Guide to Selecting House plants

This Guide provides a list of house plants to help you choose the ones best suited to your home.

Success in growing flowering or foliage house plants largely depends on your skill, knowledge of the plant material and the time you want to invest in it. In addition, site selection and cultural practices are also very important. Some house plants are relatively easy to grow and are easily adaptable, like the cast iron plant. Other plants, like nerve plant, are difficult to grow because of their high moisture and humidity requirements. Cultural practices, including watering, fertilizing, and pest control are detailed in the Guide to Growing House plants.

The following list will help you select an appropriate houseplant for your home. First you must determine where you want to place the plant in your home and then note the environmental conditions (available light, humidity and temperature) of that location. These are general requirements and may need to be adjusted depending on the type of soil and pot that you use. As light intensity is reduced during the winter months, a decrease in temperature and moisture is also desirable for plant health. In addition, some plants require cooler temperatures during the winter to initiate flower buds.

Water:	M - keep uniformly moist, growing media kept moist to touch but not saturated with water I - intermediate, after watering allow soil to feel dry to touch before rewatering D - dry out between waterings, periods of soaking between which the soil should be completely dry
Humidity:	L - low 25 - 30% (average home) M - medium 30 - 50% H - high, above 50%
Light:	H - high; place near sunlit window or an area that has strong reflected/indirect light; indirect exposure to a west window, long hours of good light from a south window M - medium; place in well lit area out of direct sun or in an area with a sheer curtain between the plant and sunlight, north facing window seal or 4 to 8 feet away from window; indirect or filtered sunlight; a close, direct exposure to a north or east window; two to fours hours of sun a day L - low; place more than 8 feet away from window; filtered light from a small window across the room; light from a shaded window; filtered light to a north window; light reflected around a wall, indirect yet strong enough to cast a shadow

Common Name	Botanical Name	Water	Humidity	Light	Night Temp. Min. (°F)
Bromeliads
-Earth Stars	Cryptanthus	M	M	M	50-55
-Living Vase	Aechmea	I	M	M	55-62
-Pineapple	Ananas	I	M	H	50-55
-Air Plant	Tillandsia	Soil-less	M	L	50-55
Cactus
-Barrel Cacti	Ferocactus	D	L-M	H	62-65
-Candelabra Cacti	Euphorbia	D	L	H	62-65
-Chin Cacti	Gymnocalycium	I	L	H	55
-Christmas Cacti	Schlumbergera bridgesii	M	M-H	M-H	55-65
-Easter Cacti	Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri	M	M-H	M-H	55-65
-Hedgehog cacti	Echinocactus, Lobivia, Rebutia	D	L	H	62-65
-Pincushion cacti	Mammillaria	D	L	H	62-65
-Prickly Pears	Opuntia	D	L	H	62-65
-Thanksgiving Cacti	Zygocactus truncatus	M	M-H	M-H	55-65
-Torch Cacti	Trichocereus	D	L	H	62-65
Ferns
-Asparagus Fern	Asparagus setaceus	M	M-H	M	55-65
-Birdnest Fern	Asplenium nidus	M	M	L-M	55-65
-Staghorn Fern	Platycerium	M	H	M	55-65
-Sword Fern	Nephrolepis	M	M-H	M	50-55
-Boston Fern	Adiantum	M	M-H	M	55-65
Figs
-Weeping Fig	Ficus benjamina	D	M-H	M-H	62-65
-Creeping Fig	Ficus pumila	M	M	M-H	62-65
-Fiddle Leaf Fig	Ficus lyrata	I	M	M-H	62-65
-Indian Laurel	Ficus retusa nitida	M	M	M	62-65
-Rubber Plant	Ficus elastica	I	L-M	H	62-65
Ivy
-Grape Ivy	Cissus rhombifolia	I	M	M	50-55
-English Ivy	Hedra helix	I	M	M-H	45-50
-Kangaroo Ivy	Cissus antarctica	I	M	M	50-55
-German Ivy	Senecio mikanioides	I	M	M-H	50-60
-Swedish Ivy	Plectranthus australis	I	M	M	50-55
Palms
-Bamboo Palm	Chamaedorea erumpens	M	L	L	62-65
-Kentia Palm	Howea forsterana	I	M	M	50-55
-Lady Palm	Rhapis excelsa	M	M	M	50-55
-Ponytail Palm	Beaucarnea recurvata	I	M	H	50-55
Other House plants
-African Violet	Saintpaulia ionantha	I	H	M-H	60-65
-Aloe	Aloe	D	M	H	50-55
-Aluminum Plant	Pilea cadieri	I	M	M	60-65
-Amaryllis	Hippeastrum	I	M	M-H	50-55
-Artilliery Plant	Pilea microphylla	I	M-H	M	60-65
-Burro's Tail	Sedum morganianum	D	M	H	50-60
-Cast Iron Plant	Aspidistra elatior	M	M	L-M	45-50
-Chinese Evergreen	Aglaonema commutatum	I	L-M	L	60-65
-Croton	Codiaeum	I	H	H	60-65
-Cyclamen	Cyclamen persicum	I	H	H	50-55
-Dieffenbachia or
Dumbcane	Dieffenbachia	I	M	M	60-65
-Dragon Lilies	Dracaena	M	M	L-M	62-65
-Episcia, Flame Violet	Episcia	M	H	H	60-65
-False Aralia	Dizygotheca elegantissima	M	M	M	60-65
-Hawaiian Ti	Cordyline terminalis	M	H	M	62-65
-Jade Plant	Crassula arborescens	D	L-M	H	50-55
-Kalanchoe	Kalanchoe	D	L-M	H	50-60
-Moses in the Cradle	Rhoeo spathacea	I	M	M	50-55
-Nerve Plant	Fittonia verschaffeltii	M	H	M	62-65
-Norfolk Island Pine	Araucaria heterophylla	I	M	M-H	50-55
-Pathos	Epipremnum aurea	M	M	L-M-H	60-65
-Peacock Plant	Calathea makoyana	I	M-H	M	60-65
-Peperomia	Peperomia	M	M	M	60-65
-Philodendron	Philodendron	M	M	M	50-55
-Prayer Plant	Maranta leuconeura	M	M-H	M	62-65
-Schefflera	Brassaia	D	M	M	55-65
-Snake Plant or
Mother-in-laws Tongue	Sansevieria trifasciata	I-M	M	M	62-65
-Peace Lily	Spathiphyllum	M	M-H	M	60-65
-Spider Plant	Chlorophytum comosum	I	M	M	50-55
-Strawberry Geranium	Saxifraga stolonifera	I	M	H	50-55
-Velvet Plant	Gynura aurantiaca	I	M	M-H	62-65
-Wandering Jew	Tradescantia, Zebrina	I	M	M-H	50-60
-Zebra Plant	Aphelandra squarrosa	M	H	H	55-60

• Guide to Selecting House Plants
• Guide to Growing House Plants
• Cactus
• African Violets
• Amaryllis
• Cannas
• Forcing Flowering Branches
• Geranium
• Gladiolus
• Perrenials
• Roses Black Spot