If you’re seen my house plant tour, you’ll know that I’m a little bit crazy for indoor greenery. In fact, I have over 30 potted plants inside our little apartment. Live plants add so much life to a space, and the feeling of seeing a new leaf starting to grow on a plant you’ve taken care of is one of the best feelings ever. But I wasn’t always a green thumb! I have killed many a houseplant trying to figure out how much light or water it needs, or just forgetting about it for a little bit too long (oops!) To save you the headache of trial and error, today I’m sharing my favorite maintenance house plants that are amazing for beginners!
Monstera Deliciosa
You’ve probably seen the gorgeous monstera deliciosa (aka the Swiss Cheese plant) all over your Instagram feed. These tropical cuties are so photogenic because of their unique shape!
Tips for taking care of a Monstera:
- Water it about once a week and make sure the pot you’re using has good drainage!
- Monsteras do okay in low light, but grow fastest under indirect sunlight!
- Give your plant a moss pole or stake to cling to as it grows taller. This was it’ll grow up and not out!
- Only mature Monsteras put out split leaves, so if you’re going to a nursery (or Trader Joe’s, which I hear is stocking these guys now!) make sure you choose an older one that already has a few leaves with holes.
- You can get a monstera leaf cutting from a friend and pot it to create a whole new plant! The monstera in the photo above was taken as a cutting from my larger Monstera plant from the Sill, and propagated in water for about a month before I finally planted him. He actually grew this split leaf in the water!
Sansevieria
The Sansevieria plant, (also called the “Snake Plant” or “Mother In Law’s Tongue) is a great plant for low-light spots. I got one of mine at The Sill, and the other was propagated from my great-grandmother’s plant and passed down to me!
Tips for taking care of a Sansevieria:
- Make sure you don’t overwater! Sansevierias don’t require a lot of water, and most are fine with being watered once every other week. If your leaves are turning yellow and mushy, you’re overwatering!
- To propagate a sansevieria, either take a whole stalk with its roots, or just cut off the top of an existing leaf and pot straight into the dirt. If you’re propagating a variegated plant and choose a leaf-only propagating, the resulting plant won’t be variegated!
Silver Philodendron
I’m a sucker for hanging plants, and the silver philodendron is so fun! The tendrils of this plant grow long pretty quickly, so it looks beautiful on a shelf or in a hanging pot! I got mine at The Sill a year and a half ago, and it’s still going strong!
Tips for Taking Care of a Silver Philodendron:
- Some leaves on your silver philodendron will yellow and fall off regardless of how well it’s taken care of. It’s just part of the plant’s life cycle, so don’t stress! You can see some yellowing leaves in my photo too!
- Silver philodendrons like medium-bright indirect light. The more light you give your philodendron, the faster it’ll grow! Just make sure not to put it in direct sunlight. Plants get sunburns too!
- Water your philodendron when the soil is dried out to about halfway down the pot. I find mine needs to be watered a bit more often than some of my other plants, so I water him about every 5 days.
Pilea Peperomioides
A year ago these fun “Pass it On” plants were so hard to find, but now they’re everywhere! You can get these at The Sill, Trader Joe’s and most hardware stores. Their flat circular leaves add a modern touch to your decor, and they put out pups to propagate all the time!
Tips for Taking Care of a Pilea:
- Water about once a week and make sure your pot has good drainage. If the leaves start to curl into an umbrella-shape, you’re overwatering!
- When your Pilea puts out a “pup,” take a sharp knife and cut about two inches down into the soil. You can propagate in water first, or just plant it straight into soil.
String of Pearls
Give me a challenging plant like a fiddle leaf fig or a maidenhair fern and I have no problems taking care of it, but for some reason I can never keep succulents alive! Enter: Senecio Rowleyanus (or the “String of Pearls” plant.) These grow CRAZY fast and they’re really hardy!
Tips for taking care of a String of Pearls:
- These are succulents, so water more sparsely than you do your other plants. About every two weeks seems to work well for me.
- Make sure you have really good drainage with this one! I actually like to put the grower pot in the sink and let it drain through before returning it to its decorative pot
Ficus Elastica
The Ficus Elastica (or “rubber tree”) has sturdy, waxy leaves, and can grow up to 50 feet tall! These trendy houseplants are everywhere, from trendy stores like Madewell and & Other Stories, to out in the wild! I got mine at Trader Joe’s but you can also find them at most hardware stores, or online at The Sill.
Tips for taking care of a Rubber Tree:
- Rubber trees need bright indirect light to grow tall without becoming “leggy.” If your plant starts dropping leaves, it needs to be moved closer to the window.
- Put a dowel in your plant’s pot and loosely tie the stalk of your rubber tree to it to give it some extra support as it grows taller!
These 6 house plants are black-thumb proof. I’ve had mine since the very beginning of my houseplant journey and have made many, many mistakes on them in the past few years, but they’ve all been forgiving and look just as good (or better!) than when I brought them home. I hope you have the same good luck with your plant babies, and I’m here to answer any questions you have!
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Disclaimer: this post may include affiliate links, meaning that I make a small percentage of the purchase price (at no additional cost to you) if you order any of these plant cuties online! I promise to only recommend products I genuinely use and believe in. This post is not sponsored.
