Aglaonema Pink

If you’re looking for a tough-as-nails houseplant with big leaves, aglaonema (pronounced ah-glay-oh-NEE-ma), also known as Chinese evergreen, is the right plant for you!

With long, strappy leaves and colorful good looks, these plants can tolerate all sorts of neglect. From inconsistent watering to low light levels, Chinese evergreens are about as forgiving a houseplant as you can find. They're ideal for both new and experienced plant parents.

Native to the Philippines, Chinese evergreens are available in many different cultivars, or cultivated varieties. Types include those with solid green, silvery green, or speckled pink and red foliage. They’re a great alternative to other colorful houseplants that are a little more demanding and finicky, such as croton, stromathe triostar, and alocasia

In their native environment, Chinese evergreen plants are an herbaceous perennial that grow sheltered from direct sunlight on the jungle floor. This explains their preference for low to moderate light levels. In fact, bright, direct light will scald the leaves of this plant.

Aglaonemas are truly one of the few stand-out plants for low-light areas in your home. Give them a spot with low to medium light, and they will be happy.

Even a north-facing window will offer sufficient light, but keep yours out of direct sunlight, which will scorch the leaves.

If you’re sometimes forgetful about watering, you’re going to love these plants! Because they are native to monsoon forests, which receive months of rain followed by months of dry weather, they tolerate inconsistent watering. With that in mind, water only when the top few inches of soil feel dry to the touch.

In the USDA Hardiness zones 10 and warmer, you can grow Chinese evergreens outdoors in the shade.

It’s fine to fertilize your Chinese evergreen occasionally, though it’s not entirely necessary. These plants make their own food through photosynthesis. But if you want to give yours a boost, feed with any general-purpose houseplant fertilizer at half-strength, according to the label instructions.

Because aglaonemas or Chinese evergreens are a slow grower, even in moderate light levels, they likely won’t need to be repotted for several years. Signs one needs to be repotted are that it’s drying out faster than it used to, or soil is pulling away from the sides of the pot.