How to Care for Snake Plants (2024)

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How to Plant SnakePlants

• Choose a pot with a drainage hole in the bottom. Terracotta pots work well for snake plants since they allow the soil to dry out more quickly than plasticpots.
• Use a well-draining potting mix. A potting mix designed for “cacti and succulents”is ideal, as it will be more resistant to becoming oversaturated withwater.
• When repotting snake plants, don’t bury them too deep. The plantshould be planted as deep as it had been in its priorcontainer.

Choosing a Location in theHome

• Snake plants preferbright, indirect light and can even toleratesome direct sunlight. However, they also growwell (albeit more slowly) in shady corners and other low-light areas of the home.
  • Tip: Avoid moving your plant from a low-light area to direct sunlight too quickly, as this can shock the plant. Whenever you move plants from a darker to a lighter spot, gradually expose them to brighter and brighter light over a week or so. Also, be sure to adjust watering habits accordingly; plants will use more water in warmer, brighterareas.
• Keepthe plant in a warm spot with temperatures above 50°F (10°C). In the winter, protect it from draftywindows.

Watering SnakePlants

One of the most common problems encountered with snake plants (and other succulents) is overwatering. These plants do not tolerate soggy soil; they tend to develop root rot. To avoid this, follow these wateringpractices:

• Do not water too frequently. Let the soil mostly dry out between waterings.
  • Tip: To know when it’s time to water, don’t just rely on how the surface of the soil looks. Instead, carefully stick your finger or a wooden chopstick a couple of inches into the soil. Hold off watering if you feel any moisture or see soil; stick to thechopstick.
• Water from the bottom of the pot, if possible. This encourages the roots to grow downward and deep, helping to stabilize the thick, tallleaves.
• During the winter, while the plant isn’t actively growing, water less often than you would in spring andsummer.

How to Care for SnakePlants

• The large, flat leaves tend to collect dust; wipe them down with a damp cloth asneeded.
• Snake plants are rapid growers in good conditions and may need to be dividedannually.
• Divide and repot in the spring. Cut out a section containing leaves and roots and place it in a pot with a well-draining pottingmix.
• If a snake plant is pot-bound, it may flower occasionally. Fragrant, greenish-white flower clusters appear on tallspikes.

• Dracaena trifasciata (a.k.a. Sansevieria trifasciata) is the most common species of snake plant. It has tall, dark-green leaves with light grayish-green horizontal stripes.
  • ‘Bantel’s Sensation’— Narrow leaves have white vertical stripes and grow to about 3 feet long. This variety can be hard tofind.
• D. hahnii:
  • ‘Bird’s Nest’ — Short, wide leaves of dark and light green form a tight nest shape like a bromeliad.Leaves only grow 6 to 8 inches long.This variety does need much light to growwell.
  • ‘Golden Hahnii’— Like the standard ‘Bird’s Nest,’ but with leaves variegated along the edge inyellow.
• D. cylindrica:
  • ‘Cylindrical Snake Plant’ — As its name suggests, this species of snake plant has cylindrical leaves that end in a fiercepoint.
  • ‘Starfish Snake Plant’ — The starfish snake plant has cylindrical leaves that fan out from its base, giving it a starfish-likeshape.
• D. masoniana:
  • ‘Whale Fin’ — These interesting snake plants have large, wide leaves that resemble the fin of a whale breaching the water’ssurface.

Catherine Boeckmann