Houseplant collecting has become increasingly popular over the past few years, especially over quarantine when there wasn’t much to do. Many people have since turned to nurture plants. Through this, a lot of people found out they don’t have the greenest thumb, and that’s okay! Every plant owner has killed their fair share of plants before figuring out what works. Here are some plants that are easy to take care of while still being gorgeous to look at.
- ZZ Plant
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The first plant I ever bought was a ZZ Plant after googling “the best plant for a room with basically no light.” Before college, my bedroom barely got any light, and any plant I brought in immediately started dying. When I brought home my ZZ Plant, it thrived instead of dying, despite forgetting to water it probably as much as it wanted. When I moved to Wilmington, it survived the long car drive and found a new home in another low light-room. I finally repotted it much later than I should’ve, and it’s still shooting out new growth! I’m convinced this plant can’t be killed.
- Golden Pothos
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This plant is the first plant you’ll be recommended if you’re looking for a beginner plant. They can live with you forgetting to water them or even watering too much sometimes, and survive in nearly any light condition. Even though it’s a plant perfect for beginners, you’d be able to find golden pothos in nearly any plant collector’s home. Its beautiful leaves and variegation, partnered with its long vines, make it a classic favorite for any plant-lover.
- Snake Plant
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The unique spiraling spikes of a snake plant are the perfect addition to a dark corner in your room, and their attention-seeking looks contrast their preferred care style: forgetting they exist! In my experience, the worst thing you can do for a snake plant is giving it too much care. The first snake plant I had I overwatered. For my second attempt, ignoring it entirely and watering it once a month has been a much more successful method. Snake plants are also easy to find, and you can usually find a really good price for a large plant.
- Air Plant
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If you’re looking for something that many people don’t even know exist, air plants are for you! You can put them on your desk, hang them on your wall or pretty much put them anywhere that gets relatively high light. The key to air plants is soaking them in room temperature water for half an hour once a week and then setting them upside down on a towel to dry out. I usually leave them out a full 24 hours, and the one air plant I killed was because I didn’t set it upside down to dry. This led to rotting because the water from soaking couldn’t drain out of the plant. After that failure, air plants have been pretty simple and are always commented on by visitors.
- Philodendron Brasil
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This plant is one of my absolute favorites! Besides its beautiful heart-shaped leaves with a light green stripe down the middle, it’s also a very vocal plant! It speaks by very dramatically drooping its leaves when it wants to be watered. After watering, it perks right back up. It also is pretty hardy, surviving a plane ride in my backpack! I love watching this plant because it seems to constantly be putting out new leaves.
- Bird of Paradise
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This plant can grow to be huge, and you can’t help but admire it every time you see it. It was one of the more expensive plants I own, solely because it’s my biggest plant! Its care is fairly easy, and it will thrive in bright light, with being watered once a week. In the two months I’ve had mine, it has put out two leaves. Although it’s not the quickest growing, the huge leaves it slowly unfurls make the excitement all the more real.
- Monstera deliciosa
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This monstera is probably the most “instagrammable” plant, with its potential to grow huge leaves with holes called fenestrations. Its beautiful leaves can be intimidating, but it is really easy to care for. They’re okay with being left alone for a while and can go without water for a while, and do well in medium light. They like to climb in the wild, so to get the huge leaves you see on Instagram, give them a pole to climb up.
Plants can seem intimidating at first but, it’s easy to find plants that like to be left alone. Adding a plant to an empty corner or on top of a bookshelf is a great way to make a place homier and maybe even make the air a little cleaner. Although many plants seem scary, the plants listed above are tried-and-true options for people who don’t have houseplant confidence yet.