3 Reasons Why You Need A ZZ Plant in Your Life

This houseplant shines—literally! I love the ZZ Plant because it’s gorgeous, tough and so easy to care for.

ZZ plant is also known as Zanzibar Gem, Welcome Plant and its tongue-twisting botanic name Zamioculcas zamifolia. I just repotted mine so I’m sharing that project with you along with tips for keeping your ZZ healthy and looking like its fabulous self.

Here are 3 reasons why I love the ZZ plant!

It tolerates low light
It doesn’t need to be watered frequently
It’s a stunning addition to any home

I’m always interested to know where plants are from and which others are in the same family and/or genus. This shiny beauty shares the same family with these other popular houseplants: pothos, spathiphyllums, agloanemas and diffenbachias.

You can find these plants in my book Keep Your Houseplants Alive if you’re new to the wonderful world of indoor plants.

Some Of Our General Houseplant Guides For Your Reference:

ZZ Plant Care

Here is everything you need to know about how to care for a ZZ plant.

Size

They get about 3-4′ tall & 3-4′ wide. Many consider it to be a slow grower but mine has been growing at a moderate rate.

Exposure

Here’s 1 category where the ZZ Plant really is at the top of the list. It tolerates low light conditions just fine. Your plant will grow much slower but it’ll hang on in like a trooper.

The ZZ prefers natural, bright light which mine gets & that’s why I had to transplant it—it was growing! Mine is spending the summer into fall outdoors here in Tucson but is in the bright shade. Head’s up: no direct sun for this houseplant.

Watering

Easy does it when it comes to watering the ZZ Plant. They grow & spread via swollen rhizomes which are basically underground organs with store nutrients & water. Massive amounts of thick, fleshy roots grow off of these rhizomes & both they & the spongy stems will rot out if you water this plant too frequently.

You want to water it thoroughly, let all the water drain out & let it go dry before you water it again. I water mine here in the desert every 3-4 weeks & when I bring it indoors for the winter, that’ll probably drop to every 8 weeks. Of course, the smaller the pot the more often you’ll need to water the plant. Head’s up: never let this plant directly in water.

Fertilizing

This isn’t always necessary but your ZZ Plant would enjoy a feeding with an organic houseplant fertilizer once in the spring. I top dress mine with worm compost in late March or early April when the roots are really starting to wake up.

Pests

Mine has never gotten any nor have I heard that they’re subject to any. Please let me know if yours has.

Propagation

This is easy to do by either division of the root ball or leaf cuttings.

Flowers

The spathe like blooms are insignificant & appear infrequently. They open close to the base so there’s a chance you could miss them.

Here’s another thing that’s good to know: this plant is shiny on its own. Never spray it with commercial leaf shine because it clogs the pores of the plant.

Because the ZZ Plant tolerates low light & dry air, it makes an excellent office plant.

To sum it all up: ignore this plant and it’ll be happy. Of course, shower it with admiration and praise but no babying is needed with this 1. Water your ZZ Pla nt infrequently, don’t let it sit in water, keep it out of direct sun and never use leaf shine. Sounds like a winner of a houseplant to me!

Happy (indoor) gardening,

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About the Author
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Nell Foster

Nell, the founder of Joy Us garden, was born into a gardening family and grew up in Connecticut’s countryside. After living in Boston, New York, San Francisco, & Santa Barbara, she now calls the Arizona desert home. She studied horticulture & garden design, working in the field all her life. Nell is a gardener, designer, blogger, Youtube creator, & author. She’s been gardening for a very long time & wants to share what she’s learned with you.

www.joyusgarden.com/about/

54 Comments

Hi Helen – ZZ Plants are tough! I propagated 5 stems in water last May & 2 rooted beautifully. I’ve planted them. The other 3 haven’t put out any roots at all but are doing & looking great – crazy. Here’s a post I did a few months ago: https://www.joyusgarden.com/propagating-a-zz-plant-rooting-stem-cuttings-in-water/ Nell

Hi there Nell , I recently purchased 2 zz plants from ikea and they both had 1 of each yellowing leaves at the very bottom of older stems. Not only that, it seems like both stem tips were pinched off or broken. So, any suggestions that may help the plant which I barely know ! Thanks !
Runa

Hi Runa – Yellow leaves on the bottom of a ZZ Plant are usually caused by too much water. That or no water is common with plants sold at big box stores. This plant has large rhizomes which store water & that’s where the new growth emerges from. Even if the tips are broken, new stems will eventually appear. Water this plant only when completely dry & give it bright light out of direct sunlight. You’ll love this plant – so easy! Nell

Thank you so much Nell ! Your a surety gives me hope!

Hi Nell,

I enjoyed reading all of these post! My office ZZ plant’s stems (not all of them) are wrinkled looking and leaning over. There are 10 stalks and are very tall . I have it staked and a loose tie around it to keep from falling over. At one point some of the leaves were turning yellow and I realize I was over watering it :(. Can you give me some suggestions?

Thank you,
Susan

Great! Yes Susan, that sounds like over watering. I water mine every 3 weeks (they’re in fairly large pots. It may be reaching for the light too. I find they do better in medium light levels. Mine are putting out a lot of new growth now that the weather is warming. Back off on the watering & make sure the light levels are adequate. that’s about it! Nell

Hi Nell, thank you for the article. I was sent an over watered ZZ plant by a seller and there is some serious root damage (the rhizome looks okay.) as well as a bunch of yellowing leaves. I think the seller just didn’t know how to care for it. I’m hopeful of saving the plant and have re-potted it. I just wanted to know if the stems will regrow fallen leaves (the yellow leaves would fall off soon I suppose). Or will they remain bare? Thanks a bunch.

I love your huge ZZ plant! My ZZ plant was very happy indoors. But the soil of the plant is full of gnats and I have shifted it outside. Will it survive in 100 degree Houston heat? It’s in the shade on my patio and doesn’t get any direct sunlight.

Hi Elizabeth – To the best of my knowledge & experience, the stems won’t grow new leaves. However, if you cut the stems all the way back, fresh new growth will eventually appear from the tubers. My 2 ZZ Plants re putting out lots of new growth right now. Nell

Thank you for replying, Nell. I will try cutting the stems back. I have watched videos of you re-potting your ZZ plants and I love your plants!

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