This might just be the easiest and most foolproof way to grow indoor plants: in glass bottles filled with water!
I love to bring nature into our home in every possible way, however, it is not always easy to keep our growing number of indoor plants well watered, especially when life gets busy!
After growing many indoor plants without soil successfully for the last few years, I am excited to share with you this simple method to grow house plants that works wonders!
We will look at how to grow indoor water plants, names of plants that grow easily in water, and lots of helpful tips. If you are drooling over all the gorgeous propagation stations with glass bottles and healthy houseplants in water, let’s begin!
Can you grow plants in just water?
( Some of the helful resources are affiliate links. Full disclosure here. )
Many plants can be propagated easily from stem cuttings in water. A lot of them will continue to grow and thrive in water filled vases and bottles. In fact it is one of my favorite ways to grow plants! Look at how happy and healthy these plants are!
After growing a lot of plants in water, I have found the easiest to be any kind of Pathos, or Sansevieria / Snake Plant cuttings like in this tutorial!
What do you need to grow indoor water plants?
Glass bottles make it really easy to see when plants need more water. Once a month or two, I sprinkle a little All Purpose Organic Plant Fertilizer in the water to feed the plants.
What kind of plants can grow in water?
Many popular indoor plants will grow in water without soil. Dieffenbachia, Spider Plant, Pathos, English Ivy, Wandering Jew, Tradescantia / Purple Heart, Sanseveiria / Snake plant, ZZ plant, and Monstera deliciosa are some of the easiest houseplants to grow in water.
You can even grow vegetables and herbs in water, check out some of the best kitchen scraps to regrow!
Some plants can grow short term in water. It is best to either transplant them in soil after a few weeks or months, or start fresh new cuttings in water.
These short term water garden plants include Sweet Potato Vine, Begonia ” Dragon Wing”, Coleus, and Fiddle-leaf Fig.
Begonia is one of the few flowering indoor plants, it flowers 9 months of the year! This Begonia loves a bright location out of direct sun.
Spider plant is one of the best air purification indoor plants according to NASA, it’s also one of the easiest. The beautiful variegated foliage is great for brighten up our homes.
Many cultivars of small leaf ivy plants are great for indoor gardens. “Glacier” has white and green patterns on the leaves, so does Epipremnum aureum “Jade and Pearl”, aka Jade & Pearl Pathos.
Native to Central America, Wandering Jew plants are absolutely stunning with deep purple foliage. The purple intensifies if the plants get a little bit of morning or evening sun.
Sweet Potato Vine is a vigorous grower that comes in shades of chartreuse or purple, it can drink up the water faster than any other plants here. So give it a big jar.
A Sweet Potato stem cutting will root in water in as little as two days! Because it is so vigorous, I found that it does better in soil long term, You can always grow fresh cuttings in water for some colorful accents.
The beautiful foliage plant in the front left is Coleus, native to south east Asia and Malaysia. Super easy to root, and so many color variations to choose from.
I discovered how long these beauties can live in water while trying to propagate Fiddle Leaf Fig from cuttings and even a leaf, which you can read all about it here.
Although the long term goal is to plant your Fiddle Leaf Fig tree in a big pot, it does not hurt to have some cuttings growing in water for 3 to 6 months, right?
Among these 12 easy care houseplants that also clean indoor air, more than half of them will grow in water.
Happy growing! See you next week!
Thank you for a very useful item on Plant cuttings. Shall get busy now trying out some of your hints.
Deirdre.
I actually have a question. My fiance bought me a little floating water vase to put on my desk at work. What plant would be best for long term in a small jar of water?
hi Carolyn! i found the easiest to be any kind of Pathos, or Sansevieria cuttings like in this post- https://www.apieceofrainbow.com/propagate-sansevieria-snake-plant/ 🙂
Spider plant is very poisonous to most animals and humans. Please be very careful and please keep away from kids and pets. My budgie used to chew on a few leaves and he came down with cancer within weeks of digesting this plant. So please keep out of reach of your pets and especially all children… Wishing all a safe a enjoyable week…😷🪴
thank you Louise for the info! we will add a note to the article! 🙂
I don’t think that is correct Louise. “Unlike peace lilies and pothos, Chlorophytum comosum is one houseplant that can be safely nibbled by your kitties without requiring a trip to the emergency animal hospital. According to both the ASPCA and the National Capital Poison Center, aka Poison Control, spider plants are non-toxic to both cats and dogs.Jan 14, 2021”
Thanks for sharing these wonderful plants you can grow indoors in water!
How often do you change the water for the plants?
once they root, almost never, because roots keep the water clean! 🙂 before that, only when water gets cloudy.
I am looking for a way of growing my favourite clematis from cuttings.
Not much success with rooting powder in a pot of soil, Put some cuttings in water with a bit of transplant liquid without success.
hi Chloe, clematis is not the easiest to root, i would try propagate clematis by layering! 🙂
Ive had multiple cuttings grow extremely well in a container of water, long term, I clip at an angle, shave a bit of the “skin” were I clipped and dipped it in rooting powder before submerging it in water…the roots will grow long and healthy especially if placed on a sunny windowsill with indirect light…I change the water once every three days, once the roots form, I water..not change the water every week.
is it ok to use well water or should I use distilled water? Also, is it better for the plant to be in a dark glass. I have some liquid fertilizer, should I just use a drop every month or so? I know some plants are poisonous to cats (altho aspca would have us believe every plant is) but seems like my cats ignore those and just nibble on spider plants (I don’t have any of the definitely poisonous ones like dumbcane etc) I like the idea of hydroponics as I think it helps keep the humidity level better in winter. thnx
hi brit! i think even tap water is ok, or you can leave the water sitting for a day to let the chlorine evaporate. a little bit of fertilizer is great! 🙂
this year I took cuttings of a purple coleus I have had for years. This year, all the cuttings reverted to green leaves, the original cutting was dark purple leaves. This has never happened before, and was wondering if you happened to know what is going on? I have many plants growing in water, a fun way to make more plants. I remove built up calcium on jars with the tablets that are used for denture cleaning. Also works well on stained coffee/tea cups. Great info on this site.
hi! i think it has to do with sun light: the less light they receive, the more more likely they would turn green. 🙂
Hi, I have been growing plants in jars for years, and then I pot them, But lately, I am unable to pot them. Waaa on me. Anyway, my jars and whatever get a bunch of calcium scum in the jars. After I replant them into pots, I was the jars in my dishwasher, which is very hot, but I can’t get the calcium or scum out fo the jars. Any ideas??? I don’t eat enough to replace the jars all the time.
hi cory, if you put some white vinegar in the jars for a day, that should dissolve the calsium, and you might be able to reuse the vinegar for several jars. 🙂
Hi,
While trying to have my indoor Yucca a wash because of the rain, the top 2 beautiful branches fell off. How can I have them to regrow? I put them into a vase of water until the roots will come back.
Do you have any tips, does this plant can be outdoor and what kind of lights exposition?
Thanks,
Emmanuelle
hi! most indoor yucca loves bright shade or a little early morning sun. warm temperature, not below freezing. 🙂
I saw a Kahili ginger plant flower in a vase in my doctor’s office. I fell in love with its beauty and scent. The receptionist told me the patient who brought it in said she grew the plant in water and that the plant was now many years old. I’ve wanted to learn how to do this but have found nothing on the internet. I bought a Kahili ginger root in Hawaii last week, but I don’t know how to start. Can you give me any advice? Thank you!
hi! keep the ginger root just below soil in a warm place (not below 50f) and keep the soil moist but never soggy, it will germinate in a few weeks! 🙂
Ananda, do you mean I need to grow the ginger in soil rather than in water? I was really hoping to grow it in water. Thanks, Martha
hi martha, i think that ginger could rot if sitting in water for a long time. i could be wrong, but i have not seen them growing in water. 🙂
Thank you, Ananda! Martha
Hi. I saw a plant inside the comfort room of a mall. I want to ask what is this to you. Can I send some picture? Thank you!
yes you can use the email address on the contact page, or message us on facebook. 🙂
I to keep a lot of my plant starts in water and they seem to love it. Love to see a little green starting.. 🙂
I am excited about the fiddle leaf fig….YES they are gorgeous!!!Thanks for the info about propagating….cant wait to try!!! My question is about Lavender? Have you any knowledge of Lavender? I have tried from seed, with little luck….bought plants and they died:( Any suggestions? It is such a beautiful plant and so aromatic…..
Thanks for your time!!!
hi paula, i find over-watering would kill lavender plants. i love them, and have killed many too. they are not as easy to propagate, once i have more success, i will post an article here! 🙂
Where can I fine a sweet potato vine slip to root? I to keep a lot of my plant starts in water they seem to love it. I’m just really short on space. THank you for your posts.
hi cathy, nurseries and garden centers like homedepot usually carry them . the ornamental ones are easier to grow than edible ones but you could start a slip from a sweet potato ( organic untreated ) =)
Thank you for sharing so many great ideas. When rooting in water, I more than I would like to say, gets slummy with a and can have a bad sewage smell. Some a couple days other maybe more. I use clean water and clean jars to which I change the water out every two or three days but I can forget . Do you have a routine you do in regards to water change ? I love my plants and yes I do have way too many but that smell ! Help please ??
hi lori, whenever the water smells bad, it most likely means that the plants are not rooting successfully. i would start with new cuttings. some plants are just much harder to root in water. all my plants that do root never smell bad, and i rarely need to change water. 🙂
Other easy to care for and propagate plants are Christmas cactus, Orchid cactus, and Hoya. All can be rooted in water and then planted. Many succulents will self root if a leaf breaks of and falls in the soil. I have also propagated cuttings from roses, forsythia, rosemary, and snowball viburnum by rooting in water and then planting. Roses and rosemary cuttings can also propagate by just pushing the cutting into the soil and letting nature go from there. I have gone both ways.
thank you so much jennifer for sharing these! Love orchid cactus! =)
I have a Sweet Potato vine growing outdoors, never knew they would grow indoors. Want to try it on our Stack Trellis as an indoor plant. Thanks for the idea!
I have three varieties of plants –calathea, pothos and Chinese bamboo all sharing one big, roomy vase with a slightly narrow mouth where I also put in six sword tails. They have been there for more than a year and I have had nine baby sword tails since. The plants are thriving though some of the baby fish have been eaten by the older ones. My maid changes the water every four or five days, siphoning it off and adding fresh water. My guests gasp when they see the aflora nd fauna together in the opaque vase!
that sounds so beautiful! thank you marissa for sharing!! =)
Thanks for this! Do you know if an opaque container can be used, or do the roots and/or water need to be exposed to light in this environment?
hi judy! great question! the roots do not need light, so an opaque container such as a tin can works well too. i use glass because it is easier to see when the water needs to be replenished and fun to see the roots =)
Thank you, this is exciting, as I would never remember to water every few days!
So we are growing lots of plants in water. They look marvelous However we have found some mosquito larva swimming around. Immediately change the water. Is there anything we can put in the water to abate the little potential sucker.
Love to send a picture of our plants
Nonny
hi nonny! 🙂 we haven’t had mosquito problems, but i would try this Mosquito Bits – https://amzn.to/2R7odFL, or a drop of citronella oil on the water surface might work too – https://amzn.to/3bGOJPD
yes you can send it to our facebook, instagram, or email ananda(at)apieceofrainbow.com , we are always happy to see our readers DIYs!
I have problems with keeping Coleus in water. They get droopy and die.
i do find coleus does better if i plant it in soil after rooting in water. =)
How much fertilizer do you use?
Very very little, once every 1-2 months
Hi the plants that you can grow in a bottle can they grow in a pond
Most of them will not be able to float on water, the edge of a pond may work 🙂
Me encantan las plantas y me gustaria tener el vidrio con agua. Se ven hermosas. Hay que ir cambiando el agua? Cada cuanto hay que hacerlo? Hay que echar algun fertilizante al agua?. Gracias
hi! no need to change the water as plant roots keep it clean. i add a tiny bit of fertilizer every few months! =)
Pretty tips, home decorating, especially the corner of the empty distance. Thanks
What about sunlight? I have no light coming up from my windows unfortunately.
they don’t need direct sun if you have a bright window. if not, some lamps may help =)
So easy to to grow, you can see through the glass just add more water . I have even given some as gifts
I never forget to water anymore:) !
Love to see a little green starting new…happy nesting!
I’ve been wanting to start a little indoor garden so this post is super helpful! That Begonia ”Dragon Wing Pink” is so pretty!!
I really need to bring some plants into my house.. I am pinning this for later so I know which ones to buy
Hi Ananda. This is such an eye opener for me. Thank you!
Pearl and Jade is known as money plant in parts of India and it comes with an urban legend of sorts; you got it– that it brings in money:) So you will see a few of these growing in glass bottles in Indian homes. But the rest of the plants—I had no idea. Here in Doha, the heat is so intense that maintaining indoor plants become a full time occupation. I’m definitely trying out sweet potato vine. And now I can finally use all the glass bottles I’ve held on to, you know the pretty ones:)
so excited 😀 thank you
Love this idea. I want to make this one in my home
I love this idea! I just started propagating a ZZ plant and have stems in glass jars all over my house, so far so good a month in, but I’d love to add some different plants. Thanks for the list!
Have your Zz plants rootedyet? Love that plant.
great post i have a pothos that i have grown in a very large glass bottle and have had it growing for 4 yrs i have to try some of the other love the potato vine in purple xx
Nice! This will be my next project for the kids. Thanks!
This is great for me because I have a black thumb! My husband is the gardener in my house! I do have an outdoor basil plant that I have been able to keep alive for almost six months so that’s a major success for me!
Oh I love this idea and they can grow without ground ? Or one day it is neccessary in a pot?
It is so nice in glass…
Thank’s Ananda..Your home may be so beautifull!!!!!!!
Have a nice we…
hi chamoise, most of these can live in water for a very long time! =)
Great tips! I have a bunch of indoor plants but have yet to try them in glass bottles. So pretty!
What a cute project!
xoxo, Jenny