The Best Beginner Houseplants

Care for pothos plants isn't too complicated. These houseplants aren't picky, and they'll thrive in indirect or low light. That's why they're popular in offices, bathrooms, and bedrooms- unlike other plants, they don't need much light to thrive. But there is one thing that will harm your pothos plant: bright direct light. For this reason, it may not be a good idea to cultivate a pothos plant outside in Florida, unless there's a spot in your garden that stays shady most of the time.

Water your pothos plant about once a week or once every two weeks. Make sure that the soil completely dries out between waterings, as these plants don't like sitting in wet soil long term.

One unique thing about pothos is that it can be grown in vases of water- just another example of their tenacious nature. In fact, using vases of water is one of the most popular ways to propagate, or reproduce, these plants. To propagate, take a "cutting" from an established pothos plant and simply place the new mini-pothos in water. But make sure that it doesn't spend too long in the vase, as pothos plants can have a hard time adjusting from water to dry soil.

If you plan to keep this plant in your garden, it'll need about two to three hours of sun per day. But as a general rule, it tends to thrive outside in Florida's hot, humid climate, so you may be able to get away with putting it outside and forgetting about it. But if you plan to keep your aloe vera inside, you're going to have to do a little more to make sure it gets enough sun. Place it near a south- or west- facing window, but make sure that it's not being exposed to direct heat, as its "leaves" may end up cracked and brown.

Aloe vera plants are easily prone to "root rot," meaning that if you water them too much, they could end up dying. You want the soil to almost completely dry out before watering the plant again, and make sure that it's not sitting in a saucer of standing water.

Make sure to provide your spider plant with bright, indirect light. There aren't a lot of houseplants that like to be in the direct sun all the time, and the spider plant is no exception. If it's placed in the direct sun, it can develop brown and cracked tips- one of the only issues from which this plant tends to suffer. So just keep them in a well-lit area of your room or in a shady corner in your garden and your spider plants will fare fine.

Keep your spider plant in well-drained soil. Spider plants, like pothos plants, like to dry out in between waterings, and too much watering may lead to root rot.

Let your spider plant grow without moving it to a new pot too quickly- these plants prefer to be a little constrained, or "pot-bound." Only repot a spider plant if there are large roots visible and it's gotten difficult to water it.

This tenacious sprouting plant is so self-sufficient that it can propagate itself with little to no help from you. In fact, they're so easy to propagate that you may soon find yourself with a few too many of these little spider plants. They get their arachnid-inspired name from their method of propagation- they send little tendrils of nearly identical mini-plants (adorably called "spiderettes") spiraling down to the floor, looking for a place to sink into some soft earth. To propagate, simply provide a little pot of soil below the spiderette. It's ideal to allow it to stay attached to the "mother plant" for as long as possible. Once it's established its roots, cut the connection and you'll be left with another healthy little spider plant.

To care for a little wandering dude, provide bright, indirect light. If that seems like a running theme across this list, it's because most of the best and easiest houseplants to care for are well-suited to the environment inside of a house; these plants prefer their surroundings well-lit but without blaring sun. Wandering dude plants are loved for their "painted" appearance- their leaves have bright white stripes running along the base. But if you leave your wandering dude for too long in the dark, it may lose this characteristic coloring. So make sure that this plant stays in an area that gets enough sun, like near a window.

Keep the soil of your wandering dude plant slightly moist at all times. But make sure that the pot is big enough that you're not watering directly into the "crown" of the plant, as this can cause rot in the leaves and stems. Consider using a spray bottle to keep the soil around the plant lightly misted.

One potential downside of the wandering dude plant is that it can have a short lifespan. After two to three years, the plant may begin to show its age. So if your wandering dude starts to look a little worse for wear, try to cut a few cuttings off of the main plant and re-root them in fresh soil. This is called "renewing" a plant, and it will ensure that you can keep a wandering dude for years.