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The world is a crazy and beautiful place! We’ve put together a list of some of the wackiest and most unusual house plants from all around the world to bring some of nature’s finest foliage to your home.
From the dancing plant to the bat flower, these unusual indoor plants will make sure that your eyes are never bored!
1. Dolphin Succulent (Senecio peregrinus)
It would be hard to argue against this little plant being the cutest on our list! Also called ‘String of Dolphins’, these unusual indoor plants have dolphin-shaped leaves that look as though they are jumping out of the water.
Native to Southwest Africa, these sweet plants need a consistently warm environment and they are happiest when they can bathe themselves in bright indirect light for at least 6 hours per day.
Dolphin succulents are drought-tolerant, so it’s better to err on the side of caution when it comes to watering. Be careful with watering these adorable unusual house plants in the cooler months, too.
2. Living Stones (Lithops)
These unusual house plants are small succulents with split leaves that look a little like hooves but are most commonly called living stones. Especially as they age, Lithops start to form colourful clumps that look like pebbles.
As natives of the South African deserts, these gorgeous unusual indoor plants prefer warm temperatures and at least 4-5 hours of sunlight per day. They like dry sandy soil and should only be watered once every 2 weeks in spring and summer but not at all in autumn and winter.
3. The Dancing Plant (Codariocalyx motorius)
So you may be forgiven for wondering why this plant is on a list of unusual house plants when you first look at it. But, remember the saying you should never judge a book by its cover? Well, it certainly applied to this one!
The dancing plant gets its name from its uniquely moving leaves that look like they are dancing! They move up and down during the day in order to get maximum sunlight, but they also react to sounds and vibrations. So if you play music to them it looks like they’re dancing.
These unusual indoor plants are native to Asia and are a member of the pea family. They love warm environments and should be kept in a nice sunny spot. You should make sure that your boogie-loving buddy is kept in a well-draining pot, and that the soil is kept slightly moist so check it once every few days.
4. Bat Flower (Tacca chantrieri)
The bat flower is an orchid that is one of our favourite unusual house plants with its striking floral centrepiece that looks like a bat. These creepy looking critters are likely to bloom in spring which lasts until late autumn. They have dark purple-brown flowers that have long filaments that hang down like whiskers.
Bat flowers can be quite tricky to look after in terms of getting their conditions right. They prefer to be kept in shady locations away from bright sunlight, and they hate being rootbound so it’s essential that you repot them once per year. Orchids generally prefer well-draining soil that should be kept slightly moist by watering them every few days.
5. Rubber Plant Belize
These unusual house plants are so much more than just a pretty face! Rubber plants are most famous for their production of milky sap that can be used to make natural rubber. However, the rubber plant Belize also has a variety of colours like cream, burgundy, and pink in their luscious dark green leaves.
Another of our hardy unusual indoor plants, rubber plants can cope if you’re not the most attentive plant parent. Just be sure not to leave them in direct sunlight and let the top layer of their soil dry out between waterings.
6. Haworthia cooperi
We’re not obsessed with succulents, we promise! Haworthia cooperi, with their transfixing translucent leaves, look like they’re high maintenance but are actually pretty easygoing.
They’re happy in most light conditions but ideally, an eastern or western facing window would be perfect. To keep them the most radiant, water your little plant weekly in the warm weather but just monthly in the winter.
7. Jewel Orchid
Not only are jewel orchids unusual house plants, but they are also unique compared to other orchids because they are known for their foliage rather than their flowers.
Jewel orchids grow on the rainforest floor so they prefer lower light conditions and thrive in warm and humid environments, so make sure that you keep a plant mister nearby! The ideal environment for these unusual indoor plants would be a terrarium where you can maintain constant conditions.
8. Lifesaver Plant (Huernia Zebrina)
The lifesaver plant gets its nickname from its red rubber-like ring in the centre that resembles a lifebuoy.
Native to the deserts of Southern and Eastern Africa, as well as Arabia, these plants prefer to live in sandy soil like a cactus mix and it’s essential that they have good drainage to avoid root rot. These striking and unusual indoor plants are a type of creeping succulents that prefer living on an east or west facing windowsill.
9. Mistletoe Cactus (Rhipsalis Cashero Ampel)
The mistletoe cactus is a real showstopper with its glorious slim trailing stems. These unusual house plants look spectacular when kept in hanging baskets around your home, adding a beautiful boho vibe.
They love bright indirect light and during the spring and summer, it’s best to water them every 7-10 days. You don’t need to worry about them too much in the cooler months, just check them every couple of weeks to see if their soil is completely dry.
10. Trachyandra
Trachyandras are some of the most unusual house plants thanks to their unusually spiralled foliage, and their relative difficulty to find.
These quirky little plants are from the dry soils of South Africa so they are significantly more drought tolerant than they are to being overwatered. Just check their soil every few weeks and only water them if the soil is totally dry.
It’s best to try and give your Trachyandra around 3 hours of (preferably morning) sun per day. Too much sunlight will damage their pretty leaves!
11. Pineapple Plant (Ananas comosus 'Pygmy Amigo')
The pineapple plant brings a tropical-looking charm to your home with its striking singular ornamental fruit in the centre. Sadly, these unusual house plants only produce one pineapple in their lives, but they do produce pups so you can grow lots of new plants from them if you need more mini pineapples in your life!
These fruity little fellas love bright indirect sunlight and should be kept relatively warm (above 15ºC). It’s best to let at least the top 2cm of soil dry out between watering.
12. Variegated Cotyledon orbiculata
This beauty is so rare that it has the nickname unicorn poop!
It has variegated leaves in beautiful different colours like pink, purple, blue, and yellow. The stronger the light conditions the brighter the colours will be! Be careful that you don’t burn them, so stick to the morning and evening sun. These unusual house plants don’t like being overwatered. Water when the soil is dry and check them every 4 or so days.
13. Rose Succulents
Fresh roses every day, yes please! These romantic little beauties are native to the Canary Islands and are bright green in colour, which is really the only obvious distinguishing feature they have from ordinary roses.
Another feature of these unusual house plants is that their growing season is during the winter months, so they are the perfect complement to your usual summer babies. They like lots of indirect sunlight and should be checked every few days and watered if their soil is dry.
14. Marimo Moss Ball (Aegagropila linnaei)
Why not bring a bit of aquatic adventure to your collection of unusual house plants?
These water babies are a member of the algae family so need to be kept in an aquarium of some kind. Keep them away from sunlight to keep the water nice and cool and to stop them from turning brown. Usually, the motion of water keeps the moss balls a nice round shape, but you can mimic this by stirring their water every so often.
15. Polka Dot Begonia (Begonia maculata)
The polka dot Begonia is one of our favourite unusual house plants with their uniquely variegated leaves. These pretty polka dot plants are native to Africa, Asia, and South America, and rumour has it that they were the inspiration for Christian Louboutin’s iconic red-soled stilettos.
They are also great for novice plant parents because they aren’t overly demanding, they can survive in lower light conditions and weekly waterings are sufficient. If you think Begonias are the unusual indoor plants for you, check out our top tips on how to care for them here!
16. Philodendron Pink Princess
Who doesn’t love a bit of regal glory in their home?!
This unusual indoor plant, Philodendron pink princess, is a real showstopper with its stunning variegated leaves. They are adorned with a mixture of deep glossy green and pale pink! A native of Columbia, make sure your princess gets lots of bright indirect sunlight and she’ll reward you with maximum variegation.
Let the top layer of soil dry out between waterings as these pretty pink plants are very susceptible to root rot.
So there you have it!
So you’re probably spoiled for choice now we’ve given you 16 wonderfully unusual house plants to ponder over adding to your collection. Hopefully, you’ve got more than enough plant-spiration to create your dreamy indoor jungle!
