That's so weird-- I was just thinking about posting a similar question!
YES. Today, i just bought yet another goose foot plant and yet another silver satin pothos! I also have several variations on Brasil philo, and buy one every time I see one. I just bought a goosefoot last week, but it was a pink one.

That takes me up to I honestly don't know how many of those, silver pothos, and philos.
I think I have this grand scheme of putting them all together one day. But i buy silver pothos repeatedly because I truly love them.

Once, I killed a neon pothos, so the next time around, I bought four. If I see anymore, I'll buy those too. I tend to rebuy plants that either grow beautifully and vine, or grow that I've killed one of once. Philos and pothos I buy repeatedly because they are a part of my decor.

I don't want duplicates of the same plant. That would get very boring for me and tedious to take care of when I could use the space for other kinds of plants. I don't mind the same type of plant if it has different coloring etc. But I like the variety of different kinds of plants.

it would seem weird to me have a house full of one of each different kind of plant. While I have plenty of one-offs (jewel orchids, congo philo, chinese evergreen), one reason I like more than one brasil is that they become a part of the aesthetic of the home. I would find it harder to use houseplants as part of the decor if they were all different.

Also, certain plants do particularly well in certain conditions. It makes sense to me to have more of those that do well in your environment. So, duplicates.

Finally, I don't know that I have the conditions to have a wide variety of plants. Hot, hot, hot where I live, and if it doesn't like sun, it won't make the cut around here.

I don't think its tedious to care for similar plants. It just helps me get better and better with this or that kind of plant.

Bringing an unfamiliar type of plant into the house is a huge decision for me because I now have to learn how to care for it properly.

I can't imagine introducing more than maybe two new types of plants per year.

Bromeliads. They grow, they pup, they flourish and no one takes me up on my offer to give them away. There's only about a half dozen or so varieties that I have but now there's multiples of each.

I haven't yet, but one day I may need to respond to Dave's "Ever have to throw away perfectly good plants".

tj

Lauren, I really love the way your philos and pothos vine and drape - it's so lovely! I don't blame you at all for having so many.

Right now, I don't have any multiples but I'm still trying to figure out how to take care of the plants I do have. Sometime in the future though, I might have to think about what my "favorites" are and maybe indulge in some extras.

I agree, Lauren's plants are very pretty.

Interesting reading as well, Lauren. "Got Ham"? Is that a sequel to "Got Milk?" Oh...wait...I see...nevermind.

tj

Thanks, for this thread, Tiffany! I got balled up trying to answer the questions, but as someone who has barely begun to give serious consideration to my little green friends, as I like to call them, it's helpful to put my hazy thoughts into words. I'm also looking forward to seeing more posts about this, from those who love collecting every species available to mankind to those who fill their homes with dozens of happy clones!

My little collection consists of two schefflera (the common ones, actinophylla?), two ficus benjamina, a dracaena marginata, and two cheerful little rooted ficus cuttings. One of the scheffleras was a cutting from the other, one of the ficuses had two leaves when it was given to me, and I bought the other ficus and the dracaena. All but the dracaena were neglected and abused for several years, but all are recovering and will be ready to be fully repotted next June.

For me, having happy indoor plants is a substitute for being outdoors, something I haven't been able to do much of for a few years, and an outlet for my nurturing side, so I see myself with a few more scheffleras and ficuses of different shapes and sizes, maybe (but not necessarily) dwarves and/or different varieties because I know how to help them flourish.

I'll also branch out into other species--even one or two of the cool looking succulents I've learned about on the C&S forum--but I'll steer clear of anything that's delicate, or temperamental, or can't deal with SLC's dryness, or have light requirements I can't meet with my largely shaded west facing windows and several 100W 5000K bulbs.

I'm not going to become a collector, though, and I won't crowd every part of my 350 square feet of living space with plant life. I just want to see a happy growing thing from every part of my open-plan living area.

Yes, I have multiples of the same plant. Duplicates as well as different cultivars. The duplicates happened for multiple reasons: I bought cuttings on ebay and they all rooted; I rooted some of my own plantlets; I started seeds and they all germinated; I divided a plant that was too large; succulents have pupped. I'd love to find homes for them!

I have no more room for plants, but I bought 4 more today!! Seriously, could you have resisted these beauties?!?

I'm thinking I'm going to have to put up an attached greenhouse to the back of my house!

Hello, my name is Deanna and I'm a plantaholic...

Thank you all for the kind words.

Gardenfanantic: Those plants are lovely! I would have purchased them all, too.

I feel so much better about having plants now that I have a community of people to ask for help. It really makes a difference. Now, I am more inclined to purchase plants, especially duplicates, because I am getting good at taking care of certain types of plants. And if I have a problem, I can just ask you all:).

Tsugajunkie: What does "got ham" mean? I did not mean to highjack the thread. It is just that I posted first and assumed that others would post pics as well.

Fun replies! Pics are welcome!

My husband jokingly calls my area of the yard "Dexter's Laboratory" lol. So yes, I have many, many multiples of the same plants, and like Tiffany, I like to experiment with them and push their zone limits. I am always buying new plants and especially different cultivars of the ones I have. I guess you could call me a plant hoarder---oops! I mean plant collector!

Not sure where to start :) How about this Brugmansias that keep multiplying all by themselves...they are still outside (except the white ones and the double-flowering ones), tucked in the small alcove. We had number of nights of below freezing temps, but they are still looking OK. There are also 3 figs there, and 4 olives, and 2 passion vines...Thankfully, they can be 'put to sleep' for the winter or they would have to be tossed:

Lauren- "Got Ham" is a bad bad pun. I saw the book "Gotham".

tj

I guess I tend to collect and propagate the stuff I haven't killed yet, such as:

• 6 small heartleaf philos as part of a bookshelf arrangement.
• 2 small parlour palms - I call them the "twins."
• 2 aspidistra.
• 7 English ivies as part of a window arrangement. (Do I enjoy spider mite torture? Apparently, I must.)
• 3 pothos of varying sizes.

All varieties are the same. Yeah, I think have enough; otherwise, my little plant table and window sills are gonna collapse!

Tsuga junkie: Oh! I am sorry, I just could not figure out where the word was coming from. Thank you for explaining :). It is a wonderful book, by the way, if you are into that kind of thing....

I used to have around twenty nicely sized propagations of the same plant, but now I've shifted to having just one of each. Maybe two of a select few, if they are particularly unusual or a mother plant that was split in half.

Right now I'm trying to just keep one variation of each. So maybe if I started with a plain one and now got a variegated one, the fancier one is kept. =)

Most of my plants are bought, some are traded. Feels like I do more giving away than receiving! Haha. Still buying plants and propagating a few for fun.

I thought my limit was 100.... then it past 200.... now maybe 250 or 300? I'm not sure it ever ends. When will you all stop getting more plants? (Bought, traded, propagated.)

I only have duplicates of jade. I have about three of the standard variety (C. Ovata), one gollum fingers (C. portulacea), and what I think is a C. ovata 'Compactum'. I don't even love jades that much but there were some of my first houseplants. I do love how easy they are to propagate and gift to friends and family, all of my standard jades came from one plant that got damaged in a move a few years back.

I don't have a ton of space for plants so I struggle with the idea of keeping multiples. But I love how Lauren uses the same plants to create a cohesive design with her plants. So I may just have to keep and eye out for another of my favorite, silver satin pothos.

Lauren, I just love Philodendron Brasil too! I have a real soft spot for the heart leafed, and neon/lemon lime. I like Neon Pothos because they are so cheerful! Your display is absolutely beautiful! I prefer the vining philos to pothos, but still have a few pothos.

I have a few doubles. Some with the intention to combine in spring. I separated a big Hoya Snowcaps I got into two baskets. Partly to find the right spot since Hoya are new to me, and partly because I use one to propagate and offer it up for trades. I don't think my wandering Jew will last through the winter, so I will most likely replace it with a vining Philo.

I have some duplicate Jade plants I plan on keeping to expieriment with shaping and pruning. I likely will send one off with my eldest when she goes away to college next year.

I have several Thanksgiving Cactuses, and I have some Christmas Cactus starts coming in the mail so I may have a few of those too.

Lastly, my mom lives in an assisted living facility. Plants really brighten up her room but my mom over cares for them so I rotate them and give her plants a little break at my house every month.

To make up for my giant wall of text, I will leave some pictures here.

A little dark in the morning light.

I can't help but having duplicates!

1. My mother variegated Spider puts out runners constantly. constant supply of babies.

2. My Carnosa Hoya is a fast grower so I pruned it to shape it. Propagating cuttings.

3. I have 3 varieties of Pothos, need I say more.

4. I have 3 varieties of the vining, climbing, trailing type of Philodendron, frequently propagating cuttings of them.

5. I Just divided up a couple few of my Amaryllis bulbs, now I have 6 plants from 3 bulbs.

6. just took cuttings from this variegated purple heart.

I'm always propagating some plant or plants in my kitchen window.

I cannot toss a healthy plant, or cutting of one ....I keep everything I grow.

Kalanchoes!! Here are a few pots today.

I usually have multiple copies of plants I mow around, LOL.

Just today I was looking around a nursery and saw this Kalanchoe with humungous leaves and the usual dark patterns on them. Sort of like looking at a normal one through a very powerful magnifying glass. I'd already bought a bulk lot of fertiliser and some irrigation fittings so thought it best to avoid the temptation. Of course the very informative label identified it as "Foliage plant ".

I have a few copies of plants.

I have 3 varieties of Spider plants. One solid green, one with white edges, and on with the white in the middle. The one with the white in the middle was my first starter 'tropical' houseplant. My first plant besides a succulent and my first house plant that was actually mine. I later got the other varigated one from the babies of a friend's plant. And I got the giant green one from my neighbour's who had to move and couldn't take it with them. I've planned to cut down on them as they take up a lot of room on the windowsill that could be more beneficial for other plants, but I can't!

I have 2 pothos. A golden and a neon. The neon grows in a vase and the golden just in good ole soil. I love vining plants! I'd by more, but don't have a place for them to climb/trail.

My only 3 real duplicates that are the exact same plant and variations are my Tillandsia ionanthas. I'm not sure why I bought 3, but I think it was because they were the cheapest ;)

I also have some wandering jew and HL philodendron cuttings growing in the vase with the neon pothos that are cuttings from main plants. I can never throw away cuttings! They almost always get replanted back in the same pot or go in the vase.

I also, have multiples of the same plant growing in the same pot together. As I'm sure lots of people do. Out of all my plants there's only one that is in a pot by itself and that's my Frosty fern (Can never remember how to spell it and my auto correct is failing to recognize my guessing...S something ella). My Majesty palm has 3 plants in it, my pregnant onions have 6 (?) In the same pot, all my spiders have at least 4 plants in the pot and so on.

Wouldn't want them to get lonely!

I should start growing plants on their own however.... So they don't compete with eachother.

I am a certified plant-ahololic, for over 45 years. Have multiples of all my favorite plants, tropicals, cactus and succs, and a huge collection of African violets. And it all started long ago with a few cuttings of coleus in a glass of water from a relative...

I guess I do.

I have my favorite 7' ficus Benjamina. It goes outside every summer and grows a lot.

Eventually, I feel it's going to out grow the space I can provide and I'll need to find the tree a new home.

So, I have a small branch I took from it last summer. It had about 2 leaves on it then and was 8" long.

It now has 100+ leaves and is about 3 feet tall.

ive pruned it into a tree form and I suppose it'll be my replacement tree when my main tree gets too big.

It needs a little support currently. I mistakenly trimmed off all branches until it was a certain hight to give it the tree look. However, doing so didn't allow its trunk to thicken up enough to support itself. It's getting there though.

Saintpaulias

2 varieties of Pothos, actually I have 3

I Love my Nepthytis

This is planted with a inch plant.

Holiday Cacti

Amaryllis, Coleus & Scented geraniums