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Best Small Houseplants
The best small houseplants create the best ambiance for your home or office. Houseplants bring fresh life when it comes to home decor. These can brighten up even the dullest rooms, while some houseplants also purify the air around your home.
If you have limited space, that doesn’t mean you cannot deploy houseplants neither small space prevents you from making your own natural space. You will find many best small houseplants that require minimum maintenance but have the potential to make any space stunning and refreshing. You can place small houseplants anywhere, like in a vertical shape on your wall, on the tabletop, and even some are suitable for dorm rooms.
Below are some of the best small houseplants that we think look absolutely amazing regardless of where you place them. Please, have a look:
1) CHRYSANTHEMUM
Chrysanthemum, also known as the mum plant, is a lovely plant that also purifies the air. These plants are just amazing and make any place bright with cheerful blooms. Furthermore, these are effortless to clean; just place them on any sunny location in drained soil and maintain proper watering.
PROS:
- NASA recommends Mums as the best air-purifying plants.
- Chrysanthemums eliminate ammonia and formaldehyde from the air.
CONS:
- Mum’s leaves are toxic to pets and kids.
- The flowers are disposable.
2) SPIDER PLANT
Here comes another small houseplant that helps to purify the indoor air.
These are the most resilient houseplants. They grow easily in damp soil and don’t need much watering. They are more suitable to place in moderate lighting conditions and not under direct sunlight. Similarly, they don’t need fertilizers on a regular basis; twice a month is more than enough.
PROS
- These plants help remove benzene, carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde from the air.
- Spider plants are harmless for pets.
CONS
- According to studies, these are a bit of hallucinogen to cats. Can you believe it!!
3) FICUS
These are the best indoor houseplants for offices. Ficus are more popular in offices than the homes. However, you can place them anywhere in your home. Now you must be thinking why these are excellent office plants? The answer is simple, due to their stunning appearance and these small plants are quite effective when it comes to purifying indoor air. Ficus plants love indirect light, damp soil, and infrequent misting.
PROS
- The most effective small houseplant for indoor air purification.
- These are the most attractive houseplant on the market—the best focal point for any place.
CONS
- Sometimes it can cause skin irritation to pets and humans.
- Always place them in one place. Ficus is a picky houseplant that doesn’t love moving or shifting.
4) RED-EDGED DRACAENA
Here comes the dragon plant on our list! Red-edged dracaena, or dragon tree, is a lovely houseplant that also cleans the indoor air. The plant loves the bright sunny area, but it can withstand lower light conditions as well. If you love this houseplant, then we will advise you to let it dry out between watering to maintain its lovely look and shape. Lastly, Thrips are the most severe threat to dracaena plants.
PROS
- Dracaena plants are well-known for removing formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, and xylene from your space.
- It is a small houseplant that doesn’t need much maintenance and care.
CONS
- Dracaena plants are vulnerable to leaf spot. This mainly happens when its leaves get wet. So, don’t pour water from overhead, instead only pour water in the plant’s base.
5) PEACE LILY
Here comes the lovely houseplant that loves water, the Peace Lily. The peace lily looks elegant and features a bright glowing look that is not so common. Peace lily loves bright but indirect sunlight, but it can sustain a little bit of direct sunlight. When you see dull leaves in your lily plants, it means the plant is asking for water. And after water, you will see it perks back up saying thank you. On the other hand, you can also mist it for better humidity.
PROS
- It effectively purifies benzene, formaldehyde, toluene, and xylene from the indoor air.
- Grows at a fast pace in water.
CONS
- It can cause dermatitis, a form of skin irritation.
- These houseplants are not safe for pets and might cause skin problems or irritation in them as well.
6) BOSTON FERN
Boston ferns are the fastest-growing household plants. These might not be the smallest out there, but you can maintain their shape and size by trimming them. These can be the perfect addition to any home or office due to their appealing look. They like moist and damp places along with soft, natural sunlight. The plants prefer moist soil. If you don’t want them to grow big, don’t use new pots.
PROS
- Boston fern has the highest formaldehyde-removal efficiency among all other houseplants.
- Boston Ferns also purifies the air and eliminate toluene and xylene pollutants.
- The Boston Ferns are harmless.
CONS
- You might face excessive leaf drop problems in these plants.
- These are more susceptible to root rot, and if that happens, they will die in no time.
7) GOLDEN POTHOS
Another perfect addition to your home or office is the Golden Pothos Plants. These are the best small houseplants if you are a beginner. The plant is simple to maintain and grows rapidly. This plant can survive in dim light conditions and is forgiving if you forget to water it for a few days.
PROS
- The Golden Pothos is the best and most common small houseplant.
- The plant looks gorgeous and straightforward to grow.
- Golden Pothos is an air-purifying plant.
- While root rot is a significant issue in most houseplants, this Golden Pothos seldom has this issue.
- It will ask you for water by itself. When you see drooping, just pour water into the plant’s base.
CONS
- This plant is highly toxic because it contains oxalates.
- Not safe for pets and kids. If you have pets, who have love to eat leaves, keep them away from this plant.
8) SNAKE PLANT
Snake Plant
Take help from a snake to purify indoor air. Not a real snake, but Snake Plants are useful in purifying the air. Another term used for the Snake Plant is Sansevieria trifasciata. NASA classifies the Snake Plant as an air purifier. These plants add a unique look to your home or office decor with their strap-like leaves. It can survive in low water and light conditions; however, the plant loves bright, indirect sunlight.
PROS
- NASA recommends these snake plants and classifies them as a filter plant for indoor air.
- Maintaining and caring for snake plants is effortless. Just properly water them only on their base, keep at least fluorescent lighting, and you’re good to go.
- If you have placed them on a window, don’t forget to rotate them twice a week.
CONS
- Snake plants contain “Saponins,” which is highly poisonous to household pets and humans. If your cat or dog chew it, they will suffer from severe vomiting and sometimes nausea.
9) BAMBOO PALM
These are the best small houseplants that you can use as office plants. Bamboo plants can add and enhance the beauty of any home and office due to their magical presence and feel. These are also known as parlor palm. Bamboo plants love bright sunlight. However, these can sustain in dim conditions, but you will have to water them on a daily basis in dim light conditions.
But never ever overwater these bamboo palms when you have placed them in bright conditions. Similarly, don’t water them when the soil is wet. To further enhance their appearance, you can add pebbles with water added.
PROS
- Bamboo palm is admirable at reducing the floating formaldehyde that is free from new furniture.
- Pet owners should know that Bamboo palm is risk-free.
CONS
- Spider mites are deadly for bamboo palm. The first symptom of spider mites attack on these plants is the webbing on the leaves. Immediately spray any liquid insect killer on them, or else soon, you will find spiders in your home or office.
10) RUBBER PLANT
Rubber Plants and Ficus (the plant we discussed above) are both cousins and come from the same family. Rubber plants look simple but elegant. These just love bright, indirect sunlight and moist soil. However, they can also survive in low light conditions. Misting on a regular basis is required to keep them healthy and hearty. When watering, use room temperature water and don’t water them too much. Or else the leaves will turn yellowish and die soon.
PROS
- You’ll found broad foliage in these plants attractive and appealing.
- These are perfect to use as a houseplant or office plant.
- Effective in purifying indoor air.
- Rubber plants are simple to maintain and disease-free.
CONS
- The milky sap that comes out from it is toxic to kids and pets.
- The skin irritation caused by Rubber plant sap is too much severe.
- Rubber plants are highly sensitive to varying temperatures. The ideal temperature for these plants is between 55oF- 80oF.
Conclusion
In today’s modern era, houseplants have become necessary for every home as it allows you to spend some valuable time with Mother Nature and away from gadgets. Small houseplants enhance the appeal and look of your home and office. Moreover, the best small houseplants are also useful in purifying the indoor air.
Lastly, if you are a beginner, you can also grow these houseplants easily. Just have patience and provide adequate maintenance to them, and you will love to see them growing in your place.
Read More:
Keep pets away from houseplants
Houseplants clean indoor air (hgtv)
