12 Potted Plants That Make Long-Lasting Holiday Gifts
A miniature conifer, stylish terrarium or desktop succulent could be the perfect pressie for someone on your gift list
Lauren Dunec Hoang
8 December 2019
Houzz Editor; landscape designer and former garden editor for Sunset Magazine and in-house designer for Sunset's Editorial Test Garden. Her garden designs have been featured in the Sunset Western Garden Book of Landscaping, Sunset Western Garden Book of Easy-Care Plantings (cover), Inhabitat, and POPSUGAR.
Houzz Editor; landscape designer and former garden editor for Sunset Magazine and... More
A plant in an attractive container can a make wonderful gift for anyone who’s looking to freshen up their home with seasonal flowers or green foliage. Many potted plants can be enjoyed for months or years indoors, and some can be planted out into gardens, depending on the type you choose. Take a look at these ideas – with suggestions on which vessels to pair them with – a combination could make the perfect gift for someone on your list.
1. Potted dwarf conifer
Decorated like a miniature Christmas tree or placed on the mantelpiece as a fresh green accent, a dwarf conifer in a pretty container makes a festive gift for the holiday season.
Look for dwarf conifers with blue-green, deep-green or chartreuse foliage. Pick up a plant in a 10- to 13-centimetre pot and drop it into a more decorative vessel such as a roll-down paper bag-inspired container or a red, white or gold ceramic pot.
After the holidays, the gift recipient should place the conifer in a sunny spot outside or repot it in a larger outdoor container where it can live for a few years.
Need help sourcing decor-savvy designs? Find a stylist or decorator near you on Houzz for expert advice
Decorated like a miniature Christmas tree or placed on the mantelpiece as a fresh green accent, a dwarf conifer in a pretty container makes a festive gift for the holiday season.
Look for dwarf conifers with blue-green, deep-green or chartreuse foliage. Pick up a plant in a 10- to 13-centimetre pot and drop it into a more decorative vessel such as a roll-down paper bag-inspired container or a red, white or gold ceramic pot.
After the holidays, the gift recipient should place the conifer in a sunny spot outside or repot it in a larger outdoor container where it can live for a few years.
Need help sourcing decor-savvy designs? Find a stylist or decorator near you on Houzz for expert advice
2. Mini-succulent in a whimsical planter
A succulent placed in a fun-shaped planter is a cute present that’s sure to bring a smile to someone on your gift list. While any small-scale houseplants can be placed in a whimsical planter, succulents are an easy bet.
They take little water, so you can get away with watering lightly and occasionally if the planter you choose comes without a drainage hole. Plus, succulents are generally slow-growing, so a plant can live in limited soil space for a long period. Succulents should be placed in a spot with bright indoor light.
A Beginner’s Guide to Growing Succulents
A succulent placed in a fun-shaped planter is a cute present that’s sure to bring a smile to someone on your gift list. While any small-scale houseplants can be placed in a whimsical planter, succulents are an easy bet.
They take little water, so you can get away with watering lightly and occasionally if the planter you choose comes without a drainage hole. Plus, succulents are generally slow-growing, so a plant can live in limited soil space for a long period. Succulents should be placed in a spot with bright indoor light.
A Beginner’s Guide to Growing Succulents
3. Zebra succulent in a metallic pot
This plant and pot combination – a striped zebra plant in a metallic pot – is a more sophisticated option for a succulent gift. These plants make great gifts for hosts, co-workers or clients. Zebra plants grow well indoors with bright sunlight and make great decorative accents on desks, mantelpieces and side tables.
This plant and pot combination – a striped zebra plant in a metallic pot – is a more sophisticated option for a succulent gift. These plants make great gifts for hosts, co-workers or clients. Zebra plants grow well indoors with bright sunlight and make great decorative accents on desks, mantelpieces and side tables.
4. Terrarium
Give the gift of a miniature indoor garden under glass to the real plant lover on your list. Terrariums can come fully assembled with plants, moss and soil, or as kits that allow you to design your own.
Tip: Pair the terrarium with a vintage-style mister to keep plants looking fresh.
Give the gift of a miniature indoor garden under glass to the real plant lover on your list. Terrariums can come fully assembled with plants, moss and soil, or as kits that allow you to design your own.
Tip: Pair the terrarium with a vintage-style mister to keep plants looking fresh.
5. Potted amaryllis
Amaryllis are some of the easiest bulbs to grow indoors. The oversize flowers are long-lasting and open to reveal red, pink, white or striped petals.
Choose waxed or already-potted amaryllis bulbs for gifts, or place a potted nursery-grown bulb into a container of your choice. Glazed ceramic containers in holiday colours or classic terracotta pots make nice potted gifts.
Amaryllis are some of the easiest bulbs to grow indoors. The oversize flowers are long-lasting and open to reveal red, pink, white or striped petals.
Choose waxed or already-potted amaryllis bulbs for gifts, or place a potted nursery-grown bulb into a container of your choice. Glazed ceramic containers in holiday colours or classic terracotta pots make nice potted gifts.
6. Other forced bulbs
Forced bulbs placed in decorative pots or wrapped in paper make a beautiful – and often highly scented – gift. It’s an easy, inexpensive and nature-inspired present that you can give all year round.
Look for favourites at nurseries and grocery stores, such as fragrant hyacinth, paperwhites or dwarf daffodils, which can all be ‘forced’ to flower indoors before or after they would naturally bloom in spring, by storing bulbs in a paper bag in your fridge for a period of time before planting.
If you find a potted forced bulb, covering the soil with preserved moss and setting the pot in a decorative vessel can give the bulb a more gift-like quality.
Forced bulbs placed in decorative pots or wrapped in paper make a beautiful – and often highly scented – gift. It’s an easy, inexpensive and nature-inspired present that you can give all year round.
Look for favourites at nurseries and grocery stores, such as fragrant hyacinth, paperwhites or dwarf daffodils, which can all be ‘forced’ to flower indoors before or after they would naturally bloom in spring, by storing bulbs in a paper bag in your fridge for a period of time before planting.
If you find a potted forced bulb, covering the soil with preserved moss and setting the pot in a decorative vessel can give the bulb a more gift-like quality.
7. Air plants on a decorative mount
Tillandsia, everyone’s favorite soil-less air plants, are cute and easy to care for. When hung in a glass orb, they can also double as living Christmas-tree ornaments.
Place the air plants in a glass globe, miniature terrarium or other decorative mount (they can grow pretty much anywhere) to elevate them as a present. Air plants grow best in a spot that receives bright, indirect sunlight and they prefer a weekly dunking in water or frequent misting.
Tillandsia, everyone’s favorite soil-less air plants, are cute and easy to care for. When hung in a glass orb, they can also double as living Christmas-tree ornaments.
Place the air plants in a glass globe, miniature terrarium or other decorative mount (they can grow pretty much anywhere) to elevate them as a present. Air plants grow best in a spot that receives bright, indirect sunlight and they prefer a weekly dunking in water or frequent misting.
8. Vertical herb garden
A vertical herb garden gives you room to grow multiple types of herbs without taking up any bench space.
For a gift, purchase a vertical growing kit then pick up 10-centimetre herb pots at your local nursery to tuck into the growing pockets. Culinary herbs all require full sun to thrive, so be sure to instruct the gift recipient to choose a spot with bright sunlight.
How Do I… Create a Potted Herb Garden?
A vertical herb garden gives you room to grow multiple types of herbs without taking up any bench space.
For a gift, purchase a vertical growing kit then pick up 10-centimetre herb pots at your local nursery to tuck into the growing pockets. Culinary herbs all require full sun to thrive, so be sure to instruct the gift recipient to choose a spot with bright sunlight.
How Do I… Create a Potted Herb Garden?
9. Heather
One of the few plants that keeps blooming in cold temperatures, heather is reminiscent of a white Christmas. It can be a cheerful addition on porches or windowsills and usually enjoys cooler regions in Australia and New Zealand, or can act as a pretty indoor accent.
For a gift, choose a heather plant with white or pink blooms from the nursery and pair it with a zinc or ceramic container, or drop it into a woven basket.
One of the few plants that keeps blooming in cold temperatures, heather is reminiscent of a white Christmas. It can be a cheerful addition on porches or windowsills and usually enjoys cooler regions in Australia and New Zealand, or can act as a pretty indoor accent.
For a gift, choose a heather plant with white or pink blooms from the nursery and pair it with a zinc or ceramic container, or drop it into a woven basket.
10. Olive trees in a terracotta pot
For anyone dreaming of sunshine or the Mediterranean, a miniature potted olive can be a thoughtful gift that lasts for years. Pair an olive plant with a terracotta pot for a classic look. Most small olive plants are grown as standard trees, and the form is particularly whimsical when decorated with copper wire lights up the trunk and around the foliage for the holiday season.
Olive trees thrive in full sun, so move plants outdoors in mild climates or to a sunny window.
For anyone dreaming of sunshine or the Mediterranean, a miniature potted olive can be a thoughtful gift that lasts for years. Pair an olive plant with a terracotta pot for a classic look. Most small olive plants are grown as standard trees, and the form is particularly whimsical when decorated with copper wire lights up the trunk and around the foliage for the holiday season.
Olive trees thrive in full sun, so move plants outdoors in mild climates or to a sunny window.
11. Kokedama
Container-free string gardens make unexpected accents hanging around the house or propped on a tray on a desk. For any garden enthusiasts or crafters on your list, consider purchasing a kokedama kit. Most kits don’t come with the actual plant, so pick one up – such as an easy-to-grow succulent, pothos or sansevieria – to go along with it.
Container-free string gardens make unexpected accents hanging around the house or propped on a tray on a desk. For any garden enthusiasts or crafters on your list, consider purchasing a kokedama kit. Most kits don’t come with the actual plant, so pick one up – such as an easy-to-grow succulent, pothos or sansevieria – to go along with it.
12. Pancake plant
If you have an indoor-plant aficionado, interior designer or ‘shelfie’ photographer on your gift list, giving this ‘it plant’ as a present is sure to win you some major points.
Pancake plant or Chinese money plant is a charming indoor plant that has quickly worked its way into plant lovers’ hearts and many well-styled interiors. Plus, the plants themselves are easy to grow and propagate.
Your turn
Have you struck gold with giving potted plants as gifts? Tell us your tips in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
More
Need more practical plant advice? Don’t miss How Do I… Keep My Garden Alive in a Drought?
If you have an indoor-plant aficionado, interior designer or ‘shelfie’ photographer on your gift list, giving this ‘it plant’ as a present is sure to win you some major points.
Pancake plant or Chinese money plant is a charming indoor plant that has quickly worked its way into plant lovers’ hearts and many well-styled interiors. Plus, the plants themselves are easy to grow and propagate.
Your turn
Have you struck gold with giving potted plants as gifts? Tell us your tips in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
More
Need more practical plant advice? Don’t miss How Do I… Keep My Garden Alive in a Drought?
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An aloe vera plant is a nice indoor plant and has a useful purpose too! The "gel" in the plant leaves soothes burns (kitchen burns and sunburn) among other uses.
Ensure a ceramic pot is glazed on the bottom, if it isn't the bottom will be porous and ruin furniture. Before buying a ceramic pot ensure you can readily buy a plastic inner pot to fit, this is not always as easy as it appears.
Where can I buy these pots?