Houseplants, as much joy and life as they bring to our homes, can be incredibly demanding. While caring for them is no doubt a mindful activity, it's all too easy to put their needs at the bottom of the to-do list when other priorities take over. That's why I'm a big fan of houseplants that thrive on neglect. That's right, there are several plants that will not only survive but also grow healthily when you forget to water them and allow them to collect dust in a corner.
These indoor plants aren't simply easy indoor plants, but ones that actually prefer to have less attention, growing quietly in peace while admired from afar. They're ideal if you travel a lot, don't have ideal growing conditions in your home, or if you simply need to dedicate your time elsewhere but yearn for some greenery to brighten up your interiors.
A bonus is a some of these houseplants that thrive on neglect are lesser known than the popular picks, guaranteed to spark interest among your guests while elevating your home as living sculptures.
5 Houseplants That Thrive on Neglect
One thing to be aware of is that being tolerant of neglect does not mean these houseplants require no care at all.
It would be an indoor plant mistake to completely ignore them, resulting in a slow decline and eventually killing them off. Instead, each of these indoor plants can cope well – and even prefer – to be left alone for some time, but eventually require a little TLC to keep them going.
1. Aspidistra
If all you're looking for is a leafy plant to add some greenery to interiors but you don't want a lot of upkeep to maintain its appearance, aspidistra is the houseplant for you.
It has a common name of 'cast iron plant' for a good reason – it's incredibly difficult to kill.
Native to forests and shaded, rocky areas of Eastern and Southeastern Asia, these luscious plants grow in darker conditions and tolerate fairly long periods of drought.
I find it's the perfect indoor low-light plant for my hallway, where it thrives receiving minimal light from a window quite a few meters away.
But, don't forget that low-light tolerance doesn't mean no light at all. Growing it in full darkness will cause slower growth, drooping, and gradual decline.
At least three hours of limited daylight is about the minimum these plants can grow in.
If you can offer an aspidistra slightly more light, around six hours daily, you might want to consider a variegated variety. For example, aspidistra 'Milky Way' (available on Amazon) has white speckled leaves, but it will loose this variegation if it doesn't receive sufficient light.
You can also allow aspidistra's soil to dry out entirely between watering. I like to check with a soil moisture meter similar to this one on Amazon, which you simply insert in the soil to identify the moisture level.
Bonus: this is one of the most pest-resilient houseplants, rarely being targeted by common houseplant pests, due to its tough, leathery foliage.
This luscious aspidistra comes in a 6-inch nursery pot, ready to be transplanted into a planter.
2. Burro's Tail
Our list of houseplants that thrive on neglect wouldn't be complete without one of the best indoor succulents for low-maintenance: burro's tail, sometimes known as donkey's tail.
With fleshy foliage that stores water, burro's tail can continue growing into an impressive trailing plant even when it hasn't been watered in a few weeks.
Simply set it up near a bright window and only water when its soil has completely dried out.
It's easy to know when to water these succulents, too, as they indicate they're dehydrated with wrinkled foliage.
My favorite way to keep succulents happy is by soaking them in a sink for around 20 minutes before draining them and returning them to their usual spot.
This method provides a deeper watering than watering from the top, delivering moisture directly to plant roots, ensuring they soak up as much water as they need.
If burro's tail doesn't receive any water, however, you may spot some leaves and stems breaking off. But, don't fret. A soaking will perk it back up and you can use any healthy-looking broken plant material to propagate your succulent.
As a slow-grower, this succulent doesn't become pot-bound easily either, so it won't need repotting for a few years. Though, using a succulent fertilizer just once or twice during spring and summer will give it a boost of essential nutrients where they naturally deplete in soil.
You can use an all-purpose succulent fertilizer for this, like this one from Amazon.
This burro's tail succulent comes in a hanging planter with a hook, ready to be displayed.
3. Chinese Evergreen
This is one of the most low-maintenance indoor plants in my collection.
Chinese evergreens, or aglaonemas, are native to tropical rainforests in Asia. There, they grow in shade beneath tree canopies and soak up higher humidity (between 6-70%).
Despite being a tropical indoor plant, these houseplants adapt extremely well to the moderate-low levels of humidity in an average home environment.
Their low-light tolerance has also been beneficial in my living room that doesn't get much afternoon light. Plus, I've found it to continue pushing out new leaves even when I neglected to water it for a few weeks.
One thing I will say, however, is that its larger surface area can pick up quite a lot of dust.
Chinese evergreens are not immune to pests, and dust can create an ideal environment for the likes of spider mites. But, I find cleaning houseplant leaves with plant dusting gloves (like these from Amazon) takes all but a couple of minutes, and it only needs to be done once a week or so.
If you have a lower light spot in mind for a Chinese evergreen, my advice is to not pick a colorful Chinese evergreen variety.
Although strikingly beautiful (like 'Red Siam', available at Walmart), these bright colors will quickly fade if your aglaonema is growing in restricted light.
Instead, opt for green varieties like 'Silver Bay' (available on Amazon).
This gorgeous aglaonema arrives 2-3ft tall at time of delivery. It comes in a white ceramic planter.
4. Clivia
You may be surprised to find and indoor flowering plant on this list of houseplants for neglect, but the truth is clivia somewhat requires a lack of attention in order to produce its vibrant orange blooms.
Not only is it a cold-tolerant houseplant, it actually demands 2-3 months of cold exposure (around 50°F) to trigger blooming in spring.
It's the perfect houseplant to pop in a colder conservatory in the winter months for this reason, or can be used to green up chilly windowsills where winter houseplant care requires moving other plants.
As for watering, you can get away with only watering a clivia when its soil has dried out entirely, though it prefers to have some moisture at all times.
Having said that, these plants are susceptible to houseplant root rot, so underwatering is better than overwatering.
Orange blooms are most popular for these indoor plants, but you can also opt for a cream or yellow flowering clivia (like this one from Amazon).
This 'Orange Fire' clivia has the classic orange blooms. It comes in a 1-gallon nursery pot.
5. Autograph Tree
Autograph tree, or clusia, is an underrated indoor tree.
It has distinctive paddle-shaped foliage with a leathery feel and can grow as tall as three meters in the home.
It's actually semi-epiphytic (growing on surfaces like bark rather than soil) in its native Caribbean habitat, meaning it can tolerate fairly poor soil and will only need repotting every couple of years.
It grows well in drought and can tolerate some shade, too, though you will spot faster growth when it's placed somewhere with bright light.
Take care to avoid direct sun, however, as this can leaf scorch its iconic leaves.
It's a great choice for a low-maintenance indoor plant to bring some structure to an indoor garden, offering a sculptural silhouette without too much upkeep.
Something to note – these plants do enjoy higher humidity (around 50-70%), so it will be happy as a bathroom plant. Or, you can use low-effort ways to increase humidity for indoor plants, like using this pebble humidity tray from Amazon.
This clusia comes in a 2-gallon pot. It can be grown as a houseplant or outdoors in US hardiness zones 10-12.
FAQs
Are There Any Houseplants That Don't Need Watering?
While all houseplants need moisture to some extent, there are plenty of houseplants that can cope with longer periods of drought. This includes cacti, succulents, ponytail palm, and ZZ plants, among others. Often these plants will show signs they're dehydrated, such as wrinkling foliage, reminding you to pick up your watering can.
Don't forget to also consider houseplants that don't need watering while you're on vacation and the houseplants that don't need fertilizing often to curate your perfect collection of low-effort plants.
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