This article was written by The Zillennial Zine’s summer editorial intern Connor Hanrahan. Find him on Instagram at @hannerhansmh. If you would like to share an article with The Zillennial, send us an email at thezillennialzine@gmail.com.
Houseplants are all the rage nowadays. They are a perfect way to keep the inside of your home feeling modern, chic, and natural. However, us zillennials have a remarkable propensity for killing them. Whether it be that we are overwatering or neglecting them, both paths lead to the same destination. Sometimes, it’s even because we don’t have a proper understanding of which plant works best for the environment our homes provide. Let’s take a look at some of the easiest indoor plants to take care of that will surely add some character or even pizzazz to your home.
Low Light Plants
Pothos
This is one of the most maintenance free plants you could ever hope to own. In turn, it also has the potential to decorate whatever you want. It grows out in vines that can be trimmed for a compact potted look or the vines can be grown. The vines are perfect for a hanging basket or they can even be guided up and around objects vertically, making it the perfect plant for just about any situation.
The Pothos requires fertilizer only a few times per year and a very low amount of light and water. Watering is less time dependent and more dependent on how long it takes the top inch of soil in the pot to dry out. Once this layer of soil is dry, it is time to water your Pothos again.
This plant is mildly toxic when consumed and should be kept out of reach of pets and children. It won’t kill anything, but your pet or child’s stomach will NOT be happy.
Prayer Plant
The Prayer Plant is a type of Calathea plant. Unlike the Pothos, the Prayer Plant, like most other Calatheas, needs its soil to remain moist throughout its lifetime for optimal results. This is a tad more high maintenance, but it offers twice the personality of the Pothos. It doesn’t grow anywhere with vines, but its leaves offer almost cartoon-esque swirls and patterns with different shades of green. The leaves of this plant alone make it a worthwhile purchase for anybody who wants a plant that’ll catch all of their guests’ eyes.
Keeping to theme, the Prayer Plant should be fertilized monthly. It also prefers indirect sunlight, as typical very low light conditions will lessen the opportunity for cool leaf patterns. I would recommend placing your Prayer Plant next to a window that gets regular sunlight, but not where direct sunlight will hit it. The direct sunlight can burn and kill the leaves. Oh, and some of them only like filtered water because they’re whiny little brats so make sure your plant can tolerate tap water before regularly using it for watering.
This plant is completely safe for pets and children, but I would not recommend eating it regardless.
Parlor Palm
Parlor Palms are a perfect low maintenance option for adding a bit of a tropical touch to your living space. They don’t require much light and, like the Calathaes, only require that their soil stay evenly moist. The timing of watering will depend on the conditions within your home.
The trickiest part of caring for this plant is pruning the fronds. Fronds will turn brown once they’ve completed their lifespan and can be pruned without repercussion. The pruning of green fronds, however, will stop the plant from growing entirely. If you need to trim green fronds, remove that entire stem completely and the rest of the plant will resume typical growth.
Parlor Palms are safe for children and pets.
Medium Light Plants
Peperomia
Peperomia plants are petite, dainty, and super cool looking but are a little more high maintenance than the plants previously listed. They require 20-20-20 fertilizer monthly during their season (March-November) and should only be watered when soil is dry to the touch. Oversaturation of soil can cause leaves to brown and growth to subside.
Casually, Peperomias are referred to as a type of Swiss cheese plant due to the slots and holes that develop as they mature. Peperomias are also born climbers, so they are ideal for vertical development. A buddy of mine has a tall canopy bed frame and has these growing up the posts and across the joists. His bedroom gets medium-low lighting and it only took his Peperomias a year to fully envelope his frame. Otherwise, I would simply recommend a moss pole for this plant to grow up.
Peperomias are safe for pets and children.
African Violets
I had to include a colored blossom or it just wouldn’t feel right.
African Violets are a tiny plant with beautiful, colorful blooms. Much like other medium light plants, they only require water when the soil begins to feel dry to the touch, but unlike other plants, they require a specific fertilizer. This fertilizer should generally be applied every 2-3 weeks but this also depends on the instructions provided by the fertilizer manufacturer.
Fun fact: African Violets aren’t even violets. They’re Gesneriads, much like Gloxinias. Jargon aside, some versions of this plant offer bi-color blooms, but all of their blooms last up to a few weeks before they will dry and fall off.
African Violets are safe for pets and children.
Rubber Plant
Rubber Plants go hard in the paint. They start small but they can actually grow over ten feet tall! If height is an issue, make sure to prune the primary central stem. Much like other plants, this will cause the plant to expand in width rather than height. Keeping it in a smaller pot will limit its growth and keeping it in a larger pot will allow it to grow proportionately larger. They begin their lives mostly green but with maturity, they add accenting shades of red to their leaves.
Their soil should be kept moist at all times and they require regular fertilizing every two weeks during their growth season (March-October) and only monthly otherwise.
Rubber Plant is a type of ficus, meaning it contains a milky white sap that can be toxic if ingested by animals or humans. This plant is NOT safe for pets or children. It will not kill them, but the sap can be moderately toxic if consumed and can cause a rash if exposed to skin in sensitive parties.
High Light Plants
Snake Plant
Snake Plant offers a whole different vibe from the other plants this list has included. Its stalks appear almost leaf-like in dimension and almost grow in the same pattern as a succulent, indicating the dry climates it grows in naturally. Notably, this plant is the easiest to take care of on this entire list and is virtually IMPOSSIBLE to kill. That being said, it should only be watered once the top inch of soil is dry to the touch.
Snake Plant prefers bright light but can survive in low light situations. It stores water, so it is impractically hard to underwater. It can also survive fairly drastic temperature fluctuations as well.
This plant can be mildly toxic when consumed so it is NOT safe for pets and children.
Spider Plant
Arachnophobes, fear not! This plant merely resembles a spider due to its lanky and thin leaves. Spiders are not attracted to it or anything. This plant is thirsty af, so it requires a thorough watering once the soil dries. Fertilization should be provided during its season (March-November) and not otherwise. Though this is a bright light plant, avoid direct sunlight as it may scorch the leaves.
This plant is pretty cool for a number of reasons. The first being that you can cut off a full leaf and leave it in water for several days if you want another Spider Plant! This will yield roots at the bottom of the runner and this can be potted in soil and will produce another full spider plant.
The second being that even though this plant is safe for children, it will get your cat high as hell. The effect it has on cats is similar to catnip, or in other words, a mild hallucinogenic. Despite this fact’s fun nature, keep in mind that your cat will get a mad tummy ache if it consumes too much of the plant. So maybe keep it up on a shelf or something.
Aloe
Unfortunately, not all high light plants have an animal based title.
Aloe is the perfect plant for your shelf. Growth is encouraged in tight quarters (a small pot), because it almost resembles the rocks they can be found growing between in the wild and they need at least six hours of indirect sunlight per day. They can tolerate some direct sunlight, but should generally be kept out of the sun. They typically don’t require any fertilizing and should be watered deeply, but not too often. It is probably a good idea to water your Aloe once the top two inches of soil are dry. Make sure to saturate the whole pot once you notice these conditions. You are essentially trying to mimic the rain patterns found in the desert: heavy, but infrequently.
Aloes, like most succulents, thrive in a sandy loam soil like that found in “cactus potting mix”.
Aloe plants contain a chemical called Aloin that can have severe effects on the digestive system if consumed. Aloe plants should ALWAYS be kept out of reach of children and pets and are NOT safe for either of these parties.
What do you think? Did I miss any of your favorites? These are just a handful of the easiest indoor plants but I also don’t have any pets or children. Let me know which are your favorites in the comments below!
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