Plants are the new obsession, and if you’re looking to transform your home into a thriving greenhouse, there are a number of plant species and varieties that can thrive indoors with a little love. Here’s a list of some of the best house plants that are easy to keep alive, no matter your skill level!
Rubber Trees
Part of the ficus family, rubber trees are excellent and easy-going houseplants as they are low-light tolerant and help clean the indoor air from pollutants. Water every 1-2 weeks, allowing soil to dry out between waterings. Thrives in medium to bright indirect light, and can also tolerate bright direct light (providing it isn’t all day).
Pilea Peperomioides
Cute and easy to care for, the Chinese money plant (or Pilea) is oftentimes featured in Scandinavian interiors, where its bright, pancake-shaped leaves provide a welcome burst of colour against neutral walls. Originally from the southwestern Yunnan province of China, the best place at home is in a bright spot with no direct sunlight. Direct sun can scorch the leaves, whereas light shade may encourage the growth of larger leaves. Also interesting: during periods of cooler temperatures, they are considered more likely to produce their tiny white flowers on pink stems.
Jade Plants
Jade plants are my favourite succulents. They’re very resilient, have a long life and they work really well as a decorative houseplant given their tree-like appearance with woody stems and oval-shaped leaves. I love that jade plants are often passed down through generations (I still have one from my mom!) and they can also reach heights of three feet or more when grown indoors.
They adapt best to warm, dry conditions, and it’s important to keep the plant watered during growing season (spring/summer) and drier during the dormant season (fall/winter). Ensure the soli be allowed to dry out fully between waterings as jade is very prone to rot.
Hoya
This unique houseplant is a vine that has thick, waxy leaves and clusters of star-shaped flowers. It’s considered one of the most tolerant houseplants, and it’s often sold in hanging baskets because of its lanky stems. It tolerates low and medium light, but doesn’t typically bloom in these conditions. Like most flowering houseplants, the more light Hoya gets, the more flowers it will produce. Do be mindful not to overwater it: Hoya would rather be too dry than too wet and can suffer from root rot if the potting mix stays wet for extended periods of time.
Ficus Alli
The Ficus Alii (Ficus maclellandii), commonly called the Banana leaf fig for the long and slender shape of its leaves, is a species native to southeastern Asia, India, and China. Similar to most focus trees, the Alli should be in a spot where it will receive plenty of bright indirect light. (It will grow and lean towards its light source, so rotate your plant periodically to ensure even growth on all sides.)
Spider Plant
The spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is considered one of the most adaptable of houseplants and the easiest to grow. This plant can grow in a wide range of conditions and suffers from few problems, other than brown tips. The spider plant is so named because of its spider-like plants, or spiderettes, which dangle down from the mother plant like spiders on a web. Available in green or variegated varieties, these spiderettes often start out as small white flowers.
These tough plants tolerate a lot, which makes them an excellent option for newbie gardeners. Provide them with well-drained soil and bright, indirect light and they will flourish. Water them well but do not allow the plants to become too soggy, which can lead to root rot. In fact, spider plants prefer to dry out some between waterings.