Have you always wanted to have plants, but never had the time?
Would you like to grow plants but consider yourself a black thumb?
Have you always liked plants, but haven’t had much experience in caring for them indoors?
Would you rather just fill a space in your home with a decorative plant, but don’t have much time for plants?
There’s a plant for you! And these plants can answer all the questions above!
There’s nothing better than low maintenance indoor plants!
This time, I haven’t done nearly as much research as usual before writing an article; this is solely my experience, which is the only reason for writing this article!
These plants have been around for over a decade now, as they have endured the neglect of two babies; two full time working parents with toddlers; and the arrival of a dog who loves to chew on plants!
These plants are remarkably resilient!
There’s one disclaimer, though; even though these plants are hardy and easy to maintain, you still have to make sure they thrive in the right conditions!
When you figure out which of these plants is best suited for your space and lifestyle, you can water them pretty much whenever you want and they’ll grow even without your help!
1. PONYTAIL PALM (BEAUCARNEA RECURVATA)
Because we have two Ponytail Palms in our home that have been around almost 15 years, I rank this plant No. 1 among low maintenance indoor plants.
It has survived the hardest conditions we could possibly have subjected it to, having moved several times in different light conditions, moved with us to our new home nine years ago, and growing up through the hectic years of having babies and working full-time!
All this without any signs of distress!
When I decided to spruce up a pony wall between our Living Room and Dining Room, I was so impressed with the hardiness of this plant that I bought a second one.
I made the right choice by choosing this super hardy plant, as it is decorative and aesthetically pleasing, so this is an absolute no brainer for me!
There is no way to kill this plant, unless you abandon your home!
Did you know that this plant is an ephemeral succulent? Well, it is! Since it cannot tolerate heavy watering, it only requires light watering every 2-3 weeks.
Unlike other tropical plants, it doesn’t need high humidity, preferring bright, indirect sunlight.
An ideal succulent plant to keep around cats is the Ponytail Palm!
2. SNAKE PLANT (SANSEVIERIA TRIFASCIATA)
This is another great plant in the best low maintenance indoor plants family…
The yellow and green combination of colors that these plants usually come in has not really appealed to me over the years. The Sansevieria Silver Queen however, is one of my favourite snake plants due to its deep green leaves with silver highlights.
There are many benefits to Snake Plants;
- They thrive in any lighting condition
- You can stretch them even longer so long as you water it once every two to three weeks…
- They possess a purifying effect, which makes it a perfect plant for bedrooms!
- Humidity conditions do not affect these insects.
This enables them to keep these pests out of your home at all times.
If you have pets and children who are young, you should take special precautions with this plant. Its leaves contain saponins that pose a hazard to both the dog and human.
3. ZZ PLANT (ZAMIOCULCAS ZAMIIFOLIA)
Another well-known plant in the low maintenance indoor plants category is the ZZ Plant.
Our ZZ Plant grew enormously big in 12 years.
When I bought it in 2008, it was a little plant in a 6′′ pot! I repotted this plant about 3 times already!
This species has experienced many alterations to settings, care, and circumstances like the Ponytail Palm.
Despite the fact that the sap from this plant can be mildly toxic to pets, we experienced no negative reactions from our puppy while chewing on it.
The house is too small to accommodate it, so I had to place it outside…maybe outside too long and the dog didn’t like it! Once I brought it back inside in the fall, many of the stems were drooping and yellow. But once I put it on this sturdy plant stand, it recovered beautifully, coming back with many new stems!
Despite thriving in dark areas and with minimal watering, you’ll find this plant at many malls. However, based on my experience, this plant still loves a lot of bright light!
Watering is required twice a week for ZZ Plants, although they can go longer without water as they store up water inside their stems.
You can push the ZZ Plant to the extremes of low light conditions when you have a low maintenance indoor plant such as this.
4. SPIDER PLANT (CHLOROPHYTUM COMOSUM)
Spider plants are extremely adaptable plants that thrive in a variety of environments.
Due to their indestructibility, they are highly recommended as low maintenance indoor houseplants for anybody with a Black Thumb.
As Spider plants were able to survive the neglect of my son’s bedroom, I placed two varieties in his bedroom…
These plants are ideal hangers for low light environments since they require minimal maintenance.
A great deal of work is required to maintain a Spider Plant, but it offers so many other benefits that it’s a great plant to own:
- They thrive in light conditions ranging from moderate to low.
- The toxins in the air are being removed by their purification system.
- Pets, including cats, and children are not at risk when using these plants.
A Spider Plant can grow many spiderettes that are useful in propagation. It prefers to completely dry out between waterings.
As well as straight, as shown in the picture below, they also come in green, variegated, and curly types.
Water about once every one or two weeks.
5. ENGLISH IVY (HEDERA HELIX)
With the Spider Plant, this is another “universal plant” good for everything and low maintenance, other than its benefits;
- low light tolerant
- and ideal for hangers!
One of the best plants for a beginner to take care of indoors because it is low maintenance.
The English ivy prefers medium light conditions the best, but it does well in moderately low light levels. Like all variegated species, it thrives and continues to produce variegated leaves as light levels are increased.
A good rule of thumb is to check the top 1 inch of soil with your finger to see if it is dry enough to re-water. Don’t let the soil dry out completely.
With its long branching design and its interesting foliage, the Indoor English Ivy creates wall or wire designs that are not only eye-catching but attractive as well!
In addition to being mildly poisonous to humans, cats and dogs, its leaves and berries make this plant a common plant to watch out for if you have young children and especially pets.
6. BABY RUBBER PLANT (PEPEROMIA OBTUSIFOLIA)
Baby Rubber Plants, are a small, easy to care for plant with shiny, deep green leaves that have an interestingly shaped shape.
These low maintenance indoor plants are definitely one of my favorites.
I keep my bookcase in a slightly shady corner of the sun-faded living room, so it gets adequate light without being directly exposed to sunlight.
Despite the fact that it seems to thrive under indirect light, the Rubber Plant does tolerate bright sunlight.
In nature, epiphytes are plants that grow on other plants’ branches. Therefore, I water mine once a week and make sure not to overwater it.
Other benefits of this plant include non-toxic properties that make it safe for children and pets.
7. PHILODENDRON
The leaves on this Brazil Philodendron first caught my attention because of the colors. After learning that it was a Philodendron, I understood that it would be an awesome bathroom plant. And it has been our favorite bathroom plant!
What prompted me to select this Philodendron from the many low maintenance indoor plants for our bathroom?
Our bathroom does have a window, but it does not receive direct sunlight. Furthermore, it thrives under a humid environment, and so where better place to grow Philodendrons than in a bathroom?
I have had some really fresh new leaves and a healthy growth in my philodendron in less than a year since watering it every week or two.
Likewise, the less light that reaches the leaves, the less variegation it will display.
Pets should avoid ingesting the leaves of philodendrons.
8. CHINESE MONEY PLANT (PILEA PEPEROMIOIDES)
I could go on about my Pilea for hours, but for the purpose of this article I’ll stick with the facts. It’s a very easy plant to keep once you find it a good spot.
Direct sunlight is best for it.
My plants get watered once a week.
For the one year I had my Pilea, it has grown significantly by being next to a large North facing window.
You can cut off this plant’s offsets, (new plant shoots), and use them to propagate new plants in the same way that you would used to make the sisters from the mother plant!
You might find my articles on Propagation for Kids and Plants in Progress as well as my article on the Sharing Plant | Pilea Propagation interesting if you are interested in Plant Propagation.
I cannot think of any other indoor plant more low maintenance than this one.
9. DEVIL’S IVY (POTHOS)
The Pothos is one of the easiest plants to care for indoors; it’s extremely adaptable and is extremely low maintenance.
It can grow in various environments and substrates, (including a Kokedama moss ball, where I keep mine).
You can create beautiful compositions with the trailing plant on your walls or on your table tops.
These plants do well in humid environments but also thrive in higher humidity!
It thrives in bright, indirect light as well as low light. The variegated types maintain their beautiful colours in bright, indirect light. The Pothos does not like direct sun light.
Keep the soil well hydrated between waterings. The plant will tell you when it needs water by drooping its leaves. It is better to under water than to overwater this plant.
10. JADE PLANT (CRASSULA OVATA)
In addition to being one of the easiest indoor succulent plants to grow, the Jade Plant is one of the most low-maintenance indoor plants.
These succulents are believed to bring good luck if they are owned by someone (that’s why they are also called Money Plants). They are a staple of Feng Shui plant decorating practices.
Taking advantage of direct sunlight, as do many succulents, the Jade Plant thrives under bright light. Jade Plants grow leggy in low light conditions.
You do not have to water this plant on a schedule. The best way to determine whether or not water is needed is to touch the top soil. If the soil feels dry, you must water! Do not let the top soil become completely dry!
You can propagate the Jade Plant by pinching the stems off when the plant is too tall or leggy and planting them directly into growing pots.
When properly cared for and in the right environmental conditions, this plant can grow quite big and old.
You will be inspired by this article that highlights the low maintenance indoor plants I love to surround myself and the space where I live and work with indoor plants!
Plants can enhance your mind, body and space and are straightforward to grow and maintain, and offer numerous benefits to your mind, body and space.
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