14 Types of Indoor Palms and How to Care for Them

Indoor palm is a plant that perfectly suits decorating rooms, especially when you need to fill empty space. There are many varieties, and it will be easy to choose the right one based on size and cost of the plant. Often they are not very demanding and adapt well to home conditions. Thanks to their size and large, beautiful leaves, this tropical plant is widely used in creating various room designs.

Decorative palm is a single plant that does not require special conditions. It only needs coolness in winter and abundant humidity and protection from the sun in summer. Almost all varieties are leafy plants and easily fit into any decor.

Design: Ekaterina Bychkova

What are indoor palms good for?

• Palm is an elegant single plant. To decorate an interior with it, you don't need to grow a whole nursery. One such tree will fill the gap in the corner, become a full-fledged decoration in any room, on the balcony, or in the hallway.

• The plant is not demanding in growing conditions. You don't need to understand the nuances of botany to grow a beautiful indoor palm.

• A large plant produces more oxygen.

• There are many varieties of this plant, among which you can choose one that best suits specific growing conditions. These are palms for warm rooms, moderately warm, and cool ones. If the area allows, you can choose a larger and taller plant. If not, there are smaller-sized varieties.

Indoor palm is suitable for growing and propagation in any climate zone. Even in winter, it doesn't need special conditions, only protection from dry air. It is shade-tolerant, so it's not necessary to place the pot with the plant only by the window.

Design: Svetlana Kirillova

Types of Indoor Palms with Photos and Names

Indoor palm plants are tropical dwellers, but they feel great in ordinary apartments when proper care is followed. We suggest getting acquainted with the types of indoor palms: names and photos.

Brahea

Frequently found in apartments or houses. It grows quickly, has beautiful fan-shaped leaves, and is not demanding in care. Brahea likes sandy-clay soil without excessive moisture.

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Butia

Home plant is quite capricious: it grows slowly, and for it, over-drying, excessive watering, and insufficient lighting are dangerous. It needs frequent misting and humid air. But with proper care, Butia will reward its owners with its magnificent beauty.

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Washingtonia

Has a very beautiful fan-shaped crown. It loves bright lighting, warmth, and constant air humidity. It will not require frequent abundant watering.

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Gyphonopetalum

Relatively small but very 'eye-catching' indoor palm. It grows well in a room with high humidity, bright light, and constant warmth but will not tolerate direct sunlight. Gyphonopetalum needs to be misted daily with water at a small lime concentration.

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Howea

This variety is popular due to its beauty and docile nature. It needs watering once every few days, fertilizing once a month, and being kept in a temperature range of 16–22°C.

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Cariota

Doesn't reach very large sizes and has an original appearance. It is one of the few varieties that bloom. However, this happens very rarely—only once a year. Cariota tolerates bright lighting, sufficient humidity, and soil enriched with humus but needs protection from direct sunlight.

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Lyocarpus

This variety has gained popularity among interior designers of living rooms. Lyocarpus will delight the eye if the following conditions are met: good watering, sufficient lighting, high humidity, warm room, misting, and leaf wiping.

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Raphis

This is a small variety of indoor palms that easily tolerates poor lighting and insufficient humidity in the room, but grows very slowly.

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Rhopalostylis

Has a complex appearance. It needs abundant watering and annual fertilization.

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Sabal

A low-growing plant native to subtropical regions of the USA. For its care, all general advice on plant care must be followed.

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Trachycarpus

Very beautiful, so it's perfect for room decoration. Its feature is the fragrant yellow flowers forming inflorescences. Trachycarpus feels great when planted in open ground, but the temperature should not be below 5–7°C.

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Phoenix Palm

An unusual tropical plant that feels great in a home environment. The plant needs abundant watering and regular leaf misting, especially in hot seasons.

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Chamaedorea

A very popular variety among indoor plants. Simple propagation and easy care will not cause any problems.

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Chamaerops

Grows very slowly but is not demanding. When provided with perfect conditions, it can reach five meters in height. Chamaerops likes loose soil, moderate regular watering, sunlight, and occasionally requires repotting.

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How to Care for Indoor Palms

Despite the fact that the flower does not require special care, some cultivation rules must be followed. If optimal conditions are created, the palm will be healthy, grow well, and delight with its decorative appearance for a long time.

Design: Duderhof

Optimal Conditions for Indoor Palms

1. Temperature. Comfortable temperature for the plant is 16–22°C. In winter, it should be even lower: 8–10°C. Some heat-loving palm varieties (cariota, araca, coconut, chamaedorea, acanthophoenix) prefer winter conditions at 14–16°C.

2. Watering. Water the plant timely, frequently, without allowing the soil to dry out. In winter, watering frequency is reduced to 2–3 times a week; in summer—daily. If the plant is in a cool room with air temperature of 5–7°C, water it no more than 1.5–2 times a month, sometimes replacing watering with misting. To prevent water from standing at the bottom of the pot, it is necessary to lay drainage there. Water should be left to stand. After watering, the top layer of soil should be loosened periodically.

3. Air Humidity should be high, not less than 40–50%. In dry summer, the plant should be misted daily with warm water, even setting up a shower. The same conditions are created in winter if the air in the room is too dry due to central heating. In winter, insufficient air humidity does not solve the problem; it won't help to increase watering frequency. It's better to place a container with water next to the pot, install an air humidifier, or hang wet towels on radiators. Leaves should be wiped with a damp cloth twice a month.

4. Lighting. Indoor palm is shade-tolerant but this doesn't mean it loves darkness. It needs good, diffused lighting but without direct sunlight. With age, it becomes more shade-tolerant. But some palm varieties, such as neanthea and hovea, feel great in constant partial shade.

5. Placement. The plant should be placed where there are no drafts and cold air flows. There should be enough free space around the pot so nothing interferes with the plant's growth. If a pot is near a window, it's better to cover it with light curtains to prevent direct sunlight. It can only be placed on a balcony if the space is insulated. Placing the pot on a cold floor is not allowed, as roots are very sensitive to cold.

Design: SVOYA studio

Repotting

Repot the palm in spring. For good growth, very fertile soil is needed. Its composition should contain:

• clay-loam soil (two parts);

• humus-leaf soil (two parts);

• peat soil (one part);

• well-rotted manure (one part);

• sand (one part) and a small amount of charcoal.

Young palm varieties up to three years old are repotted every year, older plants once every 3–5 years.

Before repotting, a drainage layer mixed with charcoal should be placed at the bottom of the pot. During the process, one must be very careful with the roots. Sometimes, to avoid damaging them during repotting, it is necessary to break the old pot to remove the plant. The container for the repotted palm should be chosen based on the size and shape of the root system, often requiring a tall pot.

After repotting, the plant is fertilized with organic fertilizers. This is needed for rooting and good growth.

Design: Anastasia Zarqua

Propagation

Plant the palm with seeds in February or March. Propagating indoor palms is not easy. But by following all recommendations, success can be achieved:

1. Buy seeds at a specialized store. If they are fresh, the plants will germinate in 20–30 days. If not, the germination time will take 2–4 months.

2. Small seeds are soaked in warm water and left for 3–4 days. Large seeds should be cut.

3. For sowing seeds, small pots with drainage holes are used. A drainage layer is laid at the bottom and fertile soil is added.

4. Seeds are planted 2–3 cm deep with a 3 cm gap. Containers with soil are moistened and covered with plastic.

5. When seedlings reach 10 cm in height, they are transplanted again.

Germination should be done at a temperature of 20–22°C (for sub-tropical varieties) or 28–30°C (for tropical varieties).

Clump-forming palm varieties (e.g., Raphis and Cariota) can be propagated by root method. The plant is carefully extracted from the soil, and a shoot with full-fledged own roots is separated with a sharp knife. The cut area is treated with activated charcoal. The shoot is planted in a separate pot to the same depth as originally.

Pruning

Leaves of indoor palms should not be cut, otherwise the plant will get sick. They are removed only if they have turned yellow and dried up. With natural growth, only the lower leaves of the plant turn yellow and dry out; in other cases, it's a sign of improper care or disease development.

Since almost all palm varieties have one growth point, it is not recommended to prune the upper leaves or shape or shorten the crown. These actions can lead to plant disease and death.

Design on the cover: Malikul Nurulan