Does anyone have any idea how long one can expect a house plant might live? Do some plants live longer then others? Does anyone know of house plants that have long life expectations? Thanks -
Thumbs not so green
Depends on the species and how nice you are to it. Some bonsai will live hundreds of years. I have a white-veined nephthytis that I’ve systematically loved and ignored for almost 20 years now. And it’s still going strong.
I have a schefflera that’s over 30 years old. Somehow I accidentally turned it into a bonsai, as it’s only about 18 inches tall. I know it’s not a tiny variety, because I also have a cutting from it, that’s about 7 feet tall.
I also have some spider plants whose great . . . great grandparents lived about 30 years ago.
I have a 10-year-old pothos. It refuses to die, no matter how badly I treat it. I cut some of it off at times. Once I left the stems on the floor, and 5 days later, since they were still green, I put one in water and it sprouted roots. I planted it, and it thrives to this day. From this I assume it will easily outlive me.
Well, my mom as a green thumb, she has a jade tree [relatively small srub/succulent] that belonged to my great grandmother, it is doing just fine. I had an air fern that I managed to kill off in less than 2 months. [serious black thumb, i followed the directions exactly, and our roomies air fern was still thriving after 3 years=(]
I have some that go back 20 years – I gave everything away when I moved in 1983. The big philodendron in my bedroom dates back to 1987.
You can’t go wrong with the appropriately-named [url=http://faculty.ucc.edu/biology-ombrello/Images/cast%20iron.jpg]cast iron plant*.
Water it … or don’t. Put it in the sun … or don’t. As long as you check for life every few months (if life is sorely lacking: add water - don’t worry, even if it’s all brown but a single light green leaf, that leaf will come back), it should serve you well for many years.
I had a huge Parlour Palm which my M-I-L gave me in 1992, and I managed to keep it going for a further 10 years or so … she first planted it in 1967.
Don’t feel bad… in MY house, a plant will hardly last a week if I’m lucky.