Snake plant

Light and exposure

The snake plant adapts to everything, from bright light to a decidedly dark corner. In bright filtered light, it grows faster and its markings show up well. In a poorly lit hallway, it slows down but holds on where almost every other plant gives up.

It even tolerates a little gentle direct sun, in the morning or late afternoon, once it is used to it. Just avoid moving it abruptly from shade to full summer sun, which would scorch it. Its tolerance of dim light makes it an ideal candidate for dark rooms, and for interiors in the season when the day grows short.

Watering

This is the point that decides everything. The snake plant stores water in its thick leaves and dreads excess moisture above all. Let the substrate dry out completely, top to bottom, before watering again. In practice, that means watering every two to three weeks in summer, and only once a month in the cold season.

When the plant is dormant and the light is weak, it is better to water too little than too much. Soft, yellow leaves that rot at the base are the classic sign of overwatering. A plant forgotten for two months, on the other hand, survives unharmed. When in doubt, do not water.

Soil and repotting

It needs a very free-draining substrate, on pain of rot. Use a soil for cacti and succulents, or cut a classic potting soil with a good third of coarse sand and perlite. The pot must absolutely have a drainage hole.

The snake plant likes pots that are a little tight and is rarely repotted. Wait until it cracks its pot or the roots overflow, generally every three or four years, and do it in spring. A terracotta pot, which lets the rootball breathe, suits it better than a plastic one that holds moisture.

Temperature and humidity

It thrives between 18 and 27 degrees and copes with warmer spells without trouble. The critical point is the cold: below 10 degrees, it suffers, and frost kills it outright. Never leave it against an icy pane in winter.

Its great quality is coping very well with the dry air of heating throughout the heating season, where most tropical plants brown. No misting is needed, it is made for dry environments. The only real danger of winter is overwatering it out of reflex, when it is dormant and asks for almost nothing.

Pruning and upkeep

The snake plant is not pruned in the usual sense of the word. If a leaf is broken, marked or damaged, cut it off entirely at the base with a clean knife: it will not regrow from a partial cut, and a truncated leaf stays ugly.

Wipe the dust off the leaves now and then with a damp cloth. Their broad, upright surface accumulates it quickly. Otherwise, this plant needs no shaping: it grows straight and is content to be left alone.

Pests and diseases

The snake plant is very rarely sick. The only serious enemy is rot, caused by excess water: the base of the leaves softens, yellows and smells bad. You then have to take the plant out, cut away everything that is soft, let the healthy parts dry and repot in a dry, free-draining substrate.

As for pests, you sometimes come across mealybugs or scale insects, on the leaves or at their base. Remove them with a cotton bud soaked in diluted methylated spirit. They remain far rarer than on plants with soft foliage, the snake plant being unappetising.

Propagation

Division is the simplest and safest method. When repotting in spring, separate the rootball by pulling on the offsets that grow on the sides, each with a piece of roots and rhizome, then repot them. Recovery is almost guaranteed.

Leaf cuttings are possible but unpredictable. Cut a leaf into five- to seven-centimetre sections, let the cuts dry for two days, then plant them in a free-draining potting soil, respecting the growth direction. Careful: on yellow-edged varieties, leaf cuttings lose the variegation and regrow all green. To keep the markings, you have to divide.

Toxicity

The foliage contains saponins that cause vomiting and drooling in cats and dogs if chewed. Harmless to simple contact, but keep it away from animals that nibble plants.

Month-by-month care calendar

Green Hub tips

• The golden rule: when in doubt, do not water. The snake plant dies from too much water, never from being forgotten.
• In winter, a single watering per month is enough. Dormant and in the weak light of the dark season, the plant consumes almost nothing.
• To propagate while keeping the markings, divide the offsets. Leaf cuttings lose the yellow edge and regrow all green.
• A broken leaf will not mend or regrow: cut it at the base rather than keep an unsightly stump.