Zebra Plant 🦓

Scientific Name: Aphelandra squarrosa

⚠Toxicity⚠

The Zebra Plant is considered NON-TOXIC to both cats and dogs

It’s important to remember that any plant may cause vomiting and gastrointestinal upset in cats and dogs, and those with large leaves can be a choking hazard. If you believe that your pet is ill or may have ingested a poisonous substance contact either your local veterinarian or the APCC 24-hour emergency poison hotline at 1-888-426-4435

General Info

ℹ Zebra plants are a jungle plant native to southern Brazil and are named for their dark green, glossy leaves with white veins. Some folks consider Zebra Plants to be finicky and hard to care for, but if you pay attention to their foliage, they are great at communicating their needs. If you take extra care, you can coax a bloom out of them 1-2 times per year, and Ralphie says they look delicious! 😼

❓ Let me know in the comments if you have any questions regarding the Zebra Plant or suggestions for plants you would like me to talk about in the future

Care Instructions

🔪How to Murder

Don’t give this plant enough water and it will die a horrible, thirsty death after it begins to droop and drop its lower leaves. They will turn brown at the tips first, signaling you should begin life-saving measures if you’re into that kinda thing

Keep it somewhere dry and cold if you wanna make Zebra Plant sad, but why would you want that?! You sicko

Drowning is always an option

🌍Soil

Zebra Plants prefer rich, damp, airy soil that drains quickly. African violet potting mix combined with crushed charcoal works well. If you prefer to make your own mix, try a blend of 1 part potting soil, 1 part sand, and 2 parts peat moss

💦Water

Use room-temperature, filtered or “aged” water (water left in an open container for several days to remove chlorine) if possible

Keep the soil moist but not wet and empty the catch saucer under the plant after every watering to avoid root rot

During winter, you can let the soil dry out a little, but the goal is to maintain a very low level of constant moisture

Mist during spring and summer if you are certain the water will evaporate quickly, do not leave a lot of standing water on the leaves to avoid damaging them

💩Fertilizer

In spring and summer, feed a 20-20-20 liquid fertilizer every 1-2 weeks. You can use a slow-release fertilizer if desired. Do not fertilize in the winter and water the plant before fertilizing to avoid burning the roots

🌞Environment

Place the plant in a bright area with sunlight that is indirect or filtered by a sheer curtain

Keep room temperature 70°F (18°C) or higher

Zebra plants prefer high humidity, so keeping them in a terrarium or other enclosed, glass case is best if you are unable to keep your home’s humidity between 40-80%

🌷Flowers

The blossoming Zebra Plant will first grow bracts, gorgeous, modified leaves from which flowers will emerge

To encourage the plant to bloom, start to use a weak fertilizer solution every 2 weeks in late winter, as new growth begins

Once side shoots begin to sprout and new flower heads begin to appear, place the plant in a very bright area (not direct sunlight) and increase watering

Though the flowers will typically die after a few days, the bracts can remain for several months. They should be removed once they begin to die, followed by a pruning to facilitate new growth in the next year

👩‍🌾Re-potting

Zebra Plants should not need to be re-potted every year, as they can handle being a bit root-bound

Wait until the end of winter to re-pot

Use a container that is 1 inch larger than the current one and has holes for drainage in the bottom

Pour an inch of rich, well-draining potting mix into the new container

Gently hold the plant as close to the soil line as possible, turn the pot sideways, and slowly pull the plant out

Put the plant in the new container and fill up the area around the plant, taking care not to change how high the soil line is on the plant and gently spreading the roots out

✂Pruning

As your plant completes its blooming cycle, snip off the flower bract to avoid lower leaves drooping and dropping

To keep the plant lower to the ground, prune the stem and leaves back until as few as two leaves remain

🌱Propagation

Water the day before propagation to ensure proper hydration

From a cutting:

Select a healthy stem 4-6” long and use pruning shears to snip it from the plant

Dip the bottom of the new cutting in rooting hormone and plant it in the container, you can plant several cuttings in the same container if desired

Give the soil a good misting and place the container inside a plastic bag or other transparent container that you can poke holes in, but make sure you keep the plastic from directly contacting the cuttings

Don’t let the soil dry out, but reduce watering and poke a hole in the plastic for ventilation if condensation develops

Keep the container out of direct sunlight and between 70-80°F (21-27°C)

Once the cuttings have taken root, re-pot each one its own 3-inch pot

Keep the soil moist but not soaking wet and mist the leaves once or twice a week

Air Layering:

Select a healthy stem

Remove some leaves from the center to expose two inches or so of stem

Make an incision halfway into the stem and use part of a toothpick to prop the incision open

Coat the incision and surrounding area in rooting hormone

Wrap moist sphagnum moss around the incision, wrap the stem and moss in plastic wrap, and use twist ties to seal it and retain moisture

After a month or so, you should see roots begin to develop in the moss. Once this happens, cut the stem free and re-pot the cutting, ensuring the plant is kept in high humidity until it has fully taken root and is established in its new home