Growing Snake Plants Indoors

Snake plants have few needs but incredible diversity

Snake flora ( Dracaenaspp . and cvs . , syn . Sansevieriaspp . and cvs . , Zones 9–11 ) are usually push aside in the houseplant earth as reliable and reliably dull . But these often - malign plants so commonly see in the backcloth of mall and position can radiate as the center of attention . Hydra plants are far more various than the ubiquitous variegated ophidian plant ( D. trifasciata‘Laurentii ’ , Zones 9–11 ) would have you conceive . There are some , like bird ’s nest snake plant ( D. trifasciata‘Hahnii ’ , Zones 9–11 ) , that last out around 6 column inch tall , while elephant tusks plant ( D. stuckyi , Zones 9–11 ) and others can strive 8 feet tall . Snake plants take many class , from grassy clumps to architectural gig , and their foliage comes in many colors . Although they ’re comparatively easy to care for , you still require to bring home the bacon them with the proper conditions and maintenance to ensure top performance .

Provide direct or indirect light

Snake plant can tolerate almost any sluttish experimental condition , but they thrive with at least some moderate lineal or indirect brightness level . Many are full - sun plant in their aboriginal climates , but they can permit less light with blessing . The less light they get , the slower their already boring increase charge per unit will be . While many serpent plant can take direct Lord’s Day , most variegated variety prefer filtered light , as they incinerate more easily than their nonvariegated twin .

Be stingy with water and fertilizer

Snake plant are succulent , and they choose to be left unwatered and untouched for weeks at a time . They will be unwavering companions over the years with small attention or even repot . Not much shakes snake plants , but they profit from an even hand . Make a habit of checking in on your plants every workweek . Water every two weeks during summer , and fertilize about once a calendar month . In winter , stop fecundate them altogether , and body of water once every three to four week . Watering should slightly increase with how much sun and heat your plants are expose to and decrease incrementally as you move them to cooler and shadier fix . These are drouth - large-minded plant that do not like to be overwatered ; make certain the soil has dried completely before watering again . A pot with a hole and saucer will help oneself ensure right drainage .

Avoid these common downfalls

Spraying down your snake plant in the cascade from fourth dimension to time ( tip them to the side so as not to leave water sit in the crux of the leaf ) can facilitate get rid of the infrequent pest they may put up from ; instead , you may wipe down the leaf . Too much water or discrepant watering can cause edema , a experimental condition that takes place when plant take up a lot of water suddenly . It causes a corked , bumpy discoloration of the foliage . Too much plant food , too much water , and too much abrupt movement from one spot to another are the main perpetrator of unsightly leaf or dead leaf tips . Acclimate your industrial plant slow to a novel lighting situation so as not to burn them . And if you are comfortable , your ophidian plants should be too ; they should never be in situations that are colder than 50 ° F .

How to Propagate Snake Plants

cut with base endocrine in soil

puppy ready to divide from female parent industrial plant

Many indoor gardener like root serpent - plant foliage cuttings in pee , leaving them in a cleared vessel somewhere luminance and warm until roots form . I prefer sticking carving in soil with rooting endocrine because it ’s less probable that your cuttings will rot . I then leave them teetotal for at least a duet of week to callosity and to begin form roots before I begin watering with caveat and rarity , draw certain to keep them in a affectionate billet . However , this is a metre - consuming method that does not ensure a clon of the mother plant . To get new plants that retain the elegant diversification of a variety such as ‘ Bantel ’s sense experience ’ , I await for the female parent plant to naturally form pups . I then divide the puppy from the mother plant life and replant .

Three Unique Varieties for Easy-Care Flair

From classic to new introductions , these cultivars show just some of the incredible variety of snake plants .

‘Cleopatra’ draws the eye with colorful contrast

D. pethera‘Cleopatra ’ syn . Sansevieria kirkii‘Cleopatra ’ , Zones 9–11

‘ Cleopatra ’ is a low - growing , rosette - forming snake plant with a blue chromaticity to its foliage . It features attractive striation with a redbrown edge around the leave . This creates a contrast that only accentuates the drab feel of the leaf .

‘Starfish’ is beloved for its unusual form

D. angolensis‘Starfish ’ syn . Sansevieria cylindrica‘Starfish ’ , Zones 9–11

This variety grows in a fan of blockheaded sausage - same leaves that will reach no taller than 1 foot . Its alone architectural contour is striking . ‘ Starfish ’ will slowly form offsets of more fans , making for an telling ripe specimen .

‘Bantel’s Sensation’ features stunning variegation

D. trifasciata‘Bantel ’s Sensation ’ , Zones 9–11

Also called white snake plant , this is a stiffly erect , highly variegated variety show that pass on 2 to 3 feet tall . It ’s slow to offset and has become democratic for its pointer - heterosexual person , narrow-minded leaves .

Elizabeth Werlebird has been growing houseplant for almost twenty years . She ’s currently an assistant cultivator at Shakespeare ’s Garden , a baby’s room in Brookfield , Connecticut .

instance : Savannah Gallagher

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