8 Sizeable Houseplants for Every Corner of Your Home
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Rubber Plant
Bird of Paradise
Croton
Olive Tree
Snake Plant
Monstera Plant
Fiddle Leaf Fig
Parlor Palm
Take a walk around your home. Are there empty spaces in your corners begging to be filled? If so, there are few things that check as many boxes as a houseplant. They're a great way to decorate and bring color and nature indoors, but they also offer other benefits too. Studies have shown that houseplants can help you relieve stress, clean the air in your home, increase your productivity, and they can even help you sleep better. So, what are you waiting for? Whether you're looking for easy houseplants or hardy houseplants, we've rounded up the best oversized plants to fill every corner of your house. Get ready to enjoy a whole new, much greener, outlook on life.
Rubber Plant
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The rubber plant is famous for broad, glossy, dark green leaves. It's a great houseplant for beginners or people with busy lifestyles, since they don't need daily watering. In fact, rubber plants go dormant in the winter and may only need to be watered once or twice a month. In summer, it's best to water them once or twice a week to keep the soil moist. Rubber plants can grow tall, but their growth can be restricted if you keep them in a small pot. This hardy specimen of plant needs light to thrive, however, it does not do well if you expose it to too much direct sunlight. A spot near, but not in front of, a window is best.
Bird of Paradise
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With a name like bird of paradise, you might be expecting this plant to tweet and fly. Instead, it takes its name after the spectacular orange blooms that adorn the species. It is important to note, however, that bird of paradise plants rarely bloom indoors. Even so, they are still extremely popular houseplants and can grow up to 6-feet tall. They require a great deal of light and love to be placed near a window where they can bathe in direct sunlight. This plant generally needs to be watered once every week or two and will do best if the top layer of soil is allowed to dry between waterings. In the winter, when the plant is dormant, watering once a month is sufficient.
Croton
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Croton plants are known for the scarlet, yellow, and orange-colored veins that run from their wide, green leaves. The color isn't just decorative, it's also a helpful indicator of the health of your plant. If the color begins to fade, the croton is telling you it isn't getting enough sunlight. Bright leaves, on the other hand, are an indicator the plant is thriving. This plant prefers to live in a humid area. In drier climates, more frequent watering and a light misting of the leaves is necessary. The croton will tell you what it needs. If it drops its leaves, it's sending you a signal it needs to be watered more frequently. In the right environment, croton plants can grow up to 10-feet high.
Olive Tree
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Snake Plant
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Despite its slithery name, the snake plant is a beautiful, low-maintenance addition to your home. It takes its name from the long, narrow shape of its yellow-bordered leaves. In a large pot, it can grow up to 12-feet tall. Snake plants are easy to care for too. In fact, they will be healthier if you err on the side of underwatering them. Once every week or two, or until the top layer of soil is dry, is usually best. In the winter, you can generally water them once a month. Snake plants are very adaptable, and while indirect light is usually best, they also manage quite nicely in direct sunlight or even dim light conditions.
Monstera Plant
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If you're looking for an easy-to-care for plant that can grow up to monster proportions, look no further than the monstera plant. Monstera plants are notable for large leaves with hollow shapes permeating the interior. Healthy monstera plants grow up to 3-feet tall and 2- to 3-feet wide. They thrive in humid environments like bathrooms. In drier rooms, be sure to mist the leaves to keep them moist in-between waterings. Indirect light serves this plant just fine. Watering once a week or two, or until the soil at the top of the pot is dry, is best. In winter, it shouldn't be necessary to water more than once a month.
Fiddle Leaf Fig
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Fiddle leaf figs are famously finicky, so they tend to work best for people who have the time and patience to monitor their color and overall health. They need a moderate amount of watering, and it can take a little tweaking to get the levels just right. If you don't water them enough, they'll wilt and the large, violin-shaped leaves will lose their verdant color. Water them too much, and the leaves will drop and root rot can potentially set in. The best time to water your fiddle leaf fig is when the top inch of soil is dry. They're finicky about light, too. They need plenty of light to grow, but too much heat and exposure to direct sunlight will burn their leaves. Be prepared to remove your plant back and forth from the window to make sure it gets the optimum amount of light or to experiment with different areas of your house until you find just the right place.
Parlor Palm
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A lush parlor palm plant can transform an ordinary room into a tropical paradise. Surprisingly, this is a plant that easily adapts to low temperatures and indirect light. It can grow up to 6-feet tall inside with narrow leaves and branches that extend up to 3-feet wide. Parlor palms are sensitive to overwatering, and it's best to water once every week or two, or until the top inch of soil is dry. If the leaves turn yellow, however, your parlor palm is telling you it needs to be watered more frequently.
