Houseplant care guides
In-depth, plant-by-plant houseplant care guides and problem-solving articles, with checklists, tables and links to the Plantbaes tools.
Plant guides
- ZZ Plant Care: Watering, Light, Soil and Yellow LeavesZZ plant care indoors: how rarely to water, what light it needs, the right soil and pot, fertilizer, repotting rhizomes, and fixing yellow leaves.Read guide →
- Spider Plant Care: Light, Water, Babies and Brown TipsSpider plant care indoors: light, watering, soil, feeding, why tips turn brown, how to prune it, and how to root spider plant babies in water or soil.Read guide →
- Snake Plant Care: Light, Watering, Soil and ProblemsSnake plant care indoors: how much light and water it needs, the best soil and pot, repotting, and fixing leaves that fall over, wrinkle or turn mushy.Read guide →
- Propagating Pothos in Water: Step-by-Step GuidePropagating pothos in water: where to cut, how long roots take, rooting hormone, water vs soil, and how to move cuttings into soil without losing them.Read guide →
- Pothos Yellow Leaves: What They Mean and How to FixPothos yellow leaves decoded: overwatering, underwatering, too much sun, repotting, cuttings in water and old age, with a quick diagnosis table and fixes.Read guide →
- Pothos Care Guide: How to Take Care of a Pothos PlantHow to take care of a pothos plant indoors: light, watering, soil, feeding, propagation, and fixes for yellow leaves and leggy vines.Read guide →
- Peace Lily Care: Watering, Light, Flowers and Brown TipsPeace lily care indoors: when to water, how much light it needs to flower, the right soil, repotting, and fixing brown tips, yellow leaves and drooping.Read guide →
- Monstera Yellow Leaves: Causes and How to Fix ThemMonstera yellow leaves explained: how to read the pattern, from overwatering and repotting shock to light, pests and old age, and whether to cut them off.Read guide →
- Monstera Deliciosa Care for Beginners: Your First YearMonstera deliciosa care for beginners: a first-year plan from bringing it home to the first repot, moss pole and split leaves and a printable care sheet.Read guide →
- Monstera Care Guide: Light, Water, Soil and FixesA complete monstera care guide: light, watering, soil, feeding, repotting, support, propagation, and fixes for yellow leaves and no splits.Read guide →
Light and placement
- Very Low Light Plants: What Grows in the Darkest SpotsVery low light plants for dim rooms, basements and corners far from a window, with real lux figures, what survives versus grows, and when to add a light.Read guide →
- Plants for an Office With No Windows: What SurvivesThe best plants for an office with no windows, why office lighting is darker than it looks, and how a small grow light makes a windowless desk work.Read guide →
- Low Light Plants Safe for Cats: 12 Pet-Friendly PicksLow light plants safe for cats, checked against the ASPCA list: which shade-tolerant houseplants are non-toxic, which aren't, and where to put them.Read guide →
- Grow Lights for Houseplants: How to Choose and Use OneGrow lights for houseplants explained: PPFD, DLI and lux in plain English, how far away and how many hours, the best types for winter, and mistakes.Read guide →
- Best Low Light Plants for Dim Rooms (and How to Grow Them)The best low light plants for dim rooms, north windows and offices, with a comparison table, pet-safe picks from the ASPCA list, and care tips.Read guide →
- Bathroom Plants: The Best Picks for Humid, Low LightBathroom plants that like humidity and cope with low light, plus what to grow with no window, which plants help with damp, and which are safe for cats.Read guide →
Care basics
- How to Water Houseplants Properly (Without Overwatering)How to water houseplants properly: when and how much, top vs bottom watering, signs of over- and underwatering, and a check-first routine.Read guide →
- How to Repot a Houseplant: Step by Step, Without ShockHow to repot a houseplant into a bigger pot: when to do it, choosing the pot size, how much soil to buy, step-by-step instructions and aftercare.Read guide →
- How to Care for Houseplants: A Beginner's GuideHow to care for houseplants as a beginner: light, watering, soil, pots, feeding, repotting and pests, with a weekly routine and first-plant checklist.Read guide →
- Houseplant Soil Mix: 4 DIY Recipes and Ratios That WorkHouseplant soil mix recipes and ratios for aroids, succulents, ferns and everyday plants, what each ingredient does, and how much to mix for your pot.Read guide →
How the guides are organised
The guides fall into three clusters. Plant guides cover one plant in depth: light, water, soil, feeding, repotting, propagation and common problems. Light and placement guides help you match plants to the rooms you actually have. Care basics guides explain techniques that apply to almost every plant, such as how to water properly, when to repot and how to read your plant's leaves.
Each guide opens with a short answer, then goes into detail. Tables and checklists are there to be used, and each guide links to the tool that does the relevant calculation.
Plant guides
Start with the monstera care guide and the pothos care guide. They cover two of the most popular houseplants, and two of the most searched-for care questions. New monstera owners can follow the monstera deliciosa first-year plan, and if leaves are yellowing, the monstera yellow leaves and pothos yellow leaves troubleshooters work through each cause in turn.
The toughest beginner plants each have their own guide: snake plant care, ZZ plant care, peace lily care and spider plant care. To multiply your plants for free, read propagating pothos in water.
Light and placement
If you have a dim flat, an office with no windows or a north-facing room, read the best low-light houseplants. Then confirm your light level with the light meter converter.
For specific situations, there are guides to low light plants safe for cats, very low light plants for the darkest corners, plants for an office with no windows and bathroom plants. When daylight simply isn't enough, grow lights for houseplants explains PPFD, DLI and how to set one up.
Care basics
Start with how to care for houseplants if you're new. When a plant outgrows its pot, how to repot a houseplant and houseplant soil mix cover the pot size, the soil and the steps.
How to water houseplants is the guide that prevents the most plant deaths. Overwatering is the most common mistake beginners make, and the fix is a habit, not a schedule.
Sources and accuracy
Toxicity information follows the ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants list. Light measurements use standard conversions. Care recommendations are common practice among growers, presented as ranges and starting points rather than absolute rules. No guide includes invented statistics, fake testimonials or made-up expert quotes. Every guide is written by the Plantbaes Editorial Team and shows when it was last updated.
Pets
Where a plant is listed as toxic to cats or dogs, the guide says so near the top. If you live with pets, the low-light plant finder can filter to non-toxic plants for any light level.
Suggest a plant
Plant guides are added based on readers' questions. If there's a plant you'd like covered, or a problem you can't solve, send it in via the contact page.
Corrections
If you spot something wrong or out of date, please let us know. Corrections are made promptly, and the "Updated" date in the byline changes when they are. The editorial policy explains the process.
Reading tips
Long guides start with a quick answer for people in a hurry. The headings follow the questions people most often search for, so you can jump straight to the one you need. The FAQ at the end covers the follow-up questions. When a guide mentions a measurement, like pot size, light level or fertilizer amount, there's a link to the matching tool so you can run your own numbers instead of trusting a generic figure.
Start here: a reading path for new plant owners
If you're new to houseplants, read the guides in this order. Each one builds on the last, and together they take about an hour.
- How to care for houseplants: the five rules that matter most.
- How to water houseplants: the habit that prevents most plant deaths.
- Best low light houseplants: matching plants to your rooms.
- The guide for your first plant: pothos, snake plant, ZZ plant, spider plant or peace lily.
- How to repot a houseplant, when the time comes.
Fixing a problem right now
If a plant is struggling today, go straight to the troubleshooter. Monstera yellow leaves and pothos yellow leaves both open with a diagnosis table: match what you see to the most likely cause and the first thing to do. Most of the causes, from overwatering to too much sun, apply to other plants too. For leggy, stretched plants, the very low light plants guide explains the signs a plant needs more light and what to do about it.
How guides are updated
Guides are reviewed when readers report a problem, when a source changes, or when a tool's calculation changes. The byline shows when each one was last updated. Older guides are improved rather than duplicated, so there's one up-to-date page per topic.