All articles

Everything on IndoorFlora, organised by topic.

Light & Placement

How to Acclimate Houseplants to Brighter Light — Identify the plant's light requirement and record its current exposure, then move it gradually toward the brighter position over one to two weeks.
Do Grow Lights Actually Work? A No-Hype Guide — Yes. Grow lights work for houseplants because a plant photosynthesizes from any light of the right spectrum and intensity, sunlight or LED alike.
How Much Light Does Your Plant Actually Need? — Most houseplants need bright, indirect light: a spot near a window bright enough to read by all day, where a hand casts a soft-edged shadow but the sun's…
Plant Light Meter Guide: Apps, Lux and Useful Readings — A plant light meter helps compare indoor locations, reveal how quickly light falls away from a window, and track seasonal change.
North, South, East, West: Reading a Window Like a Plant — There's no single best window — it depends on the plant. In the Northern Hemisphere, south-facing windows give the most (and most direct) sun, ideal for…
Signs Your Plant Wants More (or Less) Light — A plant that needs more light stretches toward the window with long, thin stems and widening gaps between leaves (leggy growth), pushes out smaller, paler…

Watering & Feeding

Are Self-Watering Pots Good for Houseplants? — Self-watering pots are good for established houseplants that prefer fairly even moisture, especially when owners travel or miss occasional watering days.
Bottom Watering: When It Helps and When It's Just Extra Work — Bottom watering means setting a pot in a few inches of water and letting the soil draw it up through the drainage hole.
How Often Should You Really Water Your Plants? — Watering on a schedule is why so many houseplants die. Learn to water by what the plant and soil are telling you, using the finger test and drainage.
How to Fertilize Houseplants: A Simple Schedule That Works — Fertilize most houseplants with a balanced liquid fertilizer diluted to half the label strength, once a month from spring through early fall, and skip…
Humidity for Houseplants: What Helps and What's a Myth — Most common houseplants thrive in average home humidity of 40 to 60 percent, so humidity is only critical for a tropical minority like calatheas, ferns,…
Overwatered or Underwatered? Telling Two Identical-Looking Problems Apart — Both look nearly identical — wilting, yellowing, browning — so check the soil, not the leaves.
Keeping Plants Alive While You're on Vacation — Water every plant thoroughly, then move them off hot, sunny windowsills and group them together in a bright but indirect spot to slow water loss.

Plant Guides

Best Bathroom Plants: 11 Picks for Humid, Low-Light Rooms — The best plants for a bathroom are humidity-loving, low-light species: Boston fern, bird's nest fern, pothos, heartleaf philodendron, peace lily,…
The Best Low-Light Houseplants That Actually Tolerate Low Light — The best plants for a genuinely dim room are cast-iron plant, ZZ plant and snake plant, provided the room still receives daylight.
Calathea Care: Beautiful, Fussy, and Worth It (Sometimes) — Calatheas are beautiful but fussy tropical understory plants.
Cast Iron Plant Care: Low Light, Not No Light — Give a cast iron plant low or filtered light away from direct sun, keep its potting mix moist rather than waterlogged during active growth, and water less…
Chinese Evergreen Care: Light, Water, and Growth — A Chinese evergreen needs indirect light, a free-draining potting mix and a warm position away from cold draughts.
Dracaena Marginata Care: Read the Canes and Leaves — Dracaena marginata needs bright, indirect light, warmth and a loose potting mix that drains quickly.
Fiddle Leaf Fig Care: Honest Guide to a Dramatic Plant — Fiddle leaf figs need very bright light — within a few feet of a large window — and a consistent watering rhythm: soak thoroughly only when the top two…
Indoor Plant Care Guide: A Weekly System — Care for an indoor plant by identifying it first, matching it to the light at its actual position, using a draining container and suitable potting mix,…
Jade Plant Care: A Succulent That Can Outlive You — Give a jade plant strong light—ideally four or more hours of direct sun from a south or west window—gritty, fast-draining succulent soil, and a pot with a…
Monstera Care: Deliciosa, Adansonii, and Why Leaves Split — Monstera care comes down to bright indirect light, a chunky well-draining aroid mix, and watering only once the top inch or two of soil dries.
Parlor Palm Care Without the Guesswork — A parlor palm needs bright, indirect light, though it tolerates a lower-light position with slower growth.
Peace Lily Care: Light, Water, and How to Make It Bloom — Peace lily care comes down to three habits: bright, indirect light (it survives shade but rarely blooms there), watering when the top inch of soil is dry,…
Phalaenopsis Orchid Care: A Practical Guide — Care for a Phalaenopsis orchid in bright, indirect light and a porous orchid medium.
Houseplants Safe for Cats and Dogs (And the Ones That Aren't) — Many popular houseplants are safe for cats and dogs, including spider plants, Boston and bird's nest ferns, parlor and areca palms, calatheas, peperomias,…
Pothos Care: The Almost-Unkillable Plant, Done Right — Pothos thrives in bright indirect light with water only when the top half of the soil has dried, roughly every one to two weeks.
Pothos Propagation: From One Plant to Ten — Cut a healthy vine into pieces so each cutting includes at least one node — the small bump where a leaf meets the stem — plus a leaf.
Pothos Types Compared: Golden, Marble, Neon, Global Green and More — Nearly all pothos types are cultivars of one species, Epipremnum aureum, so care is identical across the board.
Pothos vs Philodendron: 5 Easy Ways to Tell Them Apart — Pothos and philodendron are different plants from different genera, though both are easy-care trailing aroids.
Rubber Plant Care: Big Leaves Without the Drama — Give a rubber plant bright, indirect light and water only when the top third of the soil is dry, in a pot with a drainage hole.
Snake Plant Care: The Plant That Thrives on Neglect — Snake plants (Sansevieria, now Dracaena trifasciata) thrive on neglect.
Spider Plant Care and Those Endless Babies — Spider plants (Chlorophytum comosum) are among the easiest houseplants.
Succulent Care for Beginners: The Guide That Prevents the Usual Deaths — Give succulents your brightest window (most want several hours of direct sun), a pot with a drainage hole, and gritty, fast-draining soil.
ZZ Plant Care: The Best Plant for Forgetful People — ZZ plant care comes down to restraint: pot it in fast-draining mix with a drainage hole, place it in bright indirect light (though it tolerates low light…

Pests & Problems

Brown Crispy Leaf Tips: Causes and Real Fixes — Brown, crispy leaf tips mean the leaf's farthest tissue is drying out faster than the roots can resupply it.
How to Clean Houseplant Leaves Without Damage — Identify the plant and leaf type before adding water. For broad, smooth leaves, support each leaf and wipe both sides with a soft cloth dampened with…
The Five Pests That Attack Houseplants (And How to Win) — The five pests that plague houseplants most are fungus gnats, spider mites, mealybugs, scale, and aphids.
How to Get Rid of Fungus Gnats: 4 Fixes That Actually Work — To get rid of fungus gnats, break their life cycle: let the top two inches of soil dry out completely between waterings, set yellow sticky traps to catch…
Why Are My Plant's Leaves Curling Inward? — Houseplant leaves curl inward mainly to conserve water, so the cause is usually a water-balance problem: underwatering, too much heat or direct sun, dry…
Why Are Leaves Falling Off? Jade, Money Plant, Rubber Plant and More — Leaf drop is a symptom with several causes, so read the leaves before acting.
Why Are My Plant's Leaves Turning Yellow? A Calm Diagnosis — Yellow leaves are a symptom, not a single diagnosis. The most common cause is overwatering, where soggy soil suffocates the roots.
How to Prune a Leggy Houseplant — Identify the houseplant and confirm that its long, sparse growth is abnormal before cutting.
Root Rot: How to Diagnose It and (Sometimes) Save the Plant — To fix root rot, slide the plant out of its pot and rinse the roots, then cut away every soft, brown, or foul-smelling root with clean scissors back to…

Soil & Repotting

Drainage Holes, Cachepots, and the Rocks-in-the-Bottom Myth — Yes — for almost every houseplant, a pot needs an open drainage hole.
Moss Poles: Why Climbing Plants Want One and How to Use It — Growing a pothos on a moss pole lets it climb the way it does in the wild, which unlocks its mature form: leaves several times larger on thicker stems,…
Potting Mix, Decoded: What Your Plant Actually Wants to Live In — The best potting mix for indoor plants is a light, soilless, free-draining blend, not dense garden soil.
When Does a Plant Actually Need Repotting? — Repot when the plant shows it, not on a schedule. The clearest signs are roots growing out the drainage holes or circling the surface, water running…