The Best Low-Maintenance Plants for City Dwellers

The ZZ plant appears on many lists of easy plants, and with good reason. ZZ plants are incredibly forgiving, whether you forget to water them or leave them in a dimly lit corner of your home. These resilient indoor plants will droop, and their stems will start to wrinkle when they are thirsty, telling you they need a thorough watering. An abundance of chunky oval-shaped leaves make it look like a piece of modern art.

A planter filled with lavender is a perfect way to create your own balcony oasis in the middle of the city. With its dainty purple flowers and relaxing aroma, lavender adds a full sensory experience to your space.

If you’ve ever been on #PlantTok, you’re probably familiar with the monstera Thai constellation. This trendy plant is beloved for the smattering of white spots on its green leaves – a constellation of spots, you might say. Monsteras are fairly easygoing, although they do prefer bright indirect light. This popular houseplant also does well outdoors during the summer months.

For a low maintenance houseplant that will tell you when it needs to be watered, look no further than the humble hoya. Hoyas come in many shapes and sizes, from the teeny hoya Mathilde to the curly hoya compacta. Thick, succulent-like leaves of varying textures will make your hoya a conversation piece in your home. These plants like to dry out between waterings, and do best in a chunky soil. To tell if they need to be watered, squeeze a leaf. If it’s firm, the plant is fine, but if it’s squishy, it needs a drink.

Hydrangeas are often used in landscaping and planted directly into garden beds, but they can also make for a great balcony or patio plant. They prefer partial sun, which is great for balconies. Plant a hydrangea bush in a large grow bag or container with drainage – you can even set it on a rolling plant stand to move it without having to lift a larger, heavier container.

Ficuses get a bad reputation, mostly due to the incredibly finnicky fiddle leaf fig. The rubber plant, or ficus elastica, is technically part of the ficus family, and – like the fiddle leaf fig – adds a cool, modern touch to a home with its big, glossy leaves. However, it could not be more different in temperament from its moody cousin. The rubber plant can handle the odd missed watering and lower light conditions. This is another plant that you can bring outside in the warmer months, so long as you take some time to acclimate it to the sun’s harsh rays.

String of Hearts plants are another social media darling, and with good reason. Any hanging plant brings a cool, urban jungle feel to a space, but the string of hearts’ heart-shaped leaves are a sweet and romantic touch. The succulent leaves hold lots of water, and also make the plant incredibly easy to care for. When the leaves feel squishy, give it a thorough watering and it will firm up in a couple days.