A snake plant, generally, needs less care than other indoor plants.
It’s one of our favorite house plants because it’s so hardy and we love how they look.
But they do need a regular watering schedule if you want them to thrive.
So, here are some awesome tips for a watering method and schedule for your snake plant.
An Introduction To Snake Plants
The snake plant (also sometimes the Mother In Law’s Tongue or Dracaena Trifasciata) or Sansevieria is a super common choice of plant for an indoor garden plant collection and that’s because it doesn’t need direct sunlight, and can tolerate most watering mistakes too.
We’ve recommended snake plants in our best plants for a bachelor pad, best indoor plants for apartments, and our best plants for bathrooms. That’s because we think they’re awesome.
How Often Should You Water Your Snake Plant? (Indoor Plants Vs Outdoor Plants)
In general, a snake plant only requires watering every two weeks (say 10-14 days) and you should be looking to see that there’s dry soil before you give your plant a drink.
You should know that an overwatered snake plant will be fairly unhappy, so it’s best to plant them in free-draining soil and to remove any excess water from the plant saucer under the pot (it leaks from the drainage holes) at the end of every watering session.
If you can keep this plant as an indoor plant, as most snake plants are, then it’s a good idea to keep a careful eye on how you go about snake plant care as if the entire plant receives too much sun, it may need watering a bit more often than our schedule above suggests.
How To Tell If Your Snake Plant Is Watered Enough
Assuming you’ve used potting soil then this is quite an easy process.
Check the snake plant’s soil after you water it and make sure the topsoil is damp looking – if it is? You’ve given it enough water.
Then a couple of hours later just give it a gentle push with a finger. There should be no water rising to the surface but the soil should be a little moist to the touch.
That means the plant’s roots have enough water but you haven’t overwatered your own snake plant.
Finally, check back a day or two later, the soil will now have a few dry patches on it but should still feel a little moist.
An underwatered plant will have wilted leaves, it will start to shed more leaves than it grows, it will start to look a bit “brown” and the leaves will start to twist up on themselves.
Just water it a bit more regularly if you can to reverse these problems.
Root Rot Is A Sign Of Overwatered Snake Plants
If you overwater a snake plant then it will let you know and you need to start reducing the amount of water that you give it, immediately.
Warning signs include:
- The plant’s leaves begin to become drooping leaves like the plant is sad
- Mold patches may appear on the surface of the soil – which is an indicator of rot in the root system
- Fresh leaves start to shed from the plant
- You keep finding water in the saucer below the plant pot
- The plant starts to smell like it is rotting away
Final Notes
If you get the amount of light right for a snake plant (see how much light does a snake plant need) and the water, the plant pretty much takes care of itself.
You may need to feed 2-3 times a year too, but that’s about it.
This is why the plant has become so popular in American homes. It’s so easy to look after!
