With its signature pale leaves that trail and curl around it, the Spider Plant is one of the most common houseplants out there. These plants are incredibly hardy, easy to care for, and great for hanging from ceilings or sitting on high shelves as the perfect beginner houseplant. To learn more about how you can help your Spider Plant thrive, check out this guide!
The Spider Plant is incredibly hardy but still slightly different from succulents in its care requirements. To ensure your Spider Plant stays happy and healthy, keep these tips in mind:
Bright, indirect sunlight is a Spider Plant’s best friend. While this plant can tolerate shade, it won’t grow nearly as much as it would in bright light. In addition, try to keep your spider plant away from full sunshine, at least during the afternoon– the bright sunlight will quickly burn its delicate leaves, further stunting growth. For best results, consider keeping your Spider Plant near an east-facing window, where it’ll receive bright, but not harsh, morning sunlight. Alternatively, keep your Spider Plant near a south-facing window for it to get plenty of indirect light all day long. We recommend placing your Spider Plant in a hanging basket or atop a tall shelf so it can trail while still receiving filtered sunlight.
Like a succulent, Spider Plants prefer well-draining soil over a thick potting mix. If possible, look to your local garden store for some loamy soil, and if the soil’s too thick, modify it with a bit of perlite, sand, or peat moss. You can also modify a traditional potting mix with sand and peat for similar results.
Along with moist soil, Spider Plants also enjoy more humidity. Although low humidity environments are tolerable, your plant will grow much faster with a little extra moisture in the air. If you’d like to increase your homes humidity, occasionally mist your Spider Plant or keep it near a humidifier.
As for temperature, this plant does best indoors, where temperatures are consistently around 65 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.
Unlike succulents, Spider Plants prefer a little fertilizer every so often. However, their leaves will turn brown if given too much (we’ll go into this later). Consider fertilizing your Spider Plant with an all-purpose, water-soluble fertilizer once a month during the growing season. You can also use compost to add extra nutrients to the soil once every two weeks.
Since the Spider Plant prefers well-draining soil, it’s best to choose a well-draining pot to improve drainage further and ensure your Spider Plant’s soil doesn’t get too soggy. Ideally, your Spider Plant should have a pot with a drainage hole, but to further improve drainage, pots made from porous materials like concrete, terracotta, or ceramic are best.
When it’s time to repot your Spider Plant, do so during the growing season to ensure the plant has plenty of resources to recover from any potential damage. You may want to consider repotting earlier if you’re repotting due to fungal gnats or root rot.
The spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is one of the most popular houseplants around. With its long arching leaves and easy care requirements, it’s no wonder spider plants can be found in homes and offices everywhere But there has been some debate over whether spider plants are actually succulents or not. In this article, we’ll examine the characteristics of spider plants and succulents to finally determine whether spider plants fall into the succulent category.
What are Succulents?
First, let’s start by defining what makes a plant a succulent. Succulents are plants that have adapted to store water in their thick, fleshy leaves, stems, or roots. This allows them to survive in arid environments where water is scarce. Some common examples of succulents include cacti, aloe vera, agave, and jade plants.
Succulents are characterized by:
- Thick, fleshy leaves, stems, or other structures to store water (mentioned 12 times)
- Waxy coating or thick cuticle to prevent water loss (mentioned 4 times)
- Shallow root systems to absorb surface moisture quickly (mentioned 3 times)
- Ability to thrive in dry environments with minimal water (mentioned 7 times)
- Slow growth rate to conserve resources (mentioned 2 times)
- Camouflaged or small leaves to reduce water loss (mentioned 1 time)
It’s these specialized adaptations that allow succulents to prosper where other plants would shrivel up and die So in determining whether a plant is a succulent or not, these key characteristics are what we need to look for
Spider Plant Characteristics
Now let’s examine the anatomy and features of spider plants to see how they stack up against typical succulent attributes.
Some key characteristics of spider plants include
- Long, thin leaves arranged in a rosette pattern (mentioned 5 times)
- Ability to produce plantlets, or baby spider plants, on flowering stems (mentioned 4 times)
- Native to tropical and subtropical climates (mentioned 2 times)
- Enjoy warm and humid conditions (mentioned 3 times)
- Leaves are not as thick or fleshy as typical succulent leaves (mentioned 2 times)
- Require more frequent watering than succulents (mentioned 6 times)
- Need bright, indirect light (mentioned 5 times)
- Not as drought tolerant as true succulents (mentioned 8 times)
Right off the bat, we can see some significant differences between spider plants and textbook succulents. The most notable being that spider plants lack the thick, water-storing leaves that are the hallmark of succulents. Spider plants also don’t share the same ability to thrive in hot, dry environments.
Verdict: Spider Plants Are Not Succulents
So are spider plants succulents? After comparing their features side-by-side, we can definitively say that spider plants are NOT succulents.
Although they do have slightly fleshy leaves, they lack many of the key anatomical adaptations that allow true succulents to survive drought conditions. Spider plants are native to tropical regions and require more frequent watering and higher humidity than succulents.
However, the fact that they are not succulents doesn’t make spider plants any less of an awesome houseplant! Here are some benefits of growing spider plants:
- Excellent for beginner gardeners since they are so easy to care for
- Known for helping purify indoor air by removing toxins (mentioned 2 times)
- Produce baby spider plantlets, allowing you to propagate new plants easily (mentioned 3 times)
- Add a beautiful cascading element and greenery to any space
- Tolerate a wide range of light and watering conditions
- Not toxic for pets like some other houseplants can be (mentioned 1 time)
So while spider plants and succulents share some superficial similarities, their structural anatomy and care needs clearly show they belong to different plant families. Spider plants have certainly earned their reputation as a versatile, hardy, and gorgeous houseplant that provides a trailing burst of green in any indoor environment.
Caring for Your Spider Plant
Now that we’ve settled the debate, let’s go over some tips for keeping your spider plant healthy and happy:
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Water: Water when the top 1-2 inches of soil are dry. Water thoroughly until it drains from the bottom holes. (mentioned 4 times)
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Light: Bright, indirect light is best but they can tolerate partial shade. Direct hot sunlight will scorch leaves. (mentioned 3 times)
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Soil: Use a general potting mix with good drainage. Add perlite or sand to improve drainage if needed. (mentioned 2 times)
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Fertilizer: Apply a diluted balanced liquid fertilizer every 2-4 weeks during spring and summer. (mentioned 1 time)
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Humidity: Average room humidity is fine, but higher humidity promotes faster growth. Mist leaves or use a humidifier. (mentioned 2 times)
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Propagation: Easily propagate by planting the spider plantlets that form on stems. (mentioned 4 times)
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Pests: Watch for mealybugs and spider mites. Wipe leaves with neem oil or insecticidal soap to treat. (mentioned 2 times)
With the proper care, your spider plant will produce plenty of babies to share with friends while purifying your indoor air!
Final Thoughts
Spider plants and succulents may seem similar at first glance, but upon closer inspection it’s clear these houseplants have key differences in their structures and care needs. By understanding what defines a succulent, we can conclusively say spider plants do not qualify for this botanical category. But that takes nothing away from the charm and usefulness of these fantastic houseplants! Their trailing green foliage and natural air purification abilities make spider plants a staple in homes everywhere.
Pruning Spider Plants grow fast, and pruning your plant is essential to keep your plant in checkImage via rhs.org.uk
Spider Plants grow fast, and pruning your plant is essential to keep your plant in check. If you choose to prune your spider plant, it’s best to do it during the growing season (late spring to early fall). Always prune Spider Plant leaves from as close to the base of the plant as you can. Spider Plant offshoots make for great propagation starters– you can prune those at the leaf node.
Although it may be hard to notice, Spider Plants do bloom! A blooming spider plant has tiny white flowers with yellow stamens that grow among long stems. However, the blooming period is incredibly short and lasts only a few days during the summer. Fertilized blossoms will produce pod-like fruits that contain black seeds. After flowering, offshoots will also grow, which you can use for propagation.
The best time to propagate a Spider Plant is after it blooms because the stems then grow into offshoots you can use as baby plants! To propagate a Spider Plant, wait until your offshoots begin to grow roots. When the roots reach an inch or two long, simply trim the offshoot from the mother plant using a clean, sharp pair of scissors. Plant the pip in a smaller pot filled with fresh, loamy soil, and mist the plant to keep your soil moist while the roots settle.
Spider Plants go dormant in the winter when temperatures drop below 50 degrees, and humidity tends to drop. During this time, your plant may appear wilted. Its growth will slow, and it won’t need as much water as usual. During the dormant period, give it half as much water as it would need during the growing season and keep the plant away from direct sunlight. Treat your Spider Plant as you usually would otherwise; just skip out on the fertilizer at this time.
Spider plants | Everything you need to know about caring for spider plants
FAQ
Are spider plants considered a succulent?
Answer and Explanation: The spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum), though adapted for drier conditions, is not a true succulent. Its roots are adapted for water acquisition and storage, but its leaves and stems are smooth and thin as opposed to thick and bulbous.
What is a spider plant classified as?
Chlorophytum comosum, usually called spider plant or common spider plant due to its spider-like look, also known as spider ivy, airplane plant, ribbon plant (a name it shares with Dracaena sanderiana), and hen and chickens, is a species of evergreen perennial flowering plant of the family Asparagaceae.
Can I use succulent soil for a spider plant?
Do spider plants have babies?
Yes, spider plants produce “babies” called plantlets or spiderettes, which grow on long stems (runners) extending from the parent plant.