Submitted Photo If you are looking for a gift for your Valentine this year, indoor plants make great gifts. Anthurium, shown in this photo from Melinda Myers LLC, is easy to grow and a long-blooming plant.

Looking for something different to give your Valentine this year? Consider gifting an indoor plant with heart shaped leaves or flowers.

Anthuriums are an easy-to-grow, low maintenance, long-blooming indoor plant. The red or pink heart-shaped flowers rise above glossy green leaves.

Pothos and philodendron are easy-to-grow and longtime favorites. Select one of the newer variegated varieties like Brazil philodendron or Neon pothos with bright lime green leaves for an updated look.

Caladiums and Elephant ears are popular in the garden, but also make great houseplants.

Perhaps your valentine would prefer a living heart sculpture. Stems of lucky bamboo are often trained into heart shapes and are a fun, unique gift.

Or maybe it’s a topiary of English ivy trained into a heart. All you need is a pot with drainage holes, a couple vining type plants and a piece of heavy gauge wire or a pre-formed heart shaped topiary frame.

Small leafed ivies and wire vines are easy to train into attractive topiaries. Look for small plants with long branches for immediate impact.

Bend the wire into a heart shape with one or two legs that will extend into the container. And consider dressing up your container with a bit of paint.

Fill the bottom half of the container with a well-drained potting mix. Set the topiary frame in place. Locate the plants in the container so the stems can be trained up either side of the heart. Cover the roots with soil and water.

Secure the stems to the wire frame and add a decorative stone mulch, if desired.

For a simpler gift, add a few cut flowers placed in water picks to any pot of indoor plants to add some color and brighten your valentine’s day.

No matter how you decide to celebrate, enjoy a Valentine’s Day celebration with a friend or family member that is sure to refresh your spirit and honor those you love.

Melinda Myers has written numerous books, including Small Space Gardening. She hosts The Great Courses “How to Grow Anything” DVD series and the nationally-syndicated Melinda’s Garden Moment TV & radio program. Myers is a columnist and contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine and her website is www.MelindaMyers.com.