Are you intolerant to handling dirt or regularly forgetting to water your plants? There’s a fix for this- grow your indoor plants in water. Picture this: growing plants without worrying about pests, soil quality, and under/overwatering them.
Step into the realm of hydroponics. This practice has gained popularity because it makes growing plants without soil possible and for its space-saving nature and simplicity.
There’s a vast spectrum of plant species ideally suited for hydroponic growth, from vibrant tropical specimens to delicate herbs and leafy greens. Check the best plants to grow in water indoors below.
18 Plants That Grow In Water Indoor
1. Pothos
Also called the Devil’s Ivy, this plant is an excellent candidate for hydroponics. Showcase its vibrancy and beauty creatively in hanging baskets, glass vases, or decorative containers filled with pebbles or marbles.
Choose Golden pothos because they tend to grow rapidly in water and are as adaptable as in soil. If not the Golden Pothos, pick Marble Queen Pothos, Silver Splash, or Pothos Pictus. Ensure your pothos’ roots remain submerged at all times.
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2. Lucky Bamboo
Revered for its graceful stalks and lush foliage, Lucky Bamboo is a favorite for indoor decoration and thrives in water. In fact, this plant is mainly sold in water.
Get a container like a glass vase, fill it with clean, room-temperature water, and position the Lucky Bamboo stalks in the water. Add decorative rocks or pebbles to stabilize the stalks and create an attractive display.
3. Coleus
You can easily propagate every variety of coleus and grow it in water. Cut a healthy coleus stem around 4-6 inches long, remove any lower leaves, then insert it into a jar or glass with room temperature water. You will see roots forming on the cutting after several weeks.
Coleus does not flourish in direct sunlight, so opt for bright, indirect light. Coleus brings warmth, vibrancy, and personality to indoor environments.
4. Spider Plant
Spider plants are wonderful additions to indoor spaces, bringing vibrancy to your home with their white and pale green long, arching leaves and cascading stems with pups. These plants easily grow in water.
Read More: Why Does My Spider Plant Have Brown Tips?
With this approach, you can create an aesthetically pleasing display, especially if you place it in decorative containers. Enjoy a clear view of root growth and cascading foliage flourish without soil interference.
5. Chinese Evergreen
This plant is a fantastic choice if you want a colorful, upright plant to grow in water. It boasts lush, glossy leaves in various shades of green, often adorned with silver, cream, or pink patterns. Create a striking display of Chinese evergreen by selecting a vase that matches your interior décor.
Grow Chinese evergreen in water using stem cutting or unpotting, rinsing, and growing a fully mature plant. Keep in mind that water-grown Chinese evergreens take longer to develop than their soil-grown counterparts.
6. Delicious Monster
This plant will happily grow in water for some time. Its iconic fenestrated leaves would look glorious in a tabletop vase, adding elegance and tropical touch to the space, whether in your office, living room, or even the dining room.
Use a container that’s sizeable enough for the plant’s rootball. Position the container in bright, indirect sunlight and maintain a warm, humid environment.
7. Arrowhead Plant
Like delicious monsters, arrowhead plants give a living space some tropical charm owing to their distinctive, typically green arrowhead-shaped leaves with prominent veins. Growing this arrowhead in water provides a delightful way to cultivate its lush foliage.
Select 8-10 cm stem cuttings to ensure there are enough leaf nodes for the roots to shoot from and grow in the water. Put your arrowhead plant in a warm area exposed to bright, indirect light to keep it happy.
8. Begonia
For a flowering plant addition to your indoor water plants, cut the stems of a healthy mature begonia plant and grow it in a small glass vase with water. This delightful houseplant is stunning with beautiful dark green foliage.
It will look fabulous on your tabletop or shelf. Although begonias can live happily in water, you’ll probably wait a while to see the roots. Although all begonias flourish in water, rex and tuberous types perform exceptionally.
9. Impatiens
These plants love water, often thriving in consistently well-drained, moist soil. You can also grow these beautiful flowering plants in water, particularly through “water rooting.
Cut mature stems from the tips around 4-6 inches long, with at least a few leaf nodes. After that, remove any flowers, flower buds, and the lower leaves from the cuttings to curb moisture loss and aid root development. Next, put the cuttings in water.
10. Philodendron
Philodendron is arguably the easiest plant to grow in water since it roots readily in water, making it great for hydroponic setups. The heart-leaf philodendron is most suited for water growing. However, you can also grow the split-leaf philodendron.
The classic heart-leaf philodendron develops roots quickly. Philodendrons grown in water look superb in vases, offering a fun display on windowsills and tables.
11. Peace Lily
Renowned for their exquisite white blooms and beautiful dark green leaves, peace lilies are great additions to indoor spaces. You can grow this plant conventionally or choose a more unique way by using water as a medium.
Use a narrow vase or tall glass, but make sure the plant’s base is above the water. This way, the roots will be submerged while the base and the leaves aren’t constantly wet.
12. English Ivy
It grows quickly, is low maintenance, purifies air, and looks classy with green and white leaves. English Ivy is amenable to different growing conditions, including water. You can grow its stem cuttings in vases for a prolonged period, creating stunning displays.
It is especially ideal for a hanging plant display on a shelf or window. Expose your English Ivy to bright, indirect light for better growth. This plant is a superb air-purifying plant that requires minimal maintenance.
13. Spiderwort
Give your houseplant collection color with Spiderwort’s bright purple blooms and pretty green, white, blue-green, silver, purple, gold, pink, or cream grassy foliage. This plant is a fast grower, survives in various environments, and has an unrivaled will to survive.
Popular spiderwort varieties are Tradescantia zebrina and Tradescantia fluminensis. You’ll need to prune this aggressive grower to ensure it doesn’t get too heavy and topple the vase.
16. Ornamental Sweet Potato
The primary reason for growing this ornamental plant is its attractive foliage rather than tubers. The deeply lobed to heart-shaped leaves come in green, purple, red, or variegated color combinations.
You can let its vines spill over containers or hanging baskets as a standalone specimen or part of an eye-catching arrangement of indoor plants. To grow ornamental sweet potatoes in water, use a clean container, preferably glass, ceramic, or plastic.
15. Hyacinth
Any room you introduce hyacinth to will automatically be brighter because of its piercingly bright flowers that emerge from the small strap-like, arching leaf clusters. It pairs well with other plants, so consider incorporating it with other houseplants.
Besides their beauty, add hyacinths to your home for their fragrant blooms in winter. Submerge the hyacinth’s bottom portion in water without touching the base.
16. Alocasia
This tropical plant with leaves resembling elephant ears makes an excellent statement plant. Macrorrhiza Stringray, Alocasia Zebrina, and Alocasia Triangularis are excellent alocasia varieties for water growing. Find a stunning vase or glass to grow alocasia, thus displaying its beauty.
The water will highlight the beauty of its large, glossy, dramatic leaves with solid green or variegated patterns of contrasting colors, such as white or yellow veins.
17. Water Cabbage
While typically grown in ponds and aquariums, this floating aquatic plant with rosettes of thick, leathery leaves can also thrive indoors in containers filled with water. You can incorporate this plant into your water garden in your office, living room, or even bathroom.
A vase or narrow containers won’t work for growing water cabbages in water. Instead, a wide, shallow, large container is more suitable. Also, ensure the container is clean and doesn’t contain any chemicals harmful to aquatic plants.
Water cabbage thrives in well-lit areas but can be susceptible to sunburn, so expose them to indirect sunlight instead. Also, keep them in warm areas because they can struggle in cool temperatures.
18. Herbs
Most herbs prefer growing in soil, but some varieties can adapt to a hydroponic environment. So consider turning your windowsill into a herb water garden.
The herb plants will elevate your kitchen’s look, making it more aesthetically pleasing and provide herbs for your recipes. Propagate your herbs while the stems are still green and soft before turning woody. Woody stems tend to become mushy before taking root.
Herbs you can successfully grow in water include rosemary, basil, oregano, thyme, lemon balm, sage, peppermint, tarragon, cilantro, and chives.
Conclusion
A water-only indoor garden is fun, simple to start and maintain, unique, affordable, and minimalistic. Besides the practical advantages, plants that grow in water bring a touch of natural beauty into spaces. These plants look stunning in vases, ornate ceramic pots, and other suitable containers. A sleek glass vase is especially a great choice because it allows you to showcase the whole plant system, from the roots and stems to the leaves and blooms.
Hey there, fellow plant enthusiasts! I’m Rachel, the green-thumbed writer behind Rooted In Garden. With a deep-rooted love for all things botanical, I’ve made it my mission to help you cultivate a thriving collection of houseplants. As a devoted plant parent myself, I understand the joys and challenges that come with nurturing these leafy wonders. Whether you’re a succulent aficionado, an orchid enthusiast, or simply adore all potted flora, join me on this journey as we explore the secrets to growing and caring for our beloved green companions. Together, let’s create a flourishing oasis indoors.