Were often asked about feng shui money plants. What are they? Why use them? How do they work? Youre in the right place! Read on to learn more about these so-called feng shui money plants. Well teach you why plants are so important in feng shui, what are money plants, and how to place them in your home.
Money trees are known for their symbolic connection to good luck, prosperity, and abundance Their unique coin-shaped leaves resemble actual currency, making them highly ornamental houseplants While the braided Pachira aquatica is the most popular type of money tree, many other plants also have round, coin-like foliage resembling paper money growing on branches.
If you want to fill your home with living symbols of wealth and prosperity here are 10 great options that can pass for money trees with their unique leaf shapes.
What is a Money Tree?
A money tree is any potted plant that has broad, round leaves spaced along braided or twisting stems to mimic the appearance of paper currency hanging on a tree. While Pachira aquatica is the most common variety, other plants like jade, Chinese money plant, and bamboo palm can also double up as money trees.
These plants represent good fortune in feng shui and vastu. Their lush green, coin-shaped foliage is believed to attract wealth and abundance. The number of stems braided together is also symbolic, with more stalks meaning more prosperity.
Benefits of Money Trees
Apart from their auspicious symbolism, money trees offer many benefits:
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They are low maintenance houseplants that purify indoor air.
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Their bright foliage livens up rooms and adds a tropical vibe.
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Small money trees make excellent desktop plants.
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Large money trees can become bold living sculptures.
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Their unique leaf shapes are visually very appealing.
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They make great gifts for business openings, new homes, graduations etc.
So even if they don’t actually bring you riches, money trees make fantastic additions to home decor!
Plants That Can Substitute as Money Trees
Here are 10 easy care indoor plants that can look like money trees because of their unique coin-shaped foliage:
1. Chinese Money Plant (Pilea peperomioides)
With its round pancake-shaped leaves, glossy texture, and easy propagation from plantlets, the Pilea peperomioides makes an excellent money plant. Keep it in bright, indirect light for the foliage to remain compact and the plant bushy.
2. Jade Plant (Crassula ovata)
Jade plants are commonly associated with money and abundance. Their thick, coin-shaped succulent leaves and woody stems give them the perfect money tree look.
3. Lucky Bamboo (Dracaena sanderiana)
With its bright green stalks and lush coin-shaped foliage, lucky bamboo is a classic money plant. Keep in a glass vase with water or pebbles to let its braided stems shine.
4. Round-Leaf Peperomia (Peperomia rotundifolia)
Another plant with thick, succulent, silver-green pancake-shaped foliage ideal for miniature money trees. Peperomia rotundifolia is compact and perfect for desktops.
5. Coin Leaf Plant (Pilea nummularifolia)
True to its name, the Coin Leaf plant has small, rounded leaves like nickels along trailing stems. It makes an adorable money plant for dish gardens.
6. Nickel Plant (Dischidia nummularia)
The penny-sized, glossy, coin-shaped leaves make Dischidia nummularia or Nickel Plant perfect for mini money tree arrangements in glass terrariums and jars.
7. Mini Monstera (Rhaphidophora tetrasperma)
Young Mini Monstera leaves start out round before developing their signature splits and holes. Their juvenile foliage shape lets you braid them into money trees.
8. Silver Glazed Elephant Ear (Alocasia baginda)
While its leaves are larger, the rounded shape, prominent veins, and reflective silver color give Alocasia baginda leaves the allure of giant coins.
9. Silver Dollar Vine (Xerosicyos danguyi)
A lush climber perfect for spilling out of pots as money foliage. Its small succulent leaves resemble silver dollars or pennies as they glisten in the sun.
10. Silver Philodendron (Scindapsus pictus)
With its heart-shaped, silver-splashed foliage, Scindapsus pictus provides a unique twist on money plants. Its lush cascading vines can substitute for pothos.
How to Make Your Own Mini Money Trees
Using any of these plants with suitable coin-shaped leaves, you can easily craft DIY miniature money trees to brighten up desktops and shelves. Here’s a simple way to make one:
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Select a small plant with suitable foliage. Pilea peperomioides, peperomia, lucky bamboo, scindapsus pictus etc. are great options.
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Take 3-5 cuttings and place them together in a glass vase, jar, or bottle filled with marbles, pebbles, or a hydrogel bead mix.
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Alternately, you can braid or twist the stems and place in soil in a small pot.
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Keep in bright, indirect light and change the water or care for the soil as required.
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Watch your money plant fill out as its stems and foliage prosper and multiply.
Mini money trees make excellent gifts for new businesses, homes, graduations etc. Let your creativity run wild when shaping and decorating these living money symbols!
Bottom Line
Money trees don’t have to be limited to just the Pachira aquatica species. Many easy care houseplants have suitably shaped coin-like foliage to substitute for money trees. Choose ones like the Chinese money plant, silver dollar vine, nickel plant etc. and craft your own mini money plant. Place it according to feng shui principles to invite wealth and prosperity into your home!
How to care for Money Plant types?
As we mentioned, there are lots of different money plant types. This means there is no set way of caring for a money plant. Our advice? When you pick your money plant type, look up its specific care requirements and work from there.
However, there are some general care tips for all different types of money plants – these care tips come from Vastu. According to Vastu, in order to reap the financial benefits of all money plant types, your money plant must be kept inside, and its vines should not touch the ground. Your money plant also should not be allowed to dry out and any dry leaves should be removed.
Why Are Plants Used in Feng Shui?
Feng shui practitioners love houseplants because they help make adjustments (also called fixes, remedies, or cures) to restore proper balance in the home. For example, living with plants inside our homes helps us reconnect to nature because we spend too much time indoors disconnected from the natural world.
Plants also represent the wood element, which symbolizes growth, flexibility, and kindness. Taking care of another living thing, including a plant, helps you cultivate compassion, and you can watch them grow and thrive. Plants are also a source of healthy, vibrant life qi and can uplift the energy in your home.
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How To Care For Money Tree Plant – Watering, Light, Soil, Repotting & Fertilize -Houseplant Care 101
FAQ
Are money tree and money plant the same?
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Money Tree (Pachira aquatica):This is a specific tree species, often cultivated with multiple braided stems.
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Money Plant (various):This is a broader term that can encompass several different plants with similar leaf shapes or characteristics associated with good luck and prosperity in Feng Shui.
- Pilea peperomioides (Chinese Money Plant): Characterized by its round, coin-like leaves.
- Crassula ovata (Jade Plant): Known for its succulent, round leaves.
- Epipremnum aureum (Golden Pothos): A popular vining plant.
- Other plants can also be referred to as “money plants” depending on local customs and preferences.
- Pilea peperomioides (Chinese Money Plant): Characterized by its round, coin-like leaves.
What is a healthy looking money tree?
A healthy Braided Money Tree will be perky and upright, with a healthy-looking canopy and shades of green on its trunks. Additionally, the plant’s trunks should be firm, not spongy or dry. Dry, spongy trunks are indicative of health issues that can result in the trunk being unable to generate new stems and leaves.
Is an umbrella tree the same as a money tree?
- Species: They belong to different plant families.
- Appearance: Money trees have distinctive twisted trunks and leaves that can be braided or woven. Umbrella trees have umbrella-shaped leaves radiating from the stem.
- Symbolism: Money trees are often associated with prosperity and good luck, while umbrella trees symbolize protection, resilience, and growth, according to a Pinterest post.
Is monstera a money plant?
Swiss Cheese Money Plant (Monstera adansonii) is a unique and eye-catching houseplant that adds a tropical touch to any space. Its distinctive leaves have natural perforations that resemble Swiss cheese, earning it its common name.