These zero or low maintenance plants do not require any special fertilizers for growth and flowering. But you can add a handful of compost like cowdung or vermicompost or any compost once 3 to 6 months.
Here’s my list of top 10 low maintenance houseplants for lazy gardeners:
12: Norfolk Island pine: Also known by many as the Christmas Tree. This is a hard to kill plant in tropical climates and needs very little care to survive. It grows well in bright indirect sunlight and also direct sun. It needs watering every other day or even less depending on the climate you live in.
11: Succulents & Cacti: Most people think succulents are hard to maintain and they die even after proper and intensive care. This is the mistake they do. They actually thrive well on neglect. They need very less frequent watering like once or max twice a week. They do well in full sunlight as well as indirect bright light depending on the type of succulent.
10: Spider Plant (or Chlorphytums): This is one of the best starter plant. Spider plants are mostly grown in hanging baskets. But they thrive in any container or any type of soil or potting mix. They grow very well in shady places with indirect bright light. They do not need daily watering. you can water on alternate days or even once or twice a week depending on the climatic conditions.
9: Peace Lily: Peace Lily is one of the most beautiful low-maintenance flowering plants you can add to your home garden. Additionally, the Peace Lily is also a good air purifier plant. This can be grown indoor or outdoors and requires bright indirect sunlight. It has beautiful shiny green leaves with creamy-white hooded flowers. You can water it on alternate days or even lesser depending on the climate.
8: Jade Plant: This is actually a succulent plant which requires very less frequent watering, like once or maximum twice a week even in summer season. This plant requires at least 2 to 3 hours of direct sunlight for proper growth, preferably morning sunlight.
7: ZZ Plant: This is another attractive ornamental plant that requires very little care. It’s a beautiful plant with glossy green leaves and also an air purifier plant. It is a drought tolerant plant and requires very less frequent watering like once or twice a week. It can be grown indoors or outdoors in shady or bright locations. It doesn’t need direct sunlight.
6: Syngonium: This is another beautiful ornamental flowering plant with an attractive foliage. This needs alternate day watering or at least weekly twice watering. It grows in indirect bright locations as well as in direct sun. If kept in direct sun, avoid hot noon sun and water it daily.
5: Snake Plant (sansevieria): These are actually true zero maintenance plants and can survive the worst of the conditions. They require very less watering and even sunlight. They adapt to any conditions and grown in dark locations as well as bright locations and also in direct harsh sunlight. They come in many beautiful varieties and colors.
4: Lucky Bamboo: This is a dracaena species and grown mostly in water. But it grows equally well in soil too. If grown in water, this is a very low maintenance plant and requires changing water once in 10 to 15 days. Its grown indoors and needs very little light.
3: Philodendrons: These are again zero maintenance plants that need very little light to grow. They can be grown indoors or outdoors in shady places. They need less frequent watering like once or twice a week.
2: Aloevera: If you can’t remember the last time you watered your plants, aloe is perfect for you. This is a succulent plant which store water in its thick fleshy leaves and can survive many days without watering. It grows indoors as well as outdoors, but can get leggy if it does not get sufficient direct sunlight.
1: Money Plant or Pothos: This is also called Devil’s ivy, because it’s a hard to kill plant and survives even the worst conditions. Pothos come in a wide variety of beautiful colors and varieties like golden pothos, marble queen, marble prince, neon and so on. They are grow indoors mostly in water as well as outdoors in bright shady locations. You can check a detailed episode on Money plant and secrets to get very large size leaves in pothos, from a link in description below.
The other low maintenance plants that need a mention are: Dieffenbachias, Umbrella tree or schefflera, Plumeria or Champa tree, Dragon tree, Rubber tree, and Pepperomias – but not variegated ones – any variegated plant needs more sunlight exposure because the pigment chlorophyll essential for photosynthesis is lesser in variegated plants.
Now I will tell you two fruit trees I have grown that need no special care except watering, sunlight and occasional handful of compost. The first one and my most favourite tree is Mulberry tree, which can also be grown in containers to bear fruits. The second one is a fig tree. Choose grafted trees if you are growing in large containers.
- What are indoor plants?
Indoor plants are simply the plants that can be grown indoors or in other words they can be grown in low light conditions. - How do you Purchase Indoor Plants? Best place to buy indoor plants is from your local nursery or gardening store. Buy Online only if they deliver within 3 days of purchase, otherwise the plant may not survive. There are a few things you need to check before purchase, like the root system whenever possible. I know they generally do not allow this! But You can also check the leaves for its overall health. Generally, the thicker the leaves, the more resistant the plant is for pest attacks. Also check thoroughly for pests by closing examining the plant. Because this can infect your other house plants. You can watch my related video on 10 tips to remember when you purchase a plant from nursery or online.
- Do I Need to Repot After I Bring it Home? Firstly if its come with its own container, leave it without disturbing for 3 to 4 days or atleast a week for it to settle to its new environment. Then if the container is large enough for the size of the plant and the potting mix used looks good and well draining, you better leave it as it is for few more days or atleast a month. If it looks root bound and roots coming out of drainage holes, its time to repot into a larger container of your choice. We will discuss on the Indoor Plant Potting mix later.
- How much light do indoor plants need? Well this is perhaps the most important factor and depends on the plant you are choosing to grow. But one point to note here is every plant requires light for photosynthesis, whether its natural sunlight or artificial grow lights, Whether direct sunlight or Indirect light like in a shady place. There are many plants which can tolerate low light conditions which we shall discuss shortly. But there is no plant which can survive in complete darkness.
- Now Which plants can do well in low light conditions? Yes some plants can grow well in low light conditions. The best examples are Philodendrons, Money plants, Peace lily, Dracaenas and even Sanseviera or the snake plants and most of these are air purifying plants as well.
- Now Which plants are very easy to grow indoors with very little care? Obviously the ones which require low light will do well in any conditions and are easy to grow. Sanseviera or the snake plants tops this list.
- How do you care for indoor plants? Here are some tips you can follow that will help you a lot to grow indoor plants: SOIL: Keep Soil Composition simple. Just take 1 part Perlite, 1 Part Cocopeat and 1 Part Compost. Generally you do not use garden soil for indoors plants. But its upto you to alter this composition. I think It hardly makes any difference. Most of these are ornamental plants and are slow growing and mostly do not require regular fertilizers.
So the Tips to Follow are: Keep the Soil Moist. One important point to note here is these are kept indoor and not in direct sunlight, hence the rate of water evaporation is very less and so the water requirement is less. And they do not require daily watering. Best way is to dip you finger into the soil for about an inch and check the moisture, and water only if its dry or if you see the plants leaves are wilting.
The other important Tips are: Always check the drainage holes are patent.
Also know your plant by its name so that you know the plant specific care tips and Dos and Donts for that particular plant.
- What are some of the common reasons indoor plants die? 1. Overwatering or underwatering and 2. Light Levels (either not enough light which his most common problem and also if too much light or under direct sunlight which is also common if you place an indoor plant under the sunlight and burn it, out of ignorance.
- How do you prune indoor plants?
Do you really need to do it? Well, If you have no reason to prune it, don’t do it. But, if you notice your plant growing tall and out of shape, you can carefully prune them. - Do I Fertilizer My Indoor Plants? Well, it depends on the type of plant. If its comes to Oranmental plants like agalonema or palms or succulents, they require very little feeds like once in about 2 to 3 months you can add few slow release NPK crystals or a handful of compost to the container. And if you are growing Flowering plants like Orchids, they definitely need a special fertilizer regularly.
- What About Pest Control in Indoor Plants? Yes they also need to be take care of by regularly spraying a mild pesticide spray like a plain soapy solution or mixing about 5ml neem oil in water with some 10 drops of liquid soap or shampoo into 1 litre of water. Once in 15 days maintenance spray is recommended to keep them pest free. Or weekly once if they are already infested.
- My Plant leaves are Turning Yellow or edges are becoming dry and brown? Well this can be due to under or overwatering. This topic is discussed in details in other videos in my channel on Leaf yellowing and leaf browning topics. You can check it HERE.