Sansevieria zeylanica

snake plant
Zeylanica has dark green leaves with horizontal marbled banding. Fills pots over time. Maybe the toughest, most forgiving houseplant. Tolerates low light, drought.
Sansevieria zeylanicaSansevieria zeylanicaSansevieria zeylanicaSansevieria zeylanica
height 2–3ft
width 1–3ft
tolerates Pots, Neglect
water
needs		 Low
water
info		 Sanevieria are some of the toughest plants out there, as long as you let them go dry between waterings. Generally indoors this will mean watering every three to five weeks. We know a grower who swears by watering their Sansevieria “whenever the rent is due.“
hardy
to		 30F
exposure Full Shade
indoor
outdoor		 Outdoor
drainage In Pots: Cactus Mix
fertilizing All Purpose
origin Africa
california
native		 No
sunset
zones		 13, 22–24

Sunset Zones Map

Outdoor Exposure Guide

OUTDOOR EXPOSURE GUIDE

Full Sun
Six or more hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Shade
Three to five hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Sun
One to two hours of sun beams directly landing on the plants leaves.

Full Shade
The plant is never fully lit by sun beams, but is in a bright spot or has dappled sunbeams playing over the leaves throughout the day.

Deep Shade
The plant never has dappled light on the leaves, and is in a place that feels dim, even on a nice sunny day.

SUNSET ZONES MAP

Growing Notes

Good drainage is critical to Sansevieria care.
The leaves of this plant last years, even decades. They will over time get dull looking and show physical damage; when they do you can thin them out at or just below the soil surface.
These flat-leaved Sansevierias don’t like direct sunlight and will often yellow when placed in too much direct sun. The leaves will also curl in on themselves and get brown tipped edges.
Most sansevieria are stoloniferous, meaning that they spread by thick underground (or sometimes above ground) shoots called stolons. It’s very easy to propagate your sansevieria by finding a growth point and following the fleshy stolon back to the previous growth point. Cut it there and replant the stolon, with roots and all. Those with above ground stolons can be removed and planted once you see roots forming along the stolons.
This plant tolerates low light more than almost any other plant, but would prefer to grow in as bright a room as possible as long as sunbeams are not directly hitting the leaves.

Special Interest

Occasionally Sansevieria will bloom with delicate waxy flowers that have a strong pleasing scent.

For more on this plant read the wonderful linked article below by our own Tyson Curtis.

More Info

Typically this plant is thought of as a houseplant, but it also grows well in warm frost free areas outdoors. See our sunset zones to see if you can grow this plant.