Bright new life is blooming. Potted plants and flowers can help residence hall rooms and other places feel a bit more like home.

“I like the idea of plants as gifts because they can last for a long time and always remind you of the giver,” said Heidi Edsill, senior in biology.

Giving plants as gifts can have negative results, however, said Alexandria Ness, junior in biochemistry.

“I got this three-foot pine tree for Christmas and it looks kind of homey, but it’s in the way and I just want it to die,” Ness said. “My roommate has gone sort of crazy over her Christmas plant – a bamboo. It died a long time ago but she keeps watering it. She needs to give up.”

Robert Wallace, associate professor of botany, has seen plant care taken to the extreme at Iowa State and other universities.

“One person went really overboard with a great deal of heat lamps and other equipment set up all over the room,” Wallace said. “It was like stepping into a Panama jungle; the humidity made it quite uncomfortable.”

Other motifs he has seen include rows of blooming orchids in one man’s room and an elaborate aquatic garden in another.

Whether a wall of green or a solitary bloom, plants remain popular as room additions for a variety of reasons.

“It’s the appeal of having a pet that requires minimal care,” Wallace said.

“Not having to walk it or clean up after it is a big positive for college students.”

They also help make a dorm room feel more like a home, he said.

For Cindy Rullan, senior in environmental science, plants remind her of home.

“I brought my first several with me to college because my mother, an avid gardener, insisted I have something green and living in my room,” Rullan said. “They aren’t loud, don’t make messes or misbehave and when I go away they miss me, or maybe just the watering. They make great roommates.”

Darin Enderton, junior in horticulture, grows plants in his room for practical reasons. He tries growing something new in his room every year.

“My biggest failure came last spring when I tried starting vegetables, like tomatoes, indoors to get a head start on the planting season, but everything just died,” Enderton said.

Mark Westgate, associate professor of agronomy, said he sometimes finds himself talking to his plants, although he doesn’t quite know why.

“They do make great listeners, plants are really nice to have around. And when you’re really tired of them you can just throw them in the trash,” Westgate said.

Wallace recommends students give some thought to the amount of commitment necessary to keep plants alive before starting their own sanctuary of green.

“One should think about how much effort you want to put into keeping your plants healthy – for instance, how often they will need to water them and what kind of lighting they will need,” Wallace said. “Plants requiring low lighting are much better suited for dorm living.

“People really like putting weird things on their window sills like Venus flytraps, but succulents are very popular, too,” Wallace said. “A cactus can do very well on a bright window sill; they require little care and are quite excellent plants in general.”

Rullan refutes anyone’s claim of not being able to grow any type of plant in a dorm room.

“I don’t think anyone has a black thumb,” she said. “You just have to find the plant that is right for you.”