Filling our homes with house plants is a millennial obsession. We seem to ruddy love it. And I’ll be honest. I really like a house plant. Although I don’t own a single one. Not one. Zero. Nada. If you read my previous post about how to buy a house you will know that I have recently moved into a new house in which I’m looking to curate a small jungle.
A tiny jungle you understand as I am notoriously bad at looking after plant life. I went on a mission to find out what the easiest house plants are so that I could share them with you as well. I’m no botanist so please hit me with all your wonderful knowledge in the comments section at the end of the post and let me know what other plants I might need to explore.
The Best Small House Plants
The Chinese Money plant or The Pancake Plant.
This guy sounds like a dream to look after. Water once a week, keep the soil moist (sorry for anyone with an aversion to that word – I know it’s a thing). It loves the sun (see, my kind of guy) so you’ll likely have to rotate to stop it bending one way. This little plant is also a really good air purifyer. If I’m honest, thats one of my favourite things about plants; the purification and all the… Oxygen. Don’t keep this one in direct sunlight though, he’s probably a good candidate for the bathroom.
Aloe
This might be a bit obvious perhaps. But it is such a good plant to have in your home. If you didn’t know, aloe is an excellent moisturiser and can be used to treat burns etc. My mother in law has quite a few in her house and when I first saw her take the aloe from the plant I thought it was amazing. I’m easily pleased/surprised/wowed. If you use the leaves to extract the aloe make sure you don’t use more than a third of the leaves at a time to make sure it stays nice and healthy.
Asparagus Setaceus or Lace Fern
I love the look of this small plant. It has as super soft appearance but looks can be deceiving and it can get thorns so do be careful. Avoid direct sun light with this plant as the leaves can easily scorch. It likes a good drink butit doesn’t like to sit in water as the roots are prone to rot. You can mist it to maintain humidity. Fancy.
Phlebodium Blue Star or Blue Star Fern
Now this doesn’t look like an average fern. It likes low to moderate light and it’s soil kept moist. It can grow quite quickly so keep your eye on it.
The Best Tall House Plants
Fiddle Leaf Fig
I’m thinking of getting one of these for my hallway. They can grow up to ten feet indoors so I’m definitely on the look out for a slightly smaller potted one. I know I said this was a post for easy to look after plants – this one can be a bit tricky apparently but it looks so good. Apparently a terracota pot will help maintain the plant rather than leaving it in a plastic one and it loves the light. You have to get the watering just right but I reckon it’s probably worth it.
Mother In Laws Tongue or Snake Plant
I have no idea what the Mother in law thing is all about but little, or potentially quite tall plant is a real breeze to get along with. Don’t over water it – they’re better neglected (huzzah!). It iwll be pretty happy in any light and at any temperature and it will helpfully filter any airborne toxins as well. It could grow up to a meter so keep an eye on it.
Aspidistra or Cast Iron Plant
This is another contender for my hallway – it’s frankly much easier to care for. It’s happy in a shady corner and would rather be there than in direct sunlight. Keep the soil moist and you’ll need to dust/wash the leaves to keep it nice and healthy.
Monstera Deliciosa or Swiss Cheese Plant
Now if you’ve never seen this plant in real life you will have 100% seen it in prints. It’s that famous palmy plant with the leaves that look like someone has run a big hole punch over them – hence the swiss cheese I guess. It’s a climber so you can train it to climb a moss pole which looks cool – and I’m contemplating it for a corner of my lounge. It likes bright light but will tolerate some shade. It really likes to drink it’s water so allow soil to start drying before re-watering. The only downside to this beauty is that the leaves can be poisonous so you need to keep it out of the way of pets/children.
The Best Trailing House Plants
Enecio Rowleyanus or String of Pearls
I actually just bought a fake one of these from good old Sainsbury’s. And don’t worry – I’m looking to cover off the best fake plants in a separate post if you’d be interested? I digress. The String of Pearls grows fast so you need to make sure there is ample space for it to trail. They like bright but indirect light and they will tolerate a draft. They can grow up to 1m and you simply just cut the bottoms off if they start getting too long.
Ceropegia Woodii or String of Hearts
If pearls aren’t your thing maybe you could go for hearts instead. This trailing plant is a semi succulent. It’s super easy to look after and fine with a bit of neglect too.
Epipremnum Aureum or Golden Pothos
Such a great looking plant with its lovely yellow and cream streaked glossy leaves. This plant is a great first house plant as it’s really easy to care for. It’s another great air purifier and would look really good in a macrame hanger. It doesn’t need much watering but does like humid conditions. The trails can grow up to 20 meters! So make sure you keep an eye and trim it when necessary.
