Spider plant, peace lilly or aloe

[Crusher Disciple]

As I gaze out my 9th floor floor length window, I want to get a nice house plant to liven up the place and clean up the air.

I don't know squat about picking an indoors plant, a Google search really didn't yield a site that gave me a good answer.

At this point, I think having either a spider plant, aloe or a peace lilly. This is what I'm looking for:

1. Something a total idiot can grow without murdering.
2. Something that can take light from the West/ North. Most of the north sun is blocked by the high rise across from me.
3. A plant that cleans out the air.
4. Something I don't have to cut and replant.
5. Something that won't call me "Seymour" and eat me.

Can you guys with green thumbs give me some pointers on what would work well for me in here? I haven't had an office with a window since 2004 and I have my cold dead, evil little heart set on a real plant.

Thanks!

 

[Jadzia]

I've always found traditional "house plants" to be rather drab and lifeless, and the sort of things that end up full of dust and cobwebs. I prefer little glazed pots of herbs. They'll happily grow indoors on windowsills, will produce their pleasant fragrances throughout the year, and are generally more interesting and enjoyable. They don't need a lot of attention, aside from a little water every couple of days, which is no different from any indoor plant.

 

[Crusher Disciple]

^But how much light can they take?

 

[Jadzia]

They're not that fussy as they are mostly of Mediterranean origin where the midday sun is fairly bright. In less light they'll not grow as much.

What they won't like is direct hot sun in dry air for hours on end as it can dry out the leaves and they'll die back. On a north facing window (depending where you live) then you're unlikely to get that happen.

If in doubt, you can sit a pot on a pebble tray. You keep the pebbles sitting in shallow water (in the tray), so that in the hot sun they keep the air around the plant humid, and the leaves are much less likely to dry out.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

1. Something a total idiot can grow without murdering.
2. Something that can take light from the West/ North. Most of the north sun is blocked by the high rise across from me.
3. A plant that cleans out the air.
4. Something I don't have to cut and replant.
5. Something that won't call me "Seymour" and eat me.

When it comes to looking after plants, I'm probably as negligent as they come.

I have a bamboo plant at home, which has never required too much maintenance at all, just water it every few days or so, and it's growing very nicely. It's sitting in one of the north-facing windows in my house, without too much fuss. It is also easily prunable.

In the past I have also had spider plants [It's got the body of a spider, but it's actually a plant! - someone] which are simialrly low maintenance, but they've not survived as well, though. [They keep it in a pram! - the same someone]

 

[Kestra]

Aloe plants seem fun!

 

[RoJoHen]

I grew mint for a little while my first year of college. It was easy, and it helped combat the foul stench of my roommate. Honestly, the hardest part was getting the seeds to germinate, but once that happened, taking care of them was simple.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

I might have mentioned this before, but my mother grew garlic bulbs in a small tray of water. They grow very quickly. They also make the whole place stink of garlic for days. Best kept for the kitchen.

 

[JonathonWally]

Go with a high quality Chia Pet.

 

[Gepard]

I saw the beginning of this thread title, and my brain went "Spider plant, spider plant/ does whatever a spider can't..."

Sorry. Carry on.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

Aloe plants seem fun!

You could call one "Vera Lynn" then every time you saw it you could wave and say "'Aloe, Vera!"

 

[Kestra]

Aloe plants seem fun!

You could call one "Vera Lynn" then every time you saw it you could wave and say "'Aloe, Vera!"

Oh dear.

 

[nevermore]

Spider plans are good, but you do have to trim them back regularly, especially the off-shoots, which if left un-trimmed will sap the plant and make it droopy and sad. On the other hand, they're good air recyclers, only need water about once a week or so and are easy to reproduce. I have three of them right now (two of which I made from the first), but they do like pretty constant, indirect sunlight to thrive or they start to look sickly.

The easiest plants to take care that I've ever owned are sweetheart philodendrons. Water once a week, if that, whenever they look droopy, and they don't need much sun, though they can take a fair amount. You don't have to trim the vines, but you can if they get too long and the main body of the plant will fill out if you do, they can take up a lot of space, or not. I have three; they're in west-facing windows, but generally only get light filtered through some semi-opaque blinds, and some of their tendrils are over 10 feet long now, which I've propped up on the tops of the windows, etc.

Aloe and cactii are easy to care for, but they're not much for recycling air. Aloe doesn't really need much sun at all, in fact mine dislikes it and lost several spines when I tried to give it more sun this summer. The best thing to do with them is to ignore them, really.

I have two small peace lilies, which I can only get to thrive at all in the East window; they're demanding and have not actually flowered in a couple of years. I'm not a fan, really.

Anyway, here are some random sites about houseplants:

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/houseplants.html
http://www.plantcare.com/

 

[bigdaddy]

As a gardener I have tried and failed many many times to get herbs to grow inside, they are not really houseplants. Lavender is probably the best herb to grow.

If you want a plant than an idiot can grow then spider plant it is. I haven't watered mine for months, come back, if it does start to die a little you take one of the spiders and fill in the dead spots. I think they are a horribly ugly plant.

Christmas caucus is almost impossible to kill, unless you forget to move it out of the sun and it gets a sunburn and dies.

Also mother-in-laws tongue is nearly impossible to kill, unless you are my grandma.

 

[propita]

Benefit of aloe vera is that you can remove a spike once in a while and use the juice on your skin. It's GREAT for soothing minor burns.

 

[RoJoHen]

Benefit of aloe vera is that you can remove a spike once in a while and use the juice on your skin. It's GREAT for soothing minor burns.

It's also really good for giving rashes to people who allergic.

Let's just say I try really hard not to get sunburned.

 

[DBR]

Spider plants are pretty hard to kill. I still have the one I planted in grade one from my teacher's plant, and have given away several smaller plants from that one.

Sometimes I forget to water it for weeks because of where it is, and it does just fine. I've never trimed it, and have re-potted it it maybe twice in ~25 years. Plus my dog occasionally rips off some of the off-shoots and eats them, and she hasn't died yet.

And it seems to thrive in any light, so long as there is at least some coming from somewhere.

 

[od0_ital]

5. Something that won't call me "Seymour" and eat me.

well, damn, there goes my suggestion...

 

[Crusher Disciple]

I'm really leaning towards the peace lily at this point.