Our favorite houseplants

(And how we keep them alive) ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [Wirecutter logo]( Beth Niegelsky Plant parenting can be so much more than a pastime. It’s an opportunity to convene with nature, even inside a cramped apartment. For those who enjoy hobbies with a little ambition built in, houseplants offer the thrill of seeing your babies pop out new shoots and sprout new growth. Depending on which plants you choose, they’re also something green (or pink! or purple!) and gorgeous to look at, to show off, or to act as a room’s centerpiece. The problem is that houseplants can also die, and it happens more often than we’d like to admit. That’s not the plant’s fault—it’s ours. For this reason, it’s crucial to choose a plant that can survive and thrive in the light conditions offered by your home. These are the houseplants that Wirecutter staffers keep in their homes, even when their thumbs are sometimes anything but green. —Rose Lorre When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. [Learn more]( → [Calathea rattlesnake (Calathea lancifolia)]( Melissa Gilkey The Calathea rattlesnake has a cool look. Plus, it’s a prayer plant, which means it raises and lowers its foliage based on the time of day and its exposure to sunlight. It’s also super-easy to take care of: I water it just once a week. If I let it go eight or nine days between waterings, it does start to struggle. I got it from The Sill, a popular online plant shop that has a brick-and-mortar location in my Brooklyn neighborhood. I was looking for plants that didn’t need a ton of bright light, since my apartment gets medium, indirect sunlight at best. I keep it up on a windowsill, which means my short-legged dog, Dewie, can’t get to it. But if he did, it’s also non-toxic to pets. Dewie also doesn’t seem to mind the attention I give to my plants. He still gets most of it. —Melissa Gilkey, chief operating officer [Rex begonia (Begonia rex-cultorum)]( Anna Perling I’ve always been drawn to begonias for their elegant, sloped leaves and dainty spots, so when I spotted the Rex begonia, I had to have it. With its frilled edges, soft fuzz, and splashes of hot pink and iridescent silver, it’s the funnest and flashiest houseplant I’ve owned, and it really stands out against the rest of my collection. I only wish it came with a little disco ball to twirl above it. In my experience, begonias are hardy—this one requires moderate light and needs to dry out completely in between watering. They are, however, toxic to cats and dogs. —Anna Perling, staff writer [Weeping fig (Ficus benjamina)]( Beth Niegelsky Most of my houseplants are either impulse purchases from a local nursery or plants I’ve brought home from the Home Depot clearance section with the hope of reviving them. But my most beloved plant is my Ficus benjamina (also known as a ficus tree), which my mom received as a gift after my grandmother passed away, in 2000. When I moved back to North Carolina a few years ago, she gave it to me. It’s now a beautiful, unruly, 21-year-old, 4-foot-tall tree that I keep in a sunny part of my living room and move outside during the warmer months. I water it every two weeks, and though it does drop a handful of leaves every winter, spring and summer always bring lots of new growth. —Beth Niegelsky, web producer [Money tree (Pachira aquatica)]( Alex Vaughn This durable, hearty little plant totally bounced back after a disastrous rehoming from the grocery store in February, when about 95% of its leaves browned, withered, and fell off within its first week at my place. I was devastated that I’d bought a dead plant, but one little nubbin survived—and now, two months later, it’s flourishing with more fronds continuing to sprout! To care for it, I place two ice cubes (about three tablespoons of water) on its soil once a week. If I feel like spoiling it, I spritz it with water very occasionally. It likes bright, well-lit rooms (but not continuous, direct sunlight), and it’s suited to a wide temperature range. This affordable plant purchase was a great bang for my buck, and it gives me a delightful feeling of good luck to have my thriving money tree on my work desk. —Alex Vaughn, product manager [Candelabra tree (Euphorbia ingens)]( Andrew Kalinchuk Editor’s note: Although Paul the Cactus’s heritage is unknown, Euphorbia ingens is our best guess. Paul the Cactus is over 6 feet tall and (based on a quick Google search) as many as 20 to 30 years old. A few years ago, my partner and I put Paul outside because we thought it would be cute to let him sunbathe. Instead, he got completely soaked in a surprise rainstorm. He developed a black discoloration all over one side and started leaking a milk-like substance. The situation was dire, and we were completely panicked because Paul is one of our favorite possessions. We took him out of his pot, removed all the dirt from his roots, let them air out for a day, then repotted him in rocky soil … and we saved him! Paul is still the only plant we’ve consistently kept alive, which we do with lots of sunshine near a south-facing window, major water-portion control (a maximum of one cup every two weeks), and no more outings since that traumatic rainstorm. He is a staple in our apartment and our lives. Our friends even know his name. —Andrew Kalinchuk, deputy managing editor [Crispy wave fern (Asplenium nidus)]( Joanne Chen There are so many reasons why I love this fern, all wild and ruffly, in a fantastic shade of lime green. Its arrival surprised me, not just because I didn’t expect it from the thoughtful colleague who sent it, but also because I didn’t know that ferns had it in them to twist and shout like that. This plant child seems to be in a perpetual state of motion, even as it’s sitting still. As I’m also a parent to a human child, I appreciate that my crispy wave fern (aka bird’s nest fern) isn’t particularly needy. Officially, it does best in filtered light with regular watering and misting. I have no idea what filtered light means, and I simply water it when the soil feels thirsty—and yet those leaves keep brimming with energy just the same. —Joanne Chen, senior staff writer [Easter cactus (Schlumbergera gaertneri)]( Annemarie Conte My family has had this happy Easter cactus for about three years, and we probably got it from IKEA (those plants always need rescuing). I try to water it once a week, but since it’s a succulent, it’s pretty forgiving. It sits in a west-facing window, a sunny spot that doesn’t get a lot of direct sun. It blooms once a year in late winter/early spring; I do nothing to help it bloom, and it likes it that way. When it puts out new growth, the young leaves boast a fantastic, pink hue. Bonus beauty! —Annemarie Conte, deputy editor [Iron cross begonia]( Ellen Airhart I bought my Iron cross begonia in 2019 at [Plant Therapy]( in San Francisco. The branching leaf pattern (I wouldn’t exactly call it a cross) is interesting, but my favorite thing about this plant is the fuzzy texture, especially when the leaves are young. I water it only about once every 10 days to two weeks. Getting water on the leaves can cause them to rot, so I aim my [IKEA Bittergurka]( watering can carefully and don’t let water rise up around the leaves. My begonia has thrived in a bright, northern-facing window. Some of the plants around it have suffered from spider mites or fungal infections, but it’s never had a problem (besides leaves dying if I get water on them). —Ellen Airhart, fact checker [Peace lily (Spathiphyllum)]( James Austin The peace lily is lovely as a foliage plant, and also when its white flowers start to come out and add some bloom to the look. It’s also super-easy to take care of and incredibly resistant to underwatering. In fact, it’ll even tell you when it’s ready for a drink: Just look for when its leaves start to droop. —James Austin, updates writer [Bromeliad summer (Tillandsia ‘summer’)]( Jackie Reeve I’m a serial houseplant killer. I can’t keep aloe alive, my succulents are fine one day and dead the next, and my ivy and philodendrons don’t like to grow at all. But so far I’ve kept my Bromeliad summer alive and growing for about four months, which might be a personal record. This plant likes its soil to dry out completely before being watered, yet it loves having its fronds misted with a spray bottle. (I started using the [WaterMe app]( to remind myself when to spritz and when to check the soil.) But really, this plant seems to love me no matter what. It’s even recently started to bloom these little deep-purple flowers from its pineapple-like center, and they make me so happy when I see them. —Jackie Reeve, senior staff writer [Swiss cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa)]( Annam Swanson Dear friends gifted me a young Monstera deliciosa plant last summer. I was nervous at first because I’ve had some terrible luck with houseplants in the past. But keeping it in a north-facing window and watering it only every couple of weeks (when the soil feels dry a few inches in) somehow kept it growing and thriving through winter in the Pacific Northwest. I dust the leaves occasionally and trim off any that fade yellow or die. And in March I had it professionally repotted, adding a supportive, moss-covered pole to help it grow up (instead of sprawling out). The pole’s sphagnum moss is moisture-retentive, which helps trick the plant into thinking it’s a tree that’s safe to climb. Though my dining room is no rain forest, the plant’s branches are already leaning into the pole. I’m excited to see it grow taller and stronger, and every time a new leaf unfurls, it feels like a small miracle. —Annam Swanson, managing editor [Croton petra (Codiaeum variegatum)]( Eric Dulcet I’ve had the same Croton for at least four years. And I do not claim to be great with houseplants, so I can attest that it’s pretty low-maintenance. It’s lived in varying levels of sunlight but typically sits on a shelf or table near a window. I water the soil from the top and let it drain out the bottom every week or two. I’ve repotted it only once (the day I got it for all of $6 at a local market), and I haven’t changed the soil, fertilized it, or pruned it since. Yet it’s still a happy plant that adds a lot of color to a room. —Eric Dulcet, software engineer [ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia)]( Marilyn Ong A ZZ plant was the perfect first plant for someone like me—a hopeless black thumb. They’re not expensive, but I adopted mine from a friend who was moving out of her apartment. It was in pretty sad shape when it arrived. A few bright green shoots showed promise, but it had lots of cut stalks interspersed with the new growth. I consulted some friends, watched a few YouTube videos, and attempted to prune away all the dead matter and replant the remaining healthy bulbs in a new pot. It’s thriving now, with perky stems amid bright glossy leaves! It’s also super-forgiving. Though I usually water it about every two weeks, this plant won't suffer much if I don’t get to it until a week or two after its scheduled watering (in fact, sometimes I wait to make sure the soil has dried sufficiently). —Marilyn Ong, supervising editor Copyright © 2021 Wirecutter, Inc., all rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up for Wirecutter's newsletter. [Forward this email to a friend](. [View this email in your browser](. Getting too many emails from us? 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