Indoor greenery not only improves the interior decor of your home or office, but houseplants also improve air quality and boost the quality of your interiorscapes!
Not all of our homes have huge windows and a grow light is not always practical. And no one wants sickly-looking spindly plants that limply hang over their pots. It can make you feel like a bad plant parent, making the possibility of having houseplants in your home or apartment with few windows seem like a pipe dream!
Feel like a winner with these low-light houseplants that are sure to thrive in your home!
Easy To Grow Houseplants That Thrive In Low-Light Settings
Most houseplants are tropical rainforest plants and are used to diffuse light, and in the indoor setting, they need indirect bright light all day for the best color, but there are a select few that can handle lower natural light.
Low-light plants are good for offices or rooms with only fluorescent light access, north-facing windows, or are located further away from a natural light source.
For "plant parent" newbies, there are plenty of low-maintenance plants to adorn your living space!
Houseplant Care
Plants need well-drained highly organic soil in pots with very good drainage. Water using the finger test, poking a finger in the soil below the surface to see if it feels moist or dry. If dry, water well and drain off any excess water that collects in the tray.
Fertilize your plants with a slow-release houseplant fertilizer according to the product directions, but avoid adding fertilizer as the days get short as many houseplants will slow down adding new growth until spring.
Sanitation is important. Trim away any yellowing or broken foliage and nip back your vining plants to a node to encourage branching. Remove any yellow or brown leaves that are lying on top of the soil.
Repot your plants every few years because being contained in a planter means they quickly use up the soil's organic matter and can outgrow their containers.
Here are the Top 5 that handle low-light settings!
Devil's Ivy or Pothos
Pothos is a great starter plant that will quickly trail down your bookshelf, climb on a moss pole, or be kept trimmed and tidy. The heart-shaped leaves can be green, green with gold, or green and white variegated. The long tendrils can be draped over bookcases and attached to a wall with anchors, or left to drape themselves over the sides of a hanging basket beautifully!
There are many varieties and cultivars of Devil’s Ivy, however, you will enjoy more variegation with more sun. Try one of these Pothos varieties if you are able to include a bit more light for your plant's location!
- The Golden Pothos is a gold and green variegated form
- Marble Queen Pothos has white and green randomized variegation
- Snow Queen Pothos - mostly white leaf with speckled dark and light green leaves
Swiss Cheese Plant
A variety of Monstera, the Swiss Cheese Plant's huge heart-shaped leaves form holes, deep lobes, and slits as they mature! Looking like someone took scissors and cut segments out of the sides of each leaf and sometimes a leaf will even have an entire hole in the middle!
The intricate and glossy leaves are a stunning luscious green that catches all eyes in the room! These plants are native to rainforests, so they'll appreciate living in a humid environment with filtered light. However, despite loving higher air humidity, Swiss Cheese is a plant that is okay with infrequent watering.
- Luscious Exotic Green Color
- Unique Segmented Leaves
- Stunning Indoor Houseplant
- Easy to Care For Tropical Plant
- Indoors & Shaded Porches/Patios
Calathea
Big rounded green leaves colorfully striped and streaked, Calathea, like the pink and green Pinstripe Calathea has young leaves striped and streaked in color. The color contrast against the bold dark green background is outstanding! The leaves are further accented with deep, purple-red undersides.
Like their Prayer Plant relatives, the leaves will fold closed in the evening and spread again in the morning light. Watch in amazement as new, tightly rolled red leaves emerge from the center and unfurl!
- Round Green Striped Leaves
- Leaves Fold At Night & Open In The Morning
- Purple Undersides
- Colorful New Leaves
- Very Easy To Grow
Snake Plant
Bold stiff, upright leaves with variegated green, light green, and sage green jagged horizontal stripes, the Snake Plant's thick fibrous foliage is accented with a bold yellow margin for an extra pop of color! Holding this color as well in full sun as it does dim light, these rugged plants are low-water-usage too!
Also known as Mother-in-Laws Tongue, the long slender flat leaves grow from a central rosette and can have 'pups' or 'daughter' plants that sprout from the base of this rosette.
- Long Slender Flattened Fibrous Leaves
- Variegated Greens With A Yellow Margin
- Form Vertical Rosettes
- High to Low Light Needs
- Low Moisture Needs
- Carefree Plants That Clean The Air
Spider Plant
Spider Plants, also known as Ribbon Plants, are among the easiest to care for and most forgiving houseplants! Tolerant of full sun to low-light conditions, as well as low moisture to average moisture locations. Featuring fleshy roots (like potatoes) they hold water for a long time, which is great for forgetful or busy plant parents!
The long slender grass-like blades can be green with white to yellow stripes down the middle. In lower light settings, the blades will be more green but just as lush. Baby plantlets form on long stems and then form and give these plants their ‘spider’ appearance!
- Long Slender Green to Green/Yellow or Green/White Variegated Leaves
- Baby Spider Plants Appear On Long Slender Stems
- Fleshy Roots Make Spider Plants Very Forgiving
- Form Expanding Fountains of Slender Foliage
- Incredibly Easy to Grow
- Adaptable In Sun/Shade
Honorable Mention
Dragontail Ferns are hardy, small landscaping plants with unique foliage, forming a low, evergreen mound of narrowly triangular, notched, wavy-edged glossy fronds, each tapering to long points. While great outside, Dragontail Ferns are also great houseplants that do well in lower-light indoor settings! Great for terrariums too!
Cast Iron Plants have been an easy-care, low-light houseplant standard for decades! Growing 2-3 feet tall, the wide green leaves taper to a point and resemble a cross between a Snake Plant and a Janet Craig Dracena. Brown-thumb-proof and very easy to grow, these have been an indoor favorite since the Victorian era!
Chinese Evergreens are colorful bi-color and tri-colored tropical houseplants with variable leaves that resemble a cross between a Prayer Plant and a Dieffenbachia. With dozens of varieties to choose from, these are easy-to-grow, low-light wonders that just need consistent moisture. Check out the Siam Chinese Evergreen Kokedamas for a uniquely presented variety with green, white, and pink foliage!
Include Forgiving Indoor Greenery Today!
Living with plants can be therapeutic by reducing stress, boosting your mood, and increasing productivity! So adding a plant or two in each room of your house or your office will significantly improve your quality of life!
Houseplants transform your home into a green-leaved sanctuary where you can relax and grow with your plants! Especially when they are very easy to grow and forgiving, some even thriving on neglect!
There is a wide variety of new grow lights and plant lights available that are more decorative and won’t look utilitarian or out of place! Giving you and your plants more options and variety! Many LED lights with a broad spectrum that can simply be used in a lamp near any plant are also quite helpful.
Find your new plant pets and interior décor today at NatureHills.com and surround yourself with living plants all year round!
Happy (Indoor) Planting!
