We want to bring a little green inside for the winter, so we asked our favorite Brooklyn plant store, Sprout Home, to recommend plants that can thrive in typical low-light New York City apartments.
Here is Sprout Home's list of 10 apartment friendly plants:
1. Asplenium nidus “Bird’s Nest Fern” - These ferns are one of the easier ferns to keep looking nice. The new leaves unroll upward from the center of the plant. Check for water bi-weekly until you become use to your plants watering schedule. Asplenium's are not heavy feeders. Feed three to four times per year. Mist often.
2. Chamaedorea elegans “Parlor Palm” - Table palm, parlor palm or Neanthe bella palm are all common names for Chamaedorea elegans 'Bella', a small low-light interior palm. 'Bella' can adapt to just about any typical office or home interior. Water regularly, but allow top of soil to dry before next watering. Mist leaves in warm weather. This plant is slow growing. This is also one of the few plants that are non- toxic to pets.
3. Pepperomia - Place this plant in bright filtered light. Water when the surface of the soil is dry to the touch. Feed monthly with a balanced liquid fertilizer. Stem cuttings of non-ripple leaf types can be rooted in water or vermiculite. Most varieties are non-toxic to pets.
4. Philodendron “Monstera” – A very easy houseplant to maintain. It tolerates dry air and semi-shade better than most plants. Add some liquid fertilize to the water every few weeks during the growing season. Direct the aerial roots into the potting medium to improve support for the weak stem. Wipe the dust from the leaves with a damp sponge periodically. Water: Allow the soil to dry to within an inch of the surface between waterings. Water less in winter. Tolerates the dry air typical of most homes fairly well, but it appreciates a little misting when humidity is very low. Pet owners should be careful with this plant because it is a toxic plant if ingested.
5. Dracaena “Limelight” – Great color - bright chartreuse green. Also a good air purifier, removing most pollutants from the air. Tolerates a bit drier soil than most plants. Allow soil to dry down 2”. Mist often.
6. Zamioculcas zamiifolia “ZZ or Eternity Plant” - Native to: East Africa, Zanzibar. Considered by many to be the “Houseplant of the Future”. This plant rarely attracts pests and requires minimal watering (3x/month!). It is also one of the lowest light plants available and thrives on neglect. A great plant for first-time plant owners.
7. Ficus Robusta “Rubber Plant” – A nice contrast plant because of it’s dark burgundy foliage. Also a good air purifier, removing most pollutants from the air, especially formaldehyde. Allow the soil to dry 1” down between waterings. Protect from cold drafts.
8. Chlorophytum “Spiderplant” – I prefer the plain green variety to the variegated one. It’s an excellent houseplant for beginners and makes tons of baby’s that can be rooted in water and planted for an endless supply of new plants. Allow soil to dry 1” down between waterings.
9. Neon Pothos – This variety is a bright chartreuse green color. It’s as easy as the typical marbled pothos. It makes a good hanging plant because the leaves trail down over the sides of the container and it requires minimal watering.
10. Philodendron hybrids (Bird’s Nest philodendron, Autumn, or Limelight) – These philodendron hybrids do not climb, but instead have broad, spade-shaped leaves. Typically requires less water than other houseplants. Allow soil to dry 1” down between waterings. It’s a good idea to clean the leaves with a soft, damp cloth as dust tends to build on any larger leaf plant.
Remember to rotate your plants since they do tend to grow in the direction of the light. You can always supplement natural light with artificial lighting. If you wanted to get started right now on bringing in the green. Sprout Home is open late tonight, Friday, November 14 (from 11 am to 9 pm) and will have special discounts!
Dracaena Limelight photo from Newsday
Additional Photos form Southern Living.
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They forgot the ever-popular Snake Plant (Sanseveria trifasciata 'Laruentii'): http://www.denverplants.com/foliage/html/SansLaurentii.htm
I have a huge one and a small one and both only need the tiniest bit of water 1X a month at most. They're gorgeous AND very hard to kill unless you over water them.
Be sure and check, if you have pets or kids, if it's toxic. I have a lot of plants in bottles and cages to keep my kitties out of them.
And, under the right conditions, snake plants will develop beautiful blossoms! IIRC, they smell great as well.
Monica,
SO glad you shared that! Someone at my office has that plant, but didn't know exactly what it was. I've been meaning to find out so I can get one. Perfect.
funny rubber plant made the list...they are very finicky with temps and drafts, often dropping all their leaves if htey change to much.
When I lived in Madagascar the snake plant grew wild, the local name translates to "mother-in-law's tongue" because they are pointy and a little bit twisted.
Random factoid, but it makes me smile when I see one.
Oh, and most of the plants that are listed above (and the snake plant) are available at Ikea. I find that my Ikea does a good job of stocking apartment/office plants and they are generally cheap enough that you can buy a cute pot too (and you won't hate yourself if you do manage to kill the plant).
What about ferns? And for pets, don't forget birds. A list of toxic plants may be found, among many places, at the ASPCA Website.
cmu, my husband calls it MIL's tongue, too!
Question for those with green thumbs:
I have a bamboo plant that I've taken care of for over five years now. The whole time I lived in Indiana. Since moving to a Chicago suburb three and a half months ago it's not been doing well, and in the past week or two has started to die (stem, not just leaves, turning yellow).
I thought it wasn't getting enough light so I fixed that, but that didn't seem to be it. Is it the water? I've always just used tap water, but since it's failing health seems in time with our move, I thought maybe it doesn't like Chicago water.
Help! My poor bamboo needs your advice.
I know the Snake plant as Mother in Laws Tongue too, it's considered a weed in Australia so it's still not too popular in gardens or indoors for this fact alone.
IKEA has a fairly good range of indoor plants but most of their pots don't have drainage holes (in Australia at least). Drainage holes and saucers are a must!
I have several Wandering Jew plants that are growing out of control (and I'm not that good with plants). They're near impossible to kill, cuttings root in water VERY easily, and they're non-toxic.
Mrs. Mack - I lived in the Chicago area as well & I found that the tap water there is no good for bamboo. Filtered water is recommended & has worked very well for my plants.
If the water doesn't seem to be doing it, watch out for how much light it's getting. They prefer moderate, indirect light.
You can NOT kill a philodendron. They're great. Maybe not exotic, but will stay green!
And I agree with michael about the Ficus. I've had them do well in some spots, but they do not like to be moved and don't adjust well to minor climate changes. They will drop all their leaves.
Ficus - needs the right place, and will drop a few leaves when you move it, no matter what. But I've never had problems with a rubber plant... ficus benjamina, yeah, but not f. elastica.
The thing I can't have is a fern. I suspect it's the hard water.
A note on monstera - it will end up being humungo. Watch out.
Some other can't-kill-ems: Aspidistra, or cast iron plant. Tolerates very low light, but do give it some... it's so much more attractive.
Christmas cactus - bright indirect light is best, keep it outside in the fall around 60-50 to make it bloom.
Jade plant - need a little more light - but tolerates neglect very well. Possibly some trouble in humid areas if no good air circulation.
I have a Snake Plant that was just given to me in my new apartment. I've been watering it once a week but now the edges are turning brown and yellow. My apartment does not have too much lighting. What do you suggest I do to keep it alive, its only been 3 weeks! Help!!!!
Ms Unreliable:
Most Ikea pots have a small (dime sized) dimple in the bottom that you have to "break" in order to make the drainage hole. All you have to do it gently tap the dimple with a screwdriver and it pops out.
Hope that helps!
Here is a tip on an Ebay seller with nice house plants.
Urgoodbuyz is their name
Before I cross-reference, does anyone know off the top of their heads whether any of the ones here are non-poisonous to cats? i had to move my sansaveria to a room I could close the door to and haven't found a large plant to replace it.
mron73 - you are watering it way too much. Once every couple weeks is plenty.
This is my first time caring for plants, but I've had great luck with zee zee and pothos, both of which need very little attention (I water them once a week) and are quite beautiful. Friends even wonder if my zee zee is fake because the leaves are so healthy and shiny. Orchids are also incredibly easy to care for.
Can anyone recommend plants that stay pretty small? I'd like to buy a few to sit in small, colourful planters on top of my shelf.
For a list of plants that are toxic to pets: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/plants/
I recommend sedge grasses and mosses! There are quite a few interesting colors/varieties available, and they do OK in pots with very little care. I also have succulents in my house but they like a ton of light and heat, and tend to rot if you overwater even slightly, so sometimes they don't make it.
african violets. plus, they love flourescent light which was in all my apartments and they are very hard to kill. only plants i ever kept alive.
Ficus lyrata is the nicest ficus.
Purchased a sago palm at Lowe's only to find out out your dog is likely to die a miserable death with lots of internal bleeding and kill your children too if the seeds are ingested. Such a cute plant, it went back to the store.
Chinese Evergreen will grow just about anywhere, in any light. They'll tolerate quite a lot. I had one in my first apartment, when I knew nothing about plants. And I have one here, lurking in the darkest corner of my living room:
http://dodiegoldney.com/2013/03/30/kali-the-destroyer-cereal-killer-version/
They will also root easily in water if you break or cut the top of the stalk off and stick it in water. I've grown a few this way - I've got some in water right now. Plus leaves grow out of the stalk on the old plant and make it all bushy again. :)