Every Houseplant Collection Needs One Plant That Thrives On Neglect – Here Are 3 Of The Best

I love a houseplant that thrives on neglect, and not because I'm a particularly neglectful plant parent, but because life has a habit of getting in the way of even the best intentions. One minute I'm carefully checking the soil and rotating my plants for even light, and the next I've realised I can't remember the last time I watered anything.

I always mean well. A new houseplant comes home, I find it a beautiful spot, learn exactly what it needs and promise myself I'll stick to a sensible care routine. For a few weeks, I'm as attentive as any plant could hope for... and then work gets busy, the toddler forgets how to sleep at night, my weekend disappears, and suddenly I'm standing in the living room wondering who swapped my beautiful orchid with a very brown stick.

Thankfully, some houseplants are considerably more forgiving than others. They don't need constant fussing, perfectly consistent conditions or an owner who has their watering schedule neatly color-coded. In fact, they can tolerate the occasional missed watering and, perhaps most importantly, they don't immediately make you feel like you've failed them.

The Houseplants That Thrive On Neglect

Every houseplant collection needs one stalwart that thrives on neglect, if only to reassure owners that there is at least one thing that promises to get on with things while the rest of your life is refusing to cooperate.

So, after plenty of personal experience with plants that have survived my less-than-perfect attention, I've narrowed it down to three particularly resilient choices...

1. The Snake Plant

If I had to crown the king of houseplants that thrive on neglect, it would 100% be a snake plant; there is something almost comically resilient about them.

Oh sure, their leaves look wonderfully dramatic, but they really don't demand the sort of constant attention you might expect; in fact, they are particularly good at coping with periods of dryness because those aforementioned leaves store water. They're also happy in a range of light conditions, although brighter, indirect light will generally encourage better growth.

In other words, the birth month houseplant for January babies everywhere is really rather good at the whole “I'll see you when I see you” approach to houseplant ownership. Actually, the biggest mistake you can make is probably loving them too much, as overwatering is far more likely to cause problems than forgetting to water them for a while.

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2. ZZ plant

Almost suspiciously good at fulfilling the brief for 'houseplant that thrives on neglect', the glossy green ZZ plant has thick rhizomes that store water, helping this pretty plant to cope with periods of drought. (This is particularly useful for people like me, who occasionally look at a plant and realise I can't remember whether I watered it yesterday, last week or possibly sometime in another calendar year).

ZZ plants are also tolerant of lower light, although they will grow more slowly there, and they generally prefer you to let their potting mix dry out between waterings. All of which means, basically, that if you want something that looks elegant but doesn't require constant fussing, this is a very good candidate.

To make things even easier, you can buy a ZZ plant in a ceramic pot from Costa Farms. Just pop it somewhere to do its wonderful air-purifying thing, and reap the benefits for almost zero effort.

3. Spider Plants

Spider plants have been quietly earning their reputation as practically indestructible houseplants for decades, and I think it's time we gave them some credit.

They're cheerful, unfussy and incredibly good at producing those long trailing stems covered in baby plants. (Seriously, even if you aren't particularly interested in propagating houseplants, it's difficult not to feel a little pleased with yourself when your spider plant starts producing a whole collection of teeny-weeny offspring).

They're also wonderfully forgiving if your watering routine isn't quite as consistent as it should be, making spider plants particularly useful for filling shelves, hanging baskets or awkward corners you might find yourself forgetting about them for a while. (Guilty, as charged!).

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Before anyone gets the bright idea of writing to me, I'm not suggesting you should deliberately neglect your houseplants; they still need the basics (think appropriate light, occasional watering, a decent potting mix and a little attention when something looks wrong).

That being said, I do think there's something to be said for building a collection around plants that fit your lifestyle rather than trying to become the sort of person who remembers the precise watering schedule of 27 different tropical plants. And for me, that's the real appeal of snake plants, spider plants and ZZ plants. They look good, they're forgiving, and if life gets busy for a week or two, they're unlikely to hold a grudge.

And sometimes, that? Why, that's exactly the kind of houseplant friendship I need.