Chinese Evergreen (Aglaonema sp.)

Chinese Evergreen Plant Features

Chinese evergreen (Aglaonema), is one of the best plants for beginners (or folks too busy to keep most houseplants alive). This sturdy plant is wonderfully easy to grow; it tolerates just about every indoor condition. While it's one of the toughest plants, it's also beautiful. Most varieties have rich green leaves attractively patterned with silver. It also has cute, calla-lily-like blooms in spots where it gets enough light.

Chinese evergreen, when it's young, is small enough to fit on desks, tabletops, and other surfaces. It's a slow-growing plant, so you can enjoy it without worrying if it will grow out of bounds. Older, larger plants are suited to growing on the floor --- in corners, next to furniture, or as an accent piece along a wall. The silvery tones in Chinese evergreen's leaves let you have some fun choosing pots; the neutral color works with just about every decor color palette and style.

Chinese evergreen questions?
Email us and one of our houseplant experts will get back to you.

Chinese evergreen is one of the Plants of Steel. Discover the others!
Red aglaonema is a more colorful version of this plant. Learn more!

Buy Costa Farms Aglaonema

Buy it online and have it shipped fresh from our farm, direct to your door from our online plant shop. Or find it online or at your favorite local garden center from one of our our retailer partners.

Buy now

Chinese Evergreen Growing Instructions

You can grow Chinese evergreen just about anywhere in your home --- it tolerates low light well, but also grows well in bright spots. It doesn't even need natural light to thrive --- Chinese evergreen does just fine in offices with fluorescent lighting.

The plant is equally low-care when it comes to water; you can water regularly, keeping the soil evenly moist, or water once every few weeks and Chinese evergreen will do equally well. It doesn't require fertilizer, but will grow best if fertilized once or twice a year in spring or summer (or every six months) with a general-purpose houseplant fertilizer.

Chinese evergreen is not recommended for human or animal consumption.

Water

Low water needs
Light

Indoors: Low light

Indoors: Medium light
Colors

Green

Silver

Variegated
Special Features

Super-easy to grow

Complement your Chinese Evergreen

Pothos
Chinese evergreen has an upright, mounding shape. Contrast it with the vining stems of pothos.

Snake Plant
Snake plant is the perfect partner for Chinese evergreen. They're both some of the best indoor plants and look beautiful together.

ZZ Plant
A fellow Plant of Steel, ZZ plant is as tough as they come. Its shiny green foliage complements Chinese evergreen perfectly.

Our favorite varieties

Silver Queen

Aglaonema 'Silver Queen'

Silver Queen' is a variety of Chinese evergreen that features dark green leaves striped with silver. It's a great indoor plant for medium or low light.

Maria

Aglaonema Maria

Maria' is a stunning variety of no-fuss Chinese evergreen that offers shiny, dark green leaves that have silvery markings.

Romeo

Aglaonema Romeo

A lovely variety, Romeo Chinese evergreen has long, narrow silver leaves marked with dark green.

Queen Juliana

Aglaonema Queen Juliana

An excellent Chinese evergreen to mix with other varieties in your collection, Queen Juliana shows off mostly green leaves is a cinch to grow.

Silver Bay

Aglaonema Silver Bay

One of the most common Chinese evergreen varieties, Silver Bay bears silvery leaves outlined in rich, deep green.

Emerald Beauty

Aglaonema Emerald Beauty

Emerald Beauty is a stunning variety of Chinese evergreen that offers dark green leaves accented by feather-like markings of silvery gray.

Nicole

Aglaonema Nicole

You'll love this Chinese evergreen, which offers medium-green leaves that have a broad silver stripe running down the center.

Golden Bay

Aglaonema 'Golden Bay'

Golden Bay Chinese evergreen was developed by the University of Florida and shows off gray-green leaves with a creamy-white center and silvery variegation. It's one of the easiest houseplants to grow.

Cecilia

Aglaonema 'Cecilia'

Cecilia is an exceptionally beautiful Chinese evergreen that features wide, silvery-green leaves variegated with dark green speckles.

Slim Jim

Aglaonema Slim Jim

Giving your Chinese evergreen collection a decidedly different feel, Slim Jim shows off long, narrow leaves that offer a stunning textural contrast to other varieties. The foliage is dark green with lighter green variegation. It also offers striking white stems.

Edgy White

Aglaonema Edgy White

Edgy White is an amazingly tolerant variety that shows off dark green leaves edged in white. The petioles and stems are also white, adding to the contrast.