Low Light House Plants

There are no better accessories to add beauty and health to our homes than house plants. They clean the air and bring a bit of nature indoors.

A major factor when considering the types of house plants to grow in your home is the level of light available.

Although many house plants require several hours of direct sunlight, there are also many wonderful low light house plants that will do quite well in areas far from a window.

Care of Low Light House Plants

Caring for low light house plants can be a slightly different process than many gardeners are used to, but many of these plants will grow on their own with very little help.

These plants have a strong ability to adapt to changing climates and conserve nutrients.

The biggest mistakes gardeners make when growing these plants is watering and fertilizing too much.

To prevent root rot, water frequently, but let plants dry out a little between watering. Provide proper drainage, and fertilize only about once every month.

Many low light house plants are tropical varieties that have adapted to growing in the low light of thick, deep tropical forests. You can mimic their humid environment by placing the pots on trays of pebbles filled with water.

Selecting Low Light House Plants to Grow

If you don't have a lot of natural light and want to grow house plants, a few to consider include Philodendron, Sansevieria (Snake Plant or Mother In Law's Tongue), Peace Lily, Spider Plant, Dracaena and Chinese Evergreen.

These plants offer a variety of beautiful foliage and variegated leaves in many shapes and sizes.

Philodendrons come in many varieties of color and leaf shapes, and actually favor low light conditions.

Sansevieria has striking long, upright leaves and thrives on low light and irregular watering.

Peace Lilies have green foliage and white blooms and are considered very easy to grow; with too much sunlight, their leaves will actually begin to yellow.

Spider Plants have long narrow leaves and produce several baby plantlets. They are very tolerant in a range of conditions.

Dracaena can grow very large and are popular in office buildings because of their tolerance for low light.

When shopping for house plants, if you choose the correct variety of low light house plants and follow a few simple instructions for their care, there is no reason why you can't enjoy the beauty of house plants in your home all year long.