Use these instructions to care for an Ant Plant. This guide will tell you how to water an Ant Plant; its light, temperature, humidity preferences and any additional care it might need to help it grow.
Your Ant Plant loves to bask in indirect bright light or near a window where it receives indirect, filtered light. Too much light will scorch the leaves, but it will not tolerate low light conditions.
Water only when 50-75% of the soil volume is dry. This succulent-like plant does not tolerate soggy soil. Also, remember to water directly into the soil away from the caudex since it’s prone to rot.
Your Ant Plant also loves moisture in the air, but you’ll need to avoid misting or using a humidifier to protect the caudex from excessive moisture. A pebble tray filled with water would suffice.
Your Ant Plant prefers temperatures between 65-75°F. It also grows best away from vents and drafts.
Feed once in the spring and once in the summer with a general-purpose fertilizer at half-strength. Always fertilize on damp soil since these plants are sensitive to fertilizer. No fertilizer is needed in the fall and winter.
This plant is considered toxic to humans and pets if ingested.
The Ant Plant’s base is hollow with sticky sap, which makes them the perfect symbiotic partner for ants in the jungle. Not to worry, they won’t invite these guests into your home!
The ant plant,Myrmephytum selebicum, is native to the warm tropics of Indonesia. They are epiphytic in nature, meaning they grow on trees. Their base, or caudex, is hollow with sticky sap, which makes them the perfect symbiotic partner for ants in the jungle. Not to worry, they won’t invite these guests into your home. In return for a nice home, the ants provide the plant with fertilization.
TheMyrmephytum selebicumis not the only plant referred to as an “Ant Plant”, while it is only one of five in the family Rubiaceae. Other ant plants can be found in theDischidiagenus and fern genusLecanopteris.
