7 Best Large and Tall Houseplants
Tall Indoor Plants have a place in every home; whether they are used to fill empty corners or tall walls, or simply to make a bold statement in a room.
These plants can either be indoor trees or large scale plants at a certain level of maturity.
They can be displayed independently or grouped together to create a lush corner in your home.
There are different types of indoor tall plants you can buy based on your home decor style.
For example, if you want to give your small urban apartment a tropical feel, you’d focus on buying Palms or Birds of Paradise Plants. If you live in a more modern home and enjoy the minimalistic look, you’d search for tall Cacti, such as Euphorbias.
Buying indoor trees and tall indoor plants can be costly. For this reason, it is important to do some research to understand what plant suits your lifestyle and home best. It is possible to find low maintenance, low light, non-toxic and air purifying tall and large scale plants to suit your needs.
Luckily, these days, you don’t need to rob the bank to buy large scale and tall indoor plants. I have found very good quality trees and large plants at a very reasonable price in stores like IKEA, Walmart and Home Depot. (I am very happy with the Birds of Paradise Plant I purchased from IKEA a few months ago. It has been growing and unfolding one new leaf after another ever since I took it home!).
These are my favorite tall indoor plants; they are hardy and beautiful and they don’t require much attention!
1. Norfolk Island pine, (araucaria heterophylla)
Norfolk Pines are beautiful and lush tall indoor plants.
We are so used to see these plants seasonally, when they get all decked out with small Christmas ornaments and a coat of glitter on top. Most people don’t even know that Norfolk Pines are actually tropical plants, and as such, they are not tolerant to low temperatures and require adequate levels of humidity to thrive.
Norfolk Pines thrive is bright light conditions. They benefit from several hours of direct sunlight but do really well in bright indirect light. These plants are ideal for south facing rooms and windows.
Water them when the top soil feels dry to the touch, making sure it does not dry out in between waterings, (I water mine once a week).
It is helpful to either place this plant pot’s on a pebble tray filled with water or to regularly mist it, in order to maintain the high levels of humidity it requires to thrive.
This Norfolk Pine is my desk neighbour in my home office. I often surprise myself staring at its cascading branches.
The Norfolk Pine in the corner of my home office gives a bright, fresh and lush feel to the space.
2. madagascar dragon tree, (Dracaena Marginata)
Dragon Trees or Dracaenas are very easy to grow tall indoor plants.
They are very suitable for plants newbies and very busy people.
These plants enjoy moderate to low light conditions. Full sun will burn its leaves.
Dracaenas are drought tolerant, so you don’t have to water them very often. Overwatering is one of the main causes of death for the plant. Depending on how much light this plant receives, it can be watered up to every three weeks!
Keep in mind Dracaenas are sensitive to fluoride so it is always best to water them with distilled water if your tap water has high fluoride levels.
This plant is an excellent air purifier helping remove formaldehyde, xylene and trichloroethylene from the air.
Madagascar Dragon Tree add a tropical flare to any space.
3. fiddle leaf fig, (ficus Lyrata)
Fiddle Leaf Figs are sold as small plants or as tall indoor plants.
While the smaller size plants are widely available for purchase, the tall trees are a bit harder to find and more costly than Palms, Birds of Paradise or other tall plants.
Fiddle Leaf Figs are easy to grow and care for once you find the perfect spot for it and refine the watering schedule.
I have had my Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree for 13 years. I learned that it loves to face our South facing window and soak in the direct sunlight in the mornings. These plants definitely need a lot of bright light.
I water mine once a week and I add liquid fertilizer to its water from spring to fall.
Read my article on the Fiddle Leaf Fig to learn more abut this plant.
My 13 years old Fiddle Leaf Fig soaking up the sun on a South facing window of our home.
The beautiful veiny and leathery fiddle shaped leaves of my Ficus Lyrata.
4. Swiss cheese plant, (Monstera Deliciosa)
Monsteras are not just tall indoor plants; they can actually become very large scale plants! They are definitely a big statement plant for any space. They need a big space to be displayed.
These tropical plants grow relatively fast and tend to trail from pots or climb into trellis or poles. You’ll notice it will grow trailing aerial roots as it matures, making it a very easy plant to trim and propagate.
Swiss cheese plants enjoy moderate to indirect bright light. Too much light and direct sun will yellow its beautiful leaves.
Water this plant moderately and evenly. I water mine once a week, when the top soil tends to be dry. I also recommend misting this plant regularly to provide the humidity levels it needs to thrive.
My Monstera looking outside the North facing window of our Living Room. I’ve noticed a considerable growth ever since I moved it in this brighter spot of our home.
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5. ARECA PALM, (CHRYSALIDOCARPUS LUTESCENS)
Areca Palms are different from palms such as the Parlor Palm, so make sure you don’t confuse the two as their level of care is quite different!
Areca Palms thrive in bright indirect light areas and don’t do well in low light rooms! However, these plants may turn their leaves yellow if exposed to too much direct sun!
This is not a plant that does well if neglected; in-fact, they need to be watered often enough to keep their soil moist in between waterings. Do not let its soil dry through!
These palms can be expensive if purchased as indoor tall plants at their full height of 6 to 7 feet but since they grow quite fast, (6″ to 10″ per year), you can find a table top size and let it grow!!
Areca Palms are great for adding a tropical flare and “wow!” effect to your home!
This plant is also a great air purifier, helping remove benzene, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, xylene and trichloroethylene from the air.
Tall Areca Palms can give your space a tropical look. They look great when grouped with similar plants!
6. Birds of Paradise, (strelitzia)
Birds of Paradise Plants are definitely my favourite among all the indoor tall plants.
To me, this is the definition of a tropical style plant. I find it very easy to grow and maintain. It grows fast and produces beautiful unfurling leaves.
It’s a gorgeous plant to display individually or to pair up with other plants in a green corner of your home. I paired mine with a Fiddle Leaf Fig and the effect is quite beautiful.
It is a surprisingly adaptable plant that grows well in low light and direct bright light conditions.
Strelitzias thrive in moist soil conditions but not too soggy. I water mine once a week from spring to fall and let the top few inches dry out in winter before I water it. It’s better to to keep this plant on the drier side than soak it in too much water.
Since this is a tropical plant, it will enjoy regular misting to increase the levels of humidity it requires to thrive.
My Birds of Paradise Plant. I placed it into a boho style cache pot to give it a cabana look.
This is the newest leaf the Strelitzia has just unfolded.
7. african milk tree, (euforbia trigona)
The African Milk Tree is the lowest maintenance indoor tall plant you can think of. The only thing you need for the survival of this plant is bright light.
I have had mine for 15 years, (it was my Valentine’s present in 2005, because nothing says I love you like a prickly cactus!!😂), and it has survived years of neglect, when my attention was completely devoted to my babies and full time work.
As mentioned before, this succulent requires a lot of bright light to thrive.
Watering is limited to once a month when you grow it indoor.
Remember that this plant will die if watered too much.
This is an ideal indoor tall plant for black thumbs, plant newbies and busy people with very little time to care for plants.
My African Milk Tree standing proud by a north facing door. It has been growing slowly but consistently. These type of tall indoor plants are suitable for minimalistic homes. Succulents of this proportion bring a sculptural, yet minimalistic look to any space.
These are by far my favorite tall indoor plants. I chose these particular 7 plants because I have a personal experience with them and are easy to care for and maintain.
Other good options for tall indoor plants are Parlor Palms, Lady Palms, Yucca Trees, Rubber Plants and Umbrella Plants.
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I love this article!! Thank you so much for taking the time to put this together for the benefit of others – I’m going to try a fiddle leaf fig one last time in the hopes that this time I won’t kill it. 😉
Thank you for the feedback, and good luck with your Fiddle Leaf Fig!!
Your article is quite helpful! I have so many questions, and you have answered many. Thank you! Such a nice and superb article, we have been looking for this information about tall indoor plants. Indeed a great post about it!! Come across Plantpals.co.nz and hope you can visit this too to get more information.
Thank you. This is exactly what I was looking for
Hi! Where did you find the woven basket? The boho style cache pot? Absolutely love it.
Hi! I buy all my baskets from Home Sense!
I’ll definitely be looking for a Norfolk Island Pine! What is the other plant in the first photo of monstera? With the red stems? Maybe a type of pepperomia?
Hi Lesley. You are correct! That is a Watermelon Peperomia.
One thing to note is that some plants don’t mix well with cats/dogs. I did read somewhere that the fiddle-leaf fig is poisonous to cats and dogs. Your pets may be old enough to avoid these plants, but beware.