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Houseplants: A Gift With Meaning

February 3, 2023

There are more options than just flowers as gifts to your loved ones this Valentine’s Day. Houseplants make great gifts as they can last forever with the right care. Many houseplants even have a supposed meaning when given as a gift to someone. Some can mean you wish the person good luck or good fortune, while others can mean peace, love, or friendship. Whoever you are gifting to this season, there is surely a houseplant best suited for you.

Love: Hoya Kerrii

The Hoya Kerrii has heart shaped leaves, and is typically sold as a single-leaf plant, sometimes dubbed a “living valentine.” The heart shaped leaves of this plant symbolize love, especially around Valentine’s Day. It makes the perfect gift for your loved ones.

 

To care for the Hoya Kerrii, place the plant where it will receive bright light and let the soil completely dry out between waterings.

 

 

 

Prosperity & Friendship: Pilea Peperomioides

Gifting a pilea peperomioides to someone represents the wish for financial security and wealth for that person. The large, round leaves on this plant resemble green coins, giving the plant the common name of coin plant or Chinese money plant.

This plant is also very easy to propagate from its plantlets that sprout from the trunk of the parent plant. Pilea peperomioides sometimes gets referred to as the friendship plant because its ability to be easily propagated allows you to share the plantlet propagations with friends. 

Give this plant a spot in your home with bright, indirect light and let the soil completely dry out between waterings. If you are gifting this plant to a friend that has pets, this plant is nontoxic making it pet friendly!

 

Peace & Sympathy: Peace Lily

 

Peace Lilies, commonly given as gifts at funerals, are known for symbolizing sympathy and wishing peace to the recipient of the plant. In more recent years, Peace Lilies are mainly known for bringing peace to your home rather than representing a grief plant.

Peace Lilies are very easy to care for and will bless your home with beautiful white blooms and dark green foliage year round. These plants like to stay consistently moist, so do not let the soil dry out completely, and give it a space where it will receive bright, indirect sunlight. It will also tolerate low light spaces as well.

 

Peace Lily – Houseplant of the Week – YouTube

 

Good Luck: Bamboo

 

Bamboo is often dubbed with the name “Lucky Bamboo,” and can have different meanings based on how many stalks the plant has, which can change over time: Two stalks for love, three for a long and happy life, five for wealth, seven for health, eight for growth, nine for luck, and ten for perfection. It is said that a bamboo plant with twenty-one stalks is the luckiest of all and gives the owner an overall powerful blessing.

Bamboo is easy to care for. Give the plant a spot with bright, indirect sunlight. Bamboo can be planted in soil or water. If planting with the water method, plant your bamboo in pebbles and keep the water level at about one inch high to cover the roots and change out the water at least once a week.

Good Fortune: Money Tree

 

A Money Tree (Pachira Aquatica) makes a wonderful gift to a friend or coworker because it supposedly brings good luck to its owner. This is a super easy to care for houseplant that has a tree-like growth pattern with stems that branch out from a central stalk with five or more leaves on the stem. These five leaves are said to symbolize the five Chinese feng shui elements. A stem typically only has five leaves, but sometimes up to seven leaves. This occurrence is quite rare, which is why it is said to bring extra good luck to the owner of the plant.

To care for a Money Tree, give it medium to bright, indirect light and water it whenever the top two to three inches of soil is dry. Fertilize with an indoor fertilizer in spring and summer twice a month.

Money Tree – Houseplant of the Week – YouTube

Gratitude: Prayer Plant

 

Prayer Plants (Maranta) earned its name from the motion of its leaves curling up at night, like praying hands. This movement symbolizes the action of a daily prayer of gratitude. A Prayer Plant would be a great gift for someone who you would like to say “thank you” to, as it can symbolize your gratitude towards the person.

Maranta can be grown in low to bright, indirect light. They prefer their soil to stay consistently moist, so they will need to be watered when the top one to two inches of soil is dry to the touch.

Red Maranta – Houseplant of the Week – YouTube

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