Indoor house plants are becoming so popular among gardeners. They bring beauty, fragrance and color to our homes and enhance our home with year round enjoyment. One of the problems houseplants can face is low light.
However, there are several varieties that do very well in low light environments.
1. Dracaena Corn Plant
This is an easy to grow and maintain tropical house plant that produces a main stem with long green leaves. The stems can grow to over four feet tall and can occasionally produce a small white flower at the top.
2. The Dragon Tree
This is one of the most popular house plants of a tropical nature to grow. These slow plants take about 10 years to reach full maturity height of 5 feet, but along the way they have a beautiful lush appearance with long thin leaves. Direct sunlight can be harmful to the leaves.
3. Parlor Palm
The Parlor Palm plants thrive under low light conditions and require very little water. Just keep the soil a bit moist and with patience, the plant will mature to about three feet tall.
4. Jade Plant
The Jade Plant requires lots of light, plenty of water at the right time, and produces thick oval shaped leaves. Drainage is important since water sitting around the roots can lead to rot. Lastly, a dose of weak fertilizer a couple of times per month will pay nice dividends.
5. African Violet
This is a wonderful tropical house plant to grow because it actually produces very colorful flowers that can be maintained for most of the year. Healthy African Violets are relatively small house plants that will mature to about 12 inches in diameter, which is a very manageable size.
6. Aloe Vera
Well known for various health benefits especially to clean indoor air, Aloe Veras are very easy to grow and maintain as house plants. They should not be given too much direct sunlight. The Aloe Vera is a succulent which means that its leaves retain a lot of water, similar to cactus plants.
7. Spider Plant
Keep them in a well lit location with no direct sunlight and provide plenty of water except in winter. The only other maintenance is removing the browning leaves as they die off so that new growth can continue.
8. Bird of Paradise
While there are several varieties, make sure you grow what is called the “S. retinae”…the only one suitable for growing indoors. It takes at least three years before you will see your first flowers and requires regular fertilizing. So be patient, as almost all tropical varieties require patience and waiting.
9. Anthurium
These are a bit more difficult to grow than most tropical house plants, but well worth the effort. Don’t let the temperature drop below 60 F. and make sure the soil is consistently moist.
10. Orchids
Popular around the world, the hardest thing about growing Orchids is selecting the variety you want…there are hundreds of them in a wide array of colors! They like a good amount of light, high humidity and warm temperature of at least 60 F. Wait until AFTER the first bloom and then go ahead and re-pot the whole plant.
11. White Bat Flower
These Brilliant white flowers can grow up to 12 inches in width and can stand upright with its petals spread out well, to the extent that they look like a white dove, or a bat-like form. Its throat shows the shades of purple and brown. This flowering plant is truly exotic and unique, which makes it an irresistible indoor tropical house plant.
12. Night Blooming Jasmine
If you want a sweet smelling flowering plant that is also versatile, then the night blooming jasmine would be a great choice. This is an upright container plant that originated from the West Indies and produces greenish white flowers that emits romantic fragrance during the night. The good thing about this indoor tropical plant is that it can be easily grown in pots on colder climates either in your sunny rooms or patios.
13. Zebra Plant
The Zebra plant features bold striped foliage and for six weeks in autumn, it can grow to vibrant yellow flowers that will emerge from the golden branches for a scene stealing show. In the wild, it can thrive in the regular downpours that the Brazilian rain forest receives. It can also work well indoors, as long as the humidity is high.
14. Croton
The croton is another exotic tropical house plant that is easy to grow. It is widely cultivated as house plants and ornamentals, featuring different shapes and colors of leaves. You can find that it comes in shades of green, red, orange and yellow. The new leaves of the Croton plant are in green and will change its color as they mature.
15. Mother in Law Tongue
This plant is known for its remarkable and striking features, which makes it a perfect house plant to decorate your home. It is becoming increasingly popular as an indoor plant and this could be due to its near indestructible qualities. This house plant is ideal for new gardeners since it is easy to grow and maintain. It is a carefree type and will thrive well on dry soil and air, making it a perfect indoor tropical plant.