You start a new business and you’re looking around the office, the lobby, the restaurant or whatever space you have. You see the desks, the people, the computers, everything looks in order, but there’s something wrong. The place just looks drab, not quite right.
“Get me some plants!” You say.
Immediately you assign that task to someone who runs out and buys the most colorful and vibrant plants possible and places them all around the space. To your dismay, just a few days later all of those expensive, colorful plants are dead.
What happened?
Well the fact is that some of the most popular indoor plant species tend to need the most light and care. Unless you have a light meter handy, no matter how big the windows are in your space or how bright it seems, it’s a good bet that the space in question is not getting enough sunlight to sustain those plants. That’s why you’d be better served getting low light plants for your space.
Plants make their own food and the key to that is light. Light allows them to grow and look healthy.
What is a Low Light Plant?
Low light plants are vegetation that have adapted, over the centuries, to surviving on very low amounts of sunlight. It’s the vegetation that thrives on the bottom of forests and under heavy canopies of trees. They have adapted internally to absorb as much light as they can given the conditions and store that much-needed sustenance so that they can grow very slowly to maximize their energy.
This ability to adapt makes low light plants ideal for interiors.
What Does a Low Light Plant Look Like?
Low light plants vary in appearance, shape and color, but they do tend to have similar characteristics. Such as:
- Large leaves – these have evolved because the larger the leaf, the more sunlight they can absorb. Since these plants only get a limited amount, the bigger the leaves the more of that precious sun they can absorb and use.
- Dark leaves – just like when you wear dark colors on a sunny day and feel warmer than when you wear a light shirt, these plants have darker leaves to absorb more sun.
- Slow growing – low light plants take their sweet time when growing so that they utilize the energy the are able to get from the meager sunlight more effectively and efficiently.
Common Types of Low Light Plants
Looking to decorate your space with some greenery? Here are some common low light plants that can add just the right spark of color, but won’t die as fast as the high light plants you might have been using.
The Peace Lilly
(Spathiphyllum) – these have become very popular in places like malls and hotel lobbies. They have very wide, broad, deep green leaves and they grow beautiful while flowers that have given them their common name. They are popular not just because they don’t need a lot of light, but also require less watering than other plant species.
Sansevieria
Sansevieria – also known as mother-in-law’s tongue, devil’s tongue or snake plant. Comes in a wide variety of colors and shades and is one of the more popular low light plants indoors. The long, stiff, leaves grow upwards around a center growing spot.
Pothos Plant
Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) – also known as the devil’s ivy. This is a type of evergreen vine and the leaves are large and sometimes heart-shaped. It also has a wide variety of light and dark colors for the leaves.
Philodendron
There’s a good chance if you have been around any indoor plants, this is one you’ve seen before. They have very large, even imposing leaves and are very hearty plants capable of adapting well to various situations. Leaves can be oval and shaped like spears among other shapes.
Aglaonema
Sometimes just called “aglos” or Chinese evergreens, Aglaonema are popular because of the color that the leaves can attain. While many are deep green, they can also have traces of silver or red.
Take Care of Your Plants
Just because these types of plants don’t need as much light as some others, they still require regular attention. Low light plants also need watering and care, so don’t think that you can install a few of these and then do nothing to care for them. The care given to your plants will result in plant life brightening the space. Many businesses rely on the specialists at Ambius to keep their spaces looking great.
Visit our low light plant catalog to learn about more species that can thrive indoors where light is not in abundance or contact Ambius online to learn about our plant care program.
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