Snake plant
Dracaena trifasciata
Stiff upright leaves with gold edges. The hardest plant here to kill.
- LightLow light
- Waterevery 14 days
- CareEasy
- Max height90 cm
- PetsNot safe
- HumidityDrought tolerant
- Air purifyingYes
How to care
Tolerates low light. Water every two weeks, less in winter. Overwatering is the only real risk.
from₫280.000
Design this potDesign with this plant
Three glazes on the pot shape picked for this species. One tap opens the studio with that setup — change anything from there.
What it is, and who it suits
The snake plant is the hardest thing on this list to kill, and it holds that title without giving up any looks: stiff upright leaves, a gold margin running the length of each one, a compact and disciplined silhouette. It tolerates dim corners, tolerates drought, and is almost never troubled by pests. It suits people who travel, first-time plant owners, and anyone who needs something alive in a spot where nothing else will cope.
Where to put it, and how much room to leave
This is the one species in the catalogue you can put in a corner with almost no daylight and still relax — run the hand-shadow test, and if the shadow is barely there, a snake plant will still be fine. It also handles strong indirect light, so in practice it goes anywhere, provided you keep it out of fierce midday sun which bleaches the leaves. The upright habit means it takes almost no floor space: ninety centimetres tall with a spread of only about thirty, so it fits narrow gaps a spreading plant cannot — beside a fridge, behind a door, at the end of a hallway.
The year-round rhythm
Every two weeks, and three is fine in the cool season. Overwatering is the only mistake that really matters here — the leaves are succulent so the plant stores its own supply, and permanently damp soil rots the base faster than in any other species on this list. If in doubt, do not water; snake plants handle drought far better than people expect. The mix must drain fast: use a succulent blend, or add a third of coarse sand to ordinary potting soil. It needs little feeding — twice a year during the growing season is plenty. Repot rarely, only when the roots push the whole ball up out of the pot, and that can be three or four years apart.
Which pot suits it
Size M for a normal plant, L once the clump has thickened. The leaf shape is already stiff and vertical so the pot does not have to carry the balance — this is one of the rare species that suits a tall cylinder, because two vertical masses stacked read as a single continuous column. Terracotta is the safest choice: it breathes through the wall and dries fast, which is exactly what this plant wants. The gold leaf margin sits beautifully against a Tan or ochre glaze; a mossy green one makes that margin disappear.
Three things that go wrong
Soft, yellowing leaves at the base mean root rot — almost always root rot, because this plant rarely fails for any other reason. Cut the damaged leaves right back and let the soil dry out completely before watering again. Leaves splaying outwards instead of standing up usually means the pot is too large or the soil holds water too long, sometimes with prolonged low light on top. Dry brown leaf tips are generally harmless, the legacy of one drought that ran too long — trim the brown off at an angle and it will not spread. And note that this species is not pet-safe: it carries saponins that cause vomiting in quantity.
Buyer reviews
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