It's spooky season! While everyone's organising their skeletons, fake cobwebs, and carved pumpkins, we're busy figuring out how this holiday can justify buying more plants. If you're in the same boat then don't worry- we've created a perfect guide to the spookiest houseplants to add to your decoration shopping spree this year.
These are one of our favourite plants here in the shop, and for good reason. Earth Stars are super tolerant plants, and despite their name they'll add an instant un-earthly vibe to your planty decor! They'll also do well in a Halloween-themed terrarium too. Spiky, colourful, and easy to maintain.
Scindapsus 'Trebuii' Dark Form
We really are starting this list off with the easy guys- Scindapsus are a great low-maintenance, trailing plant. This dark version is great for bringing some depth to your halloween planting, but still contains a hint of that classic Scindapsus silver we know and love. The classic Trebuii Moonlight can be a good option for a slightly less gothic approach too.
What's creepier than a plant that eats flies? Not many carnivorous plants are wanting to be active at this time of year, but Nepenthes are the sturdiest of the carnivs, and the most tolerant of our dark winters. Fair warning though- although Nepenthes are the easiest of the carnivorous plants, that doesn't mean they're simple. A super bright spot, and plenty of watering with rain or filtered water will keep them happy.
Begonia are the queens of weirdness. There's so many different species available, all of them will bring something a bit different to the table, but we promise they'll be a standout no matter which one you end up with. You can lean into the sparkles with species like Beleaf, or embrace the dark alien-ess with 'Draco'. Begonia's are another one which can be on the tricker side though. They generally like humidity, moist soil, and ambient light.
Calathea are widely considered the Divas of the plant world, but they are gorgeous! Striking purple spots and stripes, some fuzzy leaves, and a tendency to move with the day-cycle marks these as perfect Halloween plants in our books. They can even live in a dark spot- a great choice for vampires! Just keep them well-watered, and ideally use rain or filtered water.
Hildewintera Colademonis (Monkey Tail Cactus)
These furry plants may get their nickname from monkeys, but most people think they resemble tarantula legs far more. Perfect creepy decor, as long as you keep them in a sunny spot. There's also their slightly more golden cousin, the Rat tail Cactus
Chlorophytum Orchidastrum (Green orange spider plant)
We've covered a couple of purple plants, now it's time to complete the Halloween colour palette with an orange one. Chlorophytum Orchidastrum is the more exciting cousin to the classic spider plant, bringing a splash of colour to the easy-going nature of spider plants.
Tillandsia Usneoides (Spanish Moss)
Remember the fake cobwebs I mentioned earlier? Spanish Moss is our real plant alternative. Tillandsia, commonly known as Air plants, grow with no soil or pot, so are perfect for draping in windows, or hanging with other decorations. Beyond the festive season they want bright ambient light, and ideally a humid spot.
Now we've covered our favourite plants for Halloween decor, we'd like to point out a few red flags to avoid when festive plant shopping:
Spray-painted and Super-glued Plants
Mass-retailers LOVE to go down the kid's craft fair route when it comes to festive plants. We know it can be tempting to pick up the neon orange cactus, or the snake plant with googly eyes, but these plants are doomed for death. Spray paint blocks the plant from photosynthesising properly, and is a nightmare to remove, whereas superglued decorations can cause damage to the leaf surface, and impact growth over time. We recommend picking a colourful pot or sticking a decoration into the soil instead.
Cheap, Festive Terrariums
There's nothing wrong with shopping for the deal- we've all done it at some point- but terrariums aren't the item to skimp on. A poorly made terrarium isn't set up for the long-term; incorrect layers and plant choice will condemn the whole terrarium to death. Go for a well-made terrarium and add your own festive decor to it for an option that will last years.
Flytraps
We touched on this when covering the Nepenthes, but carnivorous plants aren't made for the cooler months. Carnivs like to go into a dormancy once the light diminishes, and forcing them to stay 'awake' past their dormancy time will stress the plant out in the longterm. Venus flytraps are the worst for this- they may seem like a great spooky option, but any still on the shelves have been 'forced', and will not survive long-term.
