4 Small Ornamental Trees You Can Grow Indoors to Turn Your Home Into a Mini Forest

I am a confirmed plant rescuer, and many of my houseplants were discarded by neighbors. Some tossed plants are indoor ornamental trees - sad-looking trees with sparse canopies or broken branches. I take them home, fix them up, and add them to my personal indoor forest.

Healthy indoor trees are not only beautiful, they also create a serene, supportive atmosphere in my San Francisco apartment, an essential element of a writer’s existence. As winter does its worst outside my bedroom window, the trees replicate the peaceful but exhilarating sensation of walking through a woody glen on a spring day.

Benefits of Growing Trees Indoors

Indoor trees make great houseplants. Even those living in small spaces will likely have room for at least one. We aren’t talking about young oaks or redwoods that will ultimately grow three times as high as your house.

Ornamental trees are upright houseplants that should top out at maturity a few feet shorter than your ceiling. Still, these indoor tree plants will add height and structure to your living space.

Best Ornamental Trees to Grow Indoors

Here is my list of the best ornamental indoor tree species. All are gorgeous in their own ways, require little maintenance, and stay small enough to make your interior space their forever home.

1. Money Tree

Will a money tree (Pachira aquatica) bring prosperity and good energy to your home? No guarantees. But the shamrock-green leaves of the money tree are palmate, with five leaflets, and five is a lucky number in feng shui.

The money tree stems are so flexible and thin that the plant is often sold with the stems braided. Over time, they can grow over 6 feet (2 m) tall. This petite ornamental is native to tropical areas of Central and South America where it thrives in humid swamps and wetlands. But don’t try to duplicate this in your home.

Excellent drainage, well-draining soil, as well as a container with drainage holes should suffice. The plant also needs bright, indirect light (at least 6 hours a day) and watering when the top of the soil is dry.

Add a little feng shui to your home with a money tree from the Home Depot.

2. Fiddle Leaf Fig

I know that the fiddle leaf fig (Ficus lyrata) is often described as a high-maintenance houseplant that's difficult to maintain. Maybe that’s why so many of them end up on the curb in my neighborhood.

Be that as it may, I have now rescued four fiddle leaf figs and they are all thriving. I just did a few ordinary maintenance chores. I replaced the soil, watered well, and placed them in an indirect-sun area – and that’s all, folks! One came into my life with only two leaves, but eventually grew them all back with minimal care.

These are, to me, particularly appealing houseplants because of their ridiculously huge leaves and architectural structure. One of them makes a real statement in a room (four make an even bigger statement!). They instantly glam up white walls and a laminate floor.

Fiddle leaf figs grow to 10 feet (3 m) tall, but mine have been half that tall for years. Water well when the top of the soil is dry and make sure the container drains well.

Buy a mature fiddle leaf fig from the Home Depot for immediate impact.

3. Meyer Lemon Tree

I love my Meyer lemon tree (Citrus x limon 'Meyer'). I bought it as a young plant that was about a foot (30 cm) tall at a budget grocery store. I've nurtured it for the past four years and now it’s 3 feet (1 m) tall, with oodles of super-fragrant blossoms every spring followed by the sweetest lemons you’ve ever tasted. The scent is bewitching and fills my bedroom.

Though indoor citrus trees can be demanding – insisting on lots of direct sunshine, rich fertilizer and even a plant humidifier – Meyer lemons are in a different category. This species is a unique hybrid of lemon and mandarin orange, and they're totally low-maintenance. They grow well in a container of well-draining soil in a sunny window. I add citrus fertilizer, like this one from Amazon, twice a year during the growing season.

My Meyer lemon is only 4 feet (1.3 m) tall, but the species can grow to 10 feet (3 m) high. They like indoor temperatures – between 50 and 80°F (10-27°C) – and enough water to keep the soil moist, but not wet.

Get a compact Meyer lemon tree from Fast Growing Trees for fresh, homegrown citrus.

4. Norfolk Island Pine

If you’ve ever bought a living tree for Christmas, it might well have been a small potted Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla). These are majestic trees in the wild – growing up to 200 feet (65 m) tall – but when planted in a container indoors, they stay under 6 feet (2 m).

They are pretty little trees that look like evergreens, but they are not pines all. They are relatives of the monkey puzzle tree. Norfolk Island pines are notoriously long-lived and don’t have a dormant period, which means they look great at any time of year.

Plant in well-draining potting soil and make sure the container has adequate drain holes. Water every week or two, keeping the soil damp but not wet.

Shop Norfolk Island pine trees in your choice of beautiful container from the Sill.