Tough Houseplants That Even You Can’t Kill

Looking for some hard to kill houseplants?  Let’s Talk About Plants. a long time reader, works in a flower shop and put together a lovely list of plants that she thinks are fairly easy to care for.

Some houseplants only need occasional water and survive perfectly well in dark rooms. Even if you have managed to kill every plant in your home, there is still hope. These tough customers seem to thrive on neglect and are almost impossible to kill.

You can kill even hardy houseplants by leaving them in a dish of water or in a cold draught. Water your houseplants only when the top inch of their soil is completely dry. Provide enough water to thoroughly moisten all their compost and let any excess water drain away. For faster growth feed them with liquid houseplant fertilizer during the summer.

1. ZZ Plant

ZZ plants (Zamioculcas zamiifolia) are the toughest of all the houseplants thanks to their waxy leaves and underground tubers. They store up water in their tubers when it is available, and can last for months before needing any more. ZZ plants also grow happily in low light. Get your ZZ plant to produce new leaves by watering it every two weeks. Clean the leaves every month with a soft cloth to keep them shiny.

2. Snake Plant
The snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata) is a succulent with erect, pointed leaves. It comes in several forms with either variegated or banded leaves. Snake plants are slow growing and happy in low light. They only need to be repotted when their roots split the pot. NASA recently discovered that snake plants filter noxious chemicals out of household air.

3. Cast Iron Plant
The cast iron plant (Aspidistra elatior) got its name because it was the only plant that grew in dark Victorian homes full of fumes from coal fires. Some potted examples are over 100 years old. Cast iron plants produce broad, dark-green leaves from underground tubers. They only need dim light to survive and tolerate low temperatures. The Victorians used to water their cast iron plants with cold tea to encourage growth but liquid fertilizer, diluted by 50 percent, works just as well.

4. Pothos
The pothos (Scindapsus aureus) is also known as devil’s ivy. It produces heart-shaped leaves with attractive golden or cream streaks and mottles. Pothos plants grow as a vine and thrive if they can climb up a moss pole or old branch. Water your pothos every week and it will grow for years. Climbing pothos plants grow leaves up to 3 feet across. The heart-leaf philodendron (Philodendron scandens) is another similar plant that also puts up with neglect.

5. Sword Brake Fern
The tiny sword brake fern (Pteris ensiformis) looks delicate and fragile but is the toughest of all the indoor ferns. It needs little light and is damaged by direct sunshine. The sword brake fern thrives in moist but not sodden soil and likes a humid room. Water it when the surface of its soil starts to dry out. Keep your sword brake fern on a dish of damp gravel in the bathroom and it will thrive.

6.Dracaena marginata
"It's pretty sculptural," Debra says. "Good for the young and modern." She recommends getting two and putting them on your fireplace mantel or on your entry table. "It you had matching pots they would look really cool," she adds. These plants need to consistently have water in the pots, but you can taper back in the winter as long as they don't dry out. Ideally, they would be close to an east window for indirect light, and so they won't won't bake in the sun. If you're sick of green houseplants, these come in all kinds of different shades: variegated, burgandy, copper, etc.

 7.Sansevieria 
(also known as Mother-in-Law's tongue)
"That is the all-time indestructible houseplant. It is gorgeous. It's very modern," Debra Prinzing says. It's a great plant for someone who wants something contemporary, geometric and sculptural &mdash and it looks great in a pot. It likes bright light, but Debra has seen it survive in a shadowy spot in her home.

8.Ficus 
"This is a 1970s college dorm plant that is having a revival," Debra says. There's the tree type, known as rubber plants, and also the trailing ficus, which is called a Creeping Fig. These plants like humidity and bright light. If they look a little stressed, Debra recommends dragging them into the bathroom for a week to soak in shower humidity.

9.Philodendron
This plant was also popular in the seventies. Debra calls it "the retro plant." It can live a long time and move from apartment to apartment with people," she says. It can climb up over your window, or over a railing on a loft. Debra warns that you need to prevent this plant from becoming root-bound by transplanting it to a larger pot every couple of years. You can cut back on this plant's watering in the winter, but if it starts to get dry, Debra suggests putting the pot on a tray with gravel, and to continue to put water in gravel &mdash it will create a mini-humid environment.

10.Bromeliad
This is a flowering pineapple, but Debra says that if you buy it in a flowering state, be prepared that it may not flower for you again. They only flower in perfect above-seventy-degree conditions. However, these are still beautiful with their silver-gray foliage. They need to sit in a bright spot away from direct sunlight, hopefully an east- or north-facing light. Debra often sees them in Trader Joe's, IKEA or Target.

There are many houseplants that don’t need a lot of care. Consider having one of the aforementioned plants to make your house more comfortable.