Indoor Plants 101

Everyone knows I love plants. I have them everywhere and I often get asked how I keep them all alive. The truth is I've lost a lot and others have come close to death. They want to know what my secret is. This leaves me scratching my head because I really don't do much. On the spectrum between helicopter parenting and benign neglect I fall closer to the latter. It does get me thinking about what plants are the easiest to maintain that I can recommend to someone just starting out. 

So here you have it, my top 3 most death-resistant plants. 

 

Whale Fin Snake Plant

You've probably heard of the snake plant, but this is a whale fin snake plant. I think it's prettier. These are pretty much impossible to kill. That said, I did kill one last year. Really it needed to be repotted because the water would flow out of the bottom immediately upon watering meaning it didn't have enough soil. I let it go too long between watering since they are so... death-resistant… and it died.  So don’t feel bad if you’ve killed a snake plant, but otherwise they are safe bet.  This one below has been going strong since I bought it during a plant binge in 2018.

Philodendron selloum

I've had a lot of luck with this plant. I water it every two weeks.  Enough water to soak through the soil and start draining into the pan below. Is there water damage on the floor beneath this plant? Yes there is, but I'm filing it under "adding character" to the home. If these were brand new floors that didn't already have damage when we moved in, I would probably be upset, but that's not the case. Fun fact about this plant: the shape of it depends on the light it's in. When I first got it, I had it next to a big window. The stalks stuck straight out and it didn't look like my brother's plant (the one I wanted, but that he refused to give me). I took a picture and brought it to my local nursey and showed it to the plant guru. I said there must be some mistake. This is not the same plant. He said to move it away from the window into low light and the stalks would start to twist and look more interesting. Voila. It worked.  These can grow to be quite large, so you’ll need the space for it to spread out.

Philodendron selloum looking like celery stalks

Seven years later with twisty stalks.

In the wild in South America. They live in trees.

Neon Corn Plant (Dracaena)

Regular corn plants are ok, but I really like the neon version. It doesn't need a lot of light so you can bring it into a darker area and get a bright punch of color. They also have secret. They bloom. But only sometimes and only after decades. The internet confirmed this, but I first learned through personal experience. I inherited a 35-year-old corn plant from my mom when my parents downsized. It was about 9 feet tall and resembled a dilapidated palm tree. It wasn’t great to look at, so I stuck it in my office that had old dark blinds and threw it some water now and then. One evening walking by the door I smelled the most pungent fragrance. I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. I walked into the office and saw a huge spray of light pink feathery flowers that was dripping sap all over the floor. I called my mom to tell her what I saw. "Oh no. Those plants don't flower" she quipped. "I'm sitting here staring at the flower right now." I told her. I sent her a picture for proof. Apparently, it is indeed very rare for these plants to flower, but it does happen. I eventually cut the top off and rooted the stalk it so it wouldn't be so awkward and top heavy. That plant now sits in my friend's house who I've known since I was 3. Our moms were in the garden club together and we used to roll our eyes at their endless plant-talk. Now we swap clippings and give status updates on our plants each time we see each other. Maybe it’s genetic?

My Corn Plant blooming in 2017 (not the neon version)

The neon version. Available on Amazon.com.