How to Grow Well Snake Plant Indoor

As one of the plants with spiky and sculptural leaves as well as low key requirements, snake plants are included as one of the best plants to grow indoors. They do not need much maintenance and care and adapt well in the new locations and conditions. Getting know how to grow and to care for them is important to make sure they are at their best. This post contains the information about how to grow them indoors.

The Best Snake Plants for Indoors

As you probably know, the snake plants are originally from the tropical regions of West Africa, the places where the light is variable and the humidity is low. If your place shares the same characteristics, planning the snake plants might be the perfect idea.

The thing called snake plant was used to be known as the botanical named Sansevieria. However, everything has changed. It now is grouped with the genus Dracaena. However, a lot of people still refer to them as Sansevieria.

If you are planning to grow the snake plants indoors, there are a few options for you to choose from. As each variation has similar needs, feel free to choose that you want. Below are some of the most well-known snake plants for you to choose:

• Common snake plant or Dracaena trifastiata is the one that has the erect and green leaves that look like sword. It also has the horizontal grey-gren stripes and sharp leaf tips.
• Variegated snake plant or Dracaena trifasciati Laurentii is the one that has thick, narrow, and mottled green leaves with bright yellow leaf margins.
• Bird’s nest snake plant or Dracaena trifasciata Hahnii is the one that is tiny. It is also known as the dwarf form as it stays less than 6 inches tall. It has the short and spiky leaves form with the rosette that looks like a nest.
• Moonshine snake plant or Dracaena trifasciata Moonshine is popular as the silver snake plant. This one has ethereal, pale silver-green leaves.
• Cylindrical snake plant or Dracaena cylindrica is blessed with the rounded and cylinder like leaves, instead of flattened sword like leaves.

Method to Care for the Indoor Snake Plants

There is a popular belief that says that the snake plants do best when they are neglected. That’s actually not that true. While it is true that they do not need much maintenance and care, they do need a very little care. Here are the requirements to take care a good care of them:

• Light

Snake plants adapt well but it is better for you to avoid the light extremes to get the best results. They are fine with low light and prolonged shade, but strong and filtered light is still best for them. The best place is the one that is sunny and warm and is protected from the direct hot sun.

• Water

Since the snake plants are from the tropical places, they can tolerate drought. It means they do not need overwatering as it can rot the root. In the summer growing season, please water them only when the soil looks dry about three inches deep. During the winter, you can give them water only when they are needed to keep the leaves look good and to make them firm, or else you can you sprayer.

• Fertilizer

Just like overwatering, overfertilizing is also not good for the snake plants, knowing they are from the poor rocky soil. When it comes to the fertilizer, you can give them a premium plant food such as the one named Pennington UltraGreen All Purpose Plant Food 10-10-10. Please feed them once each spring. This product is able to give them the primary, secondary, and micronutrients they need. After that, you can feed them gently for up to four months.

• Repotting

As the slow growers, there is no need for you to re-pot the snake plants often. The best time to re-pot them is when the container is overflowing with leaves or roots from the drainage holes. You are suggested to give the newly repotted plants the fertilizer mentioned before as it is full of nutrients and is effective to reduce the transplant shock.

• Propagating

It has been known that repotting is best to start new snake plants while the division is the easiest method to propagate. You can try to pull the roots of the plants gently apart in order to divide the root ball. After that, you can plant the individual rooted rosettes and now you have new ones to take care or to give to your loved ones.

The solutions of some issues related to the snake plants

There is nothing to worry when the snake plants do not grow well as you wish. As the one originally from the extreme weather, they are tough and resilient. Here are some responds to fix the problems related to the snake plants:

• Yellow snake plant leaves: It is the sign of overwatering. Please let them dry out and water them on track. Remember to also remove dead leaves at the base.
• Snake plant root rot: You can re-plant the leaves with the good roots in the fresh soil and throw up the rest.
• Brown snake plant tips: This one is a sign of a few things, including improper watering, sunburn, exposure to cold, and many more. All that you have to do is to go through the plant care checklist and correct yourself.
• Snake plant falling over: This one does not always mean bad. When they need repotting or need more light, they may open. If it is the case, you can proceed. In case you see the leaves are collapsing, advanced root rot might be the one to blame. To fix everything, please examine the roots and do your best according to the issue shown.

You can prune the discolored or damaged snake plant tips on healthy and firm leaves by using the sharp plant shears and follow the shape of the leaf well in order to make everything look natural. Apparently, the leaves will stop growing when the tips are cut or broken.