Pocket BotanistPlant guide
Spider Plant.
Chlorophytum comosum
Pronounced klor-oh-FY-tum ko-MO-sum
Also known as Bracket plant, Green Hen And Chickens, Hen And Chickens, Hen-And-Chickens, Hen-and-Chicks, Spider Ivy, Spider Plant, Spider-plant
The spider plant is a classic houseplant that is loved for its arching, grass like leaves and trailing babies. It is incredibly adaptable and thrives in many different home environments. You will find it is one of the easiest plants to propagate.
At a glance
- Care level
- Easy
- Plant type
- Herbaceous perennial
- Light
- Bright indirect light is best, though it tolerates lower light levels.
- Indoor light
- Bright indirect
- Water
- Every 7 to 10 days
- Mature size
- 2 feet tall and wide
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Hardiness
- USDA 9 to 11
- Bloom time
- Spring to summer
Care
Keep your plant in bright, indirect light to maintain its vibrant color and encourage growth. Let the soil dry out slightly between waterings, and watch for brown tips which often signal low humidity or mineral buildup. It is a very forgiving plant that will tell you when it is thirsty by drooping slightly.
- Watering
- Water when the top inch of soil feels dry to the touch.
- Feeding
- Apply a balanced liquid fertilizer once a month during the active growing season.
- Pruning
- Trim off any brown leaf tips or remove plantlets if you want to keep the plant tidy.
- Repotting
- Repot when the thick, fleshy roots start to push the plant out of its container.
- Soil
- Well draining, peat based potting mix
- Soil pH
- 6.0 to 7.2
- Temperature
- 13 to 27°C
- Humidity
- 40 to 60%
- Drought tolerance
- Moderate
- Lifespan
- Perennial, typically 5 to 10 years
- Deer and rabbits
- Moderate
Signs it needs repotting
- Roots growing out of drainage holes
- Water running straight through the pot
- Stunted growth
Safety
- People
- This plant is non toxic to humans.
- Pets
- This plant is generally considered non toxic to cats and dogs.
- Children
- The long, dangling foliage can be a choking hazard or a temptation for curious toddlers to pull on.
- Edibility
- While not considered toxic, it is not a food crop and may cause digestive upset if consumed in quantity.
How to identify it
- Long, thin, arching green leaves
- Often features white or yellow stripes
- Produces small plantlets on long stems
- Fleshy, tuberous root system
- Height
- 0.3 to 0.6m
- Spread
- 0.3 to 0.6m
- Leaves
- green, white, evergreen
- Flowers
- white, 1 to 2cm
Problems to watch for
- Brown Leaf EdgesCommon
- Tip BurnCommon
- Fungus GnatsUncommon
- Root RotUncommon
- Scale InsectsUncommon
- Spider MitesUncommon
By symptom
Check your spider plant from a photo
Pocket Botanist looks at a photo of your plant and tells you what's wrong and what to try first.
Growing it
- Propagation
- division, offsets
- When to plant
- spring, summer
- Overwintering
- Bring indoors before the first frost and place in a bright spot away from cold drafts. Reduce watering during the winter months as growth slows.
- In containers
- It is an excellent container plant that prefers a snug pot to encourage offset production.
Division
- Remove the plant from its pot.
- Gently pull the root ball apart into smaller sections.
- Repot each section into fresh potting mix.
Offsets
- Identify a plantlet with small root nubs.
- Snip the stem connecting it to the parent.
- Place the base in water or directly into moist soil.
Group plants with similar water needs to make maintenance easier.
Grows well with
- Pothos — They share similar light and water requirements for indoor displays.
- Peace Lily — Both thrive in indirect light and add lush texture to a room.
Similar species
- Variegated Spider Plant — It is a popular cultivar with a white stripe down the center of each leaf.
Science
- Family
- Asparagaceae
- Genus
- Chlorophytum
- Order
- Asparagales
- Class
- Liliopsida
- Native range
- Tropical and southern Africa.
- Conservation
- This plant is common and not of conservation concern.
It grows as a ground cover in shaded forest floors where it spreads through its stolons.
- Value to wildlife
- nectar source
- Pollinators
- bees
- Uses
- houseplant, hanging basket, air purifier
Through the year
Ecological indicators
- Salinity
- 2/9
- Soil reaction
- 6/9
- Moisture
- 5/9
- Nutrients
- 4/9
- Light
- 4/9
- Temperature
- 7/9
Taxonomy resolved against GBIF.
Questions people ask
- Why are my spider plant tips brown?
- This is usually caused by fluoride in tap water or dry air.
- How do I propagate it?
- Simply snip off a spiderette and place it in water or soil.
Where the name comes from
The name Chlorophytum comes from the Greek words for green and plant, while comosum refers to the tufted leaves.
Good to know
- The plant produces tiny plantlets called spiderettes on long stems.
- It is one of the easiest houseplants to propagate.
- Spider plants are known to be mildly hallucinogenic to cats, similar to catnip.
Keep your spider plant growing
This page is a general guide. Save your plant in Pocket Botanist and you get care reminders timed for this plant, plus a care history that shows what worked.
This guide was generated with AI and checked against GBIF taxonomy. It is general information, not horticultural or veterinary advice. Read about how we build these guides.