Spider Ivy Plant

Basic Facts

• Also known as the airplane plant, hen-and-chickens, ribbonplant, spider-ivy, spider plant, walking anthericum, the spider ivy plant grows its long narrow leaves from a central rosette. The rosette is a tightly clustered circle of leaves, a type of modified stem. The spider plant then produces new shoots, and branched stems with white flowers. The plant also produces "plantlets" or baby plants, which have small pom-pom-like clusters of young leaves.

Leaves and Flowers

• The spider ivy plant's leaves vary from green to white-striped. The leaf can have a white stripe running down the center ridge of the leaf or have two stripes, creating a border for the leaf. The small, white flower grow in singly, at around 3/4 inch wide. The flowers can be present on the plant all year with the correct conditions.

Clean Air

• Spider ivy plants, along with a number of other household ivies and lilies, clean the air. A spider plant acts as an anti-pollutant in homes, reducing indoor air pollution and volatile organic compounds such as toluene, benzene and formaldehyde. A NASA study found that spider plants are one of the top three plants to filter toxins, according to Beate Schwirtlich with the You Grow Girl website.

Sunlight

• The spider ivy plant is not picky about light, but will grow most ideally in a filtered sunny location, such as on a window sill by a large tree, according to horticulture experts with Texas A&M University's Horticulture Department. Some forms of the spider plant can scorch and die in the sun. If any sign of distress, such as browning or yellowing leaves appears, move the plant indoors into a dimmer conditions.

Soil and Water

• The plant thrives in pots or in hanging baskets, as long as the soil is well drained, not clay-like or dense. Watering the plant once every two weeks, unless it is extremely hot and dry outside, will suffice. Let the soil dry completely before watering again to avoid over-saturation.