BIG indoor plant suggestions?

15 years ago

Good morning,

I am visiting from the "home site" side, with a question for all of you knowlegeable folks.

I (by default) have become the plant caretaker for the office complex where I work.

We are in need of a BIG plant in our lobby. I called the local flower shops and found that I accidentally know more about plants than they do :^(, so I am begging your help.

Facts: North facing room with two huge picture windows

Fluorescent lights, but the plant would be in a

darkish corner

It needs to be about 5' tall and 3-ish' wide

we had a corn plant and it died

philo and peace lilly's do well, but are too small

there is a humongous Norfolk Pine in one of the

north facing windows...it is very happy!!

I will sincerely appreciate any info you can share with me.

Thanks,

Jaybird

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

User
15 years ago
I don't know big plants as a rule, but since you said peace lillies do well, there's a giant one that I've shared offices w/ called (I believe) Mauna Loa, quite oversize. It did really well in windowless office w/ overhead light. Offhand I don't know where to find it, maybe online?
Jasdip
15 years ago
I recently bought a Mauna Loa at Sam's in a 12" pot. I ended up by selling it, when I went back and bought a Bird of Paradise. Don't have room for both, so the mauna went.
I've seen them at Home Depot, Rona's etc.

I would think a Janet Craig Dracaena would do well, where you're thinking as well.
Related Discussions
Would love some indoor windowbox 'how to's' and plant suggestions
Q
Comments (6)
you can train (for lack of a better word) philodendrom up a trellis and the plant can be very very tiny. I have one that I keep in a tiny frog planter on a window ledge and the leaves are no bigger than a finger nail. The planter is maybe 4inches long and the pot circum is an inch. They need very little soil to root and little light to grow.
...See More
Indoor House Plants Suggestions
Q
Comments (8)
I recently tried mixing potting soil and perlite and got the formula a bit backwards. I'm gonna leave it alone for awhile and see if this works out, there. I've got a croton in it and they're fairly resistant (Or terribly unresistant. I've heard conflicting reports). anyway, if potting soil is a concern, epiphytes are nice, as they don't really need much, and put up with whatever they're in as long as it drains relatively quickly. Rot will kill them fast, though. Staghorn ferns are really nice if you're looking for something that's fairly low maintenance that looks incredibly bizarre and alien. they also seem to tolerate a lot (although apparently some species are more picky than others). I don't know how common these are, though. They were everywhere last spring and I haven't seen them much since Snake plants are nice if you want something huge and impossible to kill. They're also fairly sharp so they can double as a defense mechanism! They're sort of odd though. They can either be the most beautiful plants ever or just look really awful, although usually the only really awful ones are the ones you see in malls that have been chewed on by three year olds on a daily basis. Norfolk Island Pines might work too. They're fairly low maintenance in the sense that the most efficient way to kill them is to give them a lot of attention. They start out really cute and small and get huge, although they apparently will send up new trunks if you cut them back. You're maybe going to be watering these once or twice a week and rotating them so they grow evenly. They're a bit out of season though. Pineapples are also pretty low maintenance once you get them started. They're another "don't water unless you have a really good reason to" plant, and apparently if they're kept humid enough, they can actually do without water for long periods of time. Ponytail palms aren't palms, but some sort of succulent tree-thing. They're really pretty and can get sort of biggish. Low maintenance again. I think cycads are neat though I don't know much about them. They're sort of pretty in and of themselves, but what makes them really cool is their history.
...See More
Suggestions for small indoor pepper plant
Q
Comments (2)
Look up Hungarian Hot Wax. It is a mild-medium heat pepper, very productive but the plants don't get very large. Pick them when they are green and they don't have a lot of heat, if you wait until they are red the heat gets much higher. Mike
...See More
Suggestions for high sun indoor plants?
Q
Comments (11)
That clay pot looks like it has mineral buildup on its surface. When you water your plant, do you only use a small amount of water? If so, this could be the problem. If you don't flush enough water thru the soil to where it runs out of the bottom, then the minerals dissolved in the water begin to buildup in the soil and cause problems for your plant's roots. Before growing another plant there, I would use fresh soil and a different pot. Perhaps a glazed pot? (One that's glazed on both the inside and outside.) This would prevent the pot from absorbing these mineral deposits. But you would still have to flush plenty of water thru the soil, so these minerals don't begin to buildup in the soil all over again. Or you'll be back where you started.
...See More
mr_subjunctive
15 years ago
'Mauna Loa' was I think the first of the really big Spaths to come on the market, but there are others. We have a tropical plant order coming in where I work next week, which is supposed to contain a five-foot Spathiphyllum 'Sensation' in a 14" pot. I'm excited about seeing it, just because I don't think I've ever seen one quite that huge before. The point being that they are out there. In an office setting, they're likely to wind up overwatered, but that's probably true of everything on this list.

Dracaena deremensis 'Janet Craig,' 'Warneckei,' or 'Lemon-Lime' (or any of the variations on those: 'Art,' 'Ulises,' 'Jumbo,' 'Goldstar,' 'Limelight') would probably work too.

Kentia palms (Howea forsteriana) are supposed to be good indoor plants, but I will probably never know personally whether they are or not because they are crazy expensive.

Large Aglaonemas exist, though they're not terribly common.

Sansevieria trifasciata has some varieties that can get to be four or five feet tall, though you'd probably have to buy the height you want: they wouldn't be likely to get that tall indoors in a dark corner.

Homalomena cvv. are not particularly easy plants, but light wouldn't be the problematic part (The problematic part would be watering, and also possibly temperature.) and there are some very large ones. 'Perma Press' is the specific cultivar I'm thinking of.
brent1985
15 years ago
I have an elephant ear plant that has grown from a 1ft plant, to a 4 1/2 foot high, 3 foot wide plant within about 8 months. Mine is in a bright sunny room...not sure how it would do in darker conditions but I do know they grow in the bottom of dense rainforests?
Jasdip
15 years ago
Now that you mentioned it Mr. Sub, the plant I bought at Sam's wasn't a Mauna at all, but a Sensation. You brought it back to my forefront again.

OT: I'm in shock. They announced 6 Sam's Clubs closing in Ont. I love that store.
tootswisc
15 years ago
How about a monstera?
carlisleliverpool
15 years ago
monstera and aspidistra are both large and easy to look after. Areca palm is another thought.
jaybird
Original Author
15 years ago
My boss thanks you and I thank you as well!!!!! Since I have a LOT of plants to care for, I have learned about overwatering...I wait until they threaten me before I give them a drink :^)
Thank you so much for your time to help us out. I am printing this list and will be scoping out what might be available in our town, tomorrow.
Have a great weekend,
J
amccour
15 years ago
My university has some fairly big podocarps (P. Macrophyllus and I THINK Afrocarpus Gracillior) in containers. They're quite attractive and if the Norfolk Island Pine is doing well they should probably too. You're in zone 8 and should have an easier time finding ones that are already sizable.

Strelitzias can get big, from what I've seen.
watergal
15 years ago
So what did you end up getting?

BIG indoor plant suggestions?

Comments (10)

User

Jasdip

Related Discussions

mr_subjunctive

brent1985

Jasdip

tootswisc

carlisleliverpool

jaybird
Original Author

amccour

watergal

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

BIG indoor plant suggestions?

Comments (10)

Related Discussions

jaybirdOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

jaybird
Original Author