Top Plants to Brighten Your Dorm or Home Office

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By Lexie Brada

As summer creeps into fall, many people are either returning to college and setting up their dorm rooms or needing to stay inside more. Whether you’re cramming for that big exam or trying to meet a deadline, you might be spending a lot of time in the space where you do school or office work. When you’re putting up pictures of friends or family and making sure there’s always a place for coffee, consider adding a leafy friend in your space to keep you company.

Why?

Well, studies have shown a multitude of reasons why having a plant in your space is a fantastic and healthy idea.

While any plant will do, this list is specifically geared to those of us that haven’t dabbled in indoor plants much before. If you have a green thumb, you probably already know what you’re doing. This list is for people like me, who have, on occasion, managed to kill a bamboo plant.

The sorts of plants that we’re looking for in this list are:

  • Easy to take care of
  • Don’t need extreme light
  • Don’t need lots of water
  • Generally harder to kill
  • Small enough to fit on or near most desks

So, let’s go through our top ten ideas for plants you can bring into your space to reap the aforementioned benefits!

  1. Aloe Vera

Type: Houseplant

Light Needs: Full/Partial Sun

Water Needs: Deeply, but infrequently

A Cool Fact: Aloe is used for many medicinal practices!

  1. Succulents

Type: Succulents (Cacti, for example)

Light Needs: 6 hours of sunlight

Water Needs: Only when soil is dry (14-28 days between watering)

A Cool Fact: You can get them in all the colors of the rainbow!

  1. Snake Plant

Type: Houseplant

Light Needs: Bright, indirect light

Water Needs: Infrequent water; let soil dry out mostly between waterings

A Cool Fact: Other names are Mother-in-Law's Tongue, Devil’s Tongue, Bowstring Hemp, and variations of the Good Luck or Lucky Plant.

  1. ZZ Plant

Type: Tropical Perennial

Light Needs: Medium to bright indirect light

Water Needs: Every 2-3 weeks

A Cool Fact: Some have called it the ‘eternity plant’ due to its ability to survive in harsh conditions

  1. Lucky Bamboo

Type: Perennial Shrub (Not actually a bamboo!)

Light Needs: Bright, indirect light. If the color starts to fade to light green, it needs more light

Water Needs: Water changed out every 7-10 days

A Cool Fact: This plant is supposed to bring you health, love, and luck

  1. Pothos

Type: Houseplant

Light Needs: Bright, indirect light

Water Needs: Only when soil feels dry. If the leaves are yellow, that means there’s too much water

A Cool Fact: Can climb by aerial planting, meaning this is a great hanging plant!

  1. Money Tree

Type: Tropical wetland tree (They can stay smaller!)

Light Needs: bright, indirect sunlight

Water Needs: Water every 1 to 2 weeks

A Cool Fact: Each branch has five leaves that represent the elements!

  1. Peace Lily

Type: Houseplant

Light Needs: Bright, indirect light

Water Needs: Consistent; keep water moist to the touch

A Cool Fact: This plant can break down and neutralize toxic gasses!

  1. Spider Plant

Type:  Houseplant

Light Needs: Moderate, indirect sunlight (they like a bit of shade)

Water Needs: Once a week, but only if soil is dry

A Cool Fact: These plants grow quickly and produce small white flowers

  1. Hoya

Type: Milkweed Plant

Light Needs: Bright, indirect sunlight

Water Needs: Low, every other week

A Cool Fact: referred to as wax plants and porcelain flowers

Want to find a career where you can work from home and tend to your plants all day? Download the Pathmatch app to discover companies that match your interests, strengths, and goals! Pathmatch can help find the perfect career fit for you! 

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