The Indoor Garden Masterclass

Most houseplants that die indoors die of the same two things: too little light and too much water. Neither shows at once, which is why mistakes get repeated all winter. In this masterclass Marcus Bell, who ran a houseplant and herb nursery in Brooklyn for a decade, shows how to read the light in your rooms, water by feel instead of by calendar, and repot at the right moment.

The lessons were filmed at the potting bench and in three New York apartments with very different light: one facing north, one with a bright south window and one that relies mostly on LED grow lights. You learn to measure light in foot-candles with a phone, mix a chunky blend for monsteras and a gritty one for succulents, repot a 6-foot fiddle-leaf fig without snapping it, deal with fungus gnats, spider mites, thrips and mealybugs, and propagate by cuttings, division and air layering. The last module goes plant by plant through the species most homes actually have.

What the course can’t do is make a plant grow in a dark hallway. Some plants tolerate low light, none grow without it, and the lessons help you choose what fits the rooms you have or add a grow light where nothing else will. The printable care cards for 60 plants stay useful long after the videos: each lists light, watering rhythm, mix and whether the plant is safe around cats and dogs. Rare aroids, carnivorous plants and bonsai are outside its scope.