What are the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed? Whether you are a beginner enthusiast in keeping plants, wondering how to grow plants from seeds fast, or you just need some plants that don’t need sunlight for office, you will find your answers here.
There are many plants that are easy to grow indoors. Some of them are also helpful as air cleaners. Some of the popular and the best indoor plants for clean air, also very easy to grow are Chinese evergreen, Weeping fig or Draecena. But those mentioned are not as easy to grow from the seed. There are many plants which seeds you can find easily, but they are not as easy to grow. Those are for example some fruits, but, as you will see further down on our list, there are some easy fruits to grow indoors as well.
Copyright: dachazworks / 123RF Stock Photo
Anyhow, perhaps the first mistake people make is not knowing what plant they actually have. The first thing you should do is find a way to identify house plants. For that you can look for some books and other resources with indoor plants names and pictures. Also, when you plant your seeds, make sure to label the pots to avoid mistakes.
The secret of having healthy nice plants is to know what conditions they require. First starting from the seed. Make sure to purchase healthy seeds from a reliable vendor. Other possibilities are finding seeds on your own, like famous growing avocados from seeds hacks (which don’t give satisfying results in most cases). But anyway, when you have purchased/gathered the seed, be sure to get some knowledge about germination time and process, the amount of heat and water seedlings require and best soil for the future plant.
When you have successfully grown your sprouts, it is time for the next steps. Make sure your sprouts have enough space in nice pots with good drainage system (make sure pots have holes). Be careful when choosing the right soil type, for example, the best soil for succulents in pots is the one that has good drainage properties (but you probably will not consider succulents the easiest plants to grow from seed). When choosing soil, get informed on acidity your plants need. Then be careful on the amount of water and humidity they require.
Then be careful about the spot where you want to place your plant because the amount of light needed is another important issue when keeping plants. Plants need sunlight for the process of photosynthesis which is vital for their growth and survival. But there are many indoor plants that don’t need sunlight, well, at least not direct sunlight. Some of those indoor plants requiring low light are Dracaenas (already mentioned as one of the popular and best indoor trees), Dieffenbachias or Ferns. Ferns, for example, are one of those outdoor plants that don’t need sunlight, since they grow in shady forests, and are pretty easy to grow indoors. But if you don’t have sufficient sunlight, you can provide your plants with artificial light, because there are plants that can grow in fluorescent light, which is very popular for indoor gardening. There is a choice of cool-white or warm-white fluorescent light, and it is a great option since fluorescent tubes are cheap and energy saving. But some of those indoor trees requiring low light such as tree philodendron, dracaena or bamboo palm cannot be grown from seeds.
Now, out of curiosity, one might ask whether there are plants that grow in complete darkness. As we have already said, plants require sunlight for photosynthesis, but, there were some scientific researches that have developed synthetic photoreceptors that enabled plants to grow in complete darkness. And just for fun, you can try your own Can plants grow without sunlight science project (or perhaps try out some other Biology Science Fair Projects for High School Students).
Ok, since we have mastered that plants that grow in dark actually need some light, let’s get back to our main focus here, the easiest indoor plants that you can grow from seed. And having met the requirements for growing and taking care of the plant, you may still decide to start with an already grown plant, and for that we may recommend you to take a look at 10 Easiest Flowers to Grow Indoors. There are plenty of small indoor plants easy to grow, some of which you can find in 7 Easiest Dwarf Fruit Trees to Grow in Containers or Mini Garden
The resources we have gone through in order to prepare our list were The Spruce, Thompson&Morgan, Better Homes & Gardens Get Busy Gardening, and Minq. We have also seen some of the experiences people had with growing plants from seeds on houzz.
You you will find some of the easiest vegetables to grow indoors on our list as well, but you might get better ideas for those in 11 Easiest Garden Vegetables to Grow. There are many interesting ideas on how to grow vegetables indoors in your apartment from scraps for example. In that case you can consider growing vegetables indoors hydroponically, as they generally need plenty of water to grow. That is an excellent choice for growing vegetables indoors, but you will have to reconsider some requirements on how to grow vegetables indoors without soil first. So, first choose some of the easy veggies you can grow hydroponically. Those can be lettuce or spinach, which you can grow directly from water, or tomatoes, for example, where you would have to get bigger containers and support roots with gravel or some other material. Considering this hobby more seriously, you will also need to get informed on the issue of growing vegetables indoors with lights. Right light color, duration and intensity are very important for growing healthy veggies. And finally, you can decide growing vegetables indoors year round, at any season, not worrying about plant cycles as long as you give them the right conditions.
But since this is not only a vegetable oriented list of course, we have found many other interesting indoor plants as well, so make sure you get fresh seeds, and good luck with trying out some of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed:
17. Sensitive tree (Albizia julibrissin)
We have placed this tender, sensitive plant at the last place on our list of the easiest indoor plants to grow for several reasons. First, it is a tree, and second, it takes somewhat of more care than other plants listed here. But nevertheless, growing it from seed should not be a hard work.
Pixabay/Public Domain
16. Peace lily (Spathiphyllum spp.)
Peace lily is a popular flowering plant, not requiring much light and care, and it’s just being pretty. Just be sure to get all the ingredients it seeds require for sprouting, and your job around this plant is almost done.
Pixabay/Public Domain
15. Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)
This is a very easy plant to grow in your home, and being a tropical species, only requires a lot of humidity and water, but not over water them! It is also one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seeds.
Pixabay/Public Domain
14. Geranium (Geranium genus)
With many varieties of this flower, Geraniums are very popular as indoor plants. Although mainly grown from cuttings, Geraniums can also be grown from seeds, with the instructions recommended by researchers of Iowa State University.
Pixabay/Public Domain
13. Hoya (Hoya genus)
We are continuing our list of easiest indoor plants to grow from seed with Hoyas that are very attractive flowering plants with waxy leaves and flowers, descending from Asia, Australia, and surrounding islands. The tricky thing with growing them is to have very fresh seeds that will germinate quickly.
Pixabay/Public Domain
12. Jade tree (Crassula ovata)
Jade tree is one of those plants you can literally forget they exist because they require so little attention. It is a succulent plant, and although succulents can be tricky to grow from seed we can say that this plant is an exception. Just follow the instructions on how to properly grow it from seed at the beginning, and the rest would be a piece of cake.
Pixabay/Public Domain
11. Boston fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)
Of all ferns Boston fern is probably the most popular fern to grow as well as one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed. In order to start growing it from seed, you will need to purchase or gather your own seed. Actually, to be more precise, ferns do not have seeds, but spores, since they are very ancient types of plants.
Pixabay/Public Domain
10. Citrus plants (Citrus genus)
These are plants you can experiment on your own. Just choose any, lemon, mandarin, orange, that you regularly buy at your grocery store. Growing sprouts from seeds is pretty easy, you can put them in the soil or in the water, and they will germinate quickly. Continuing to grow citrus plants later on will not take as much attention as they will need time. So be patient if you want to see a little tree in your pot.
Pixabay/Public Domain
9. Columnea (Columnea genus)
Our number nine on the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed list are these tropical flowering plants, with over 200 species, and many hybrids kept as indoor plants. Hybrid Columneas are recommended for beginners in plant growing, since they are more adaptable to not so ideal conditions. Also, seed germination takes up to two weeks.
8. Nasturtium (Tropaeolum genus)
Nasturtium (meaning nose-twister), is a nice flowering plant that can easily be grown in pots, although it is a common outdoor plant. Nasturtium needs a bit of care when sown, but interestingly you can use this plant in cooking, since it is edible.
Pixabay/Public Domain
7. Chili peppers (Capsicum genus)
We have not picked any particular species of chili peppers, let the choice be yours. Chili peppers are very attractive (and useful) plants, and they are easily grown in pots. Once you buy seeds and successfully grow your own plants, you will have your own seeds for the next season! Definitely one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed.
Pixabay/Public Domain
6. Asparagus fern (Asparagus setaceus)
Although called fern because its leaves resemble fern’s leaves, asparagus is not a type of fern. But nevertheless, it is a nice plant not requiring much attention. Growing it from seeds requires some preparation, but it is not much of a hard work to successfully grow it.
Pixabay/Public Domain
5. Oregano (Origanum vulgare)
Oregano is a popular herb and one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed as well. Once you get them to sprout, keep them in a warm, dry and sunny spot.
Pixabay/Public Domain
4. African violets (Saintpaulia genus)
These are popular and common tender flower plants. Although the most common and easiest way of reproducing this plant at home is by the leaves, why not trying to grow them on from seeds? It only takes from one to nine weeks to grow your African violet sprout.
Pixabay/Public Domain
3. Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
Yet another, well known herb, used widely in many cuisines is one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed. It is also very easy to grow in pots, and use it in the kitchen, and as a natural mosquito repellent!
Pixabay/Public Domain
2. Coleus (Coleus genus)
This is primarily outdoor plant, but since it is so easy to grow, it is very popular as an indoor plant as well. Apart from being easy to grow from seed, it grows quickly and does not require much attention.
Pixabay/Public Domain
1. Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
Spider plant is surely one of the easiest indoor plants to grow from seed, and not only from seed, it is literally indestructible. You can grow it in pots, or water, keep it in shade or light, it will be happy with literally anything. This plant is also a great air purifier, so if nothing else, this should convince you to try growing spider plant.
Pixabay/Public Domain
