’s left” of the Flower District, on West 28th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues. She’s a big fan of Jamali. If you’re willing to trek to Long Island, as Dailey often does, consider buying from Hicks Nurseries.
Picking the plant is “very dependent on your light exposure.” At the flower shop, tell a professional how many windows you have, and which way they face. For the average New Yorker, who lives in an apartment lacking in natural light, Dailey recommends philodendrons, fiddle-leaf figs, corn plants (Dracaena fragrans), ficus, alocasias, and rex begonias. As a maximalist, Dailey tends to “group plants together” because she “likes to have varying textures and different leaf shapes contrast each other.” For the minimalist, “it’s also very beautiful if you have one gorgeous plant in a room.”
When it comes to planters, Dailey avoids plastic because “it’s hard for the soil to dry out between waterings.” Instead, she pairs antique containers found at estate sales and thrift shops with terra-cotta ones, usually from Planter Resource, on West 28th Street.
Don’t fall for gadgets marketed to new plant owners. “If you need trinkets, then it’s not the right plant,” says Dailey. “Once you get to know your plants, if you’re paying attention to them on a regular basis, then they’ll pretty much tell you what they want.” To mist your fiddle-leaf fig or alocasias, any cheap, plastic spray bottle will do.
“I try not to water the plants with water straight from the tap,” says Dailey. She fills her watering can and lets it sit “so the chlorine will evaporate out of it.” She advises collecting rainwater in a bucket, then using it on your plants. “Rainwater is great because there’s minerals and things from the environment that you can’t possibly get on the inside, unless you have a hole in your roof.”
A first-time plant owner won’t need an artificial light source, but, for more demanding plants, Dailey recommends buying a clamp light. She uses Hydrofarm’s. “It’s not terribly attractive, but it will help the plants along.” It’s certainly better-looking than a dead plant.
Jensen Davis is a Senior Editor at AIR MAIL
