As much as I love green, nothing beats the allure of rosy reds and deep maroons. They add a dynamic splash of color to a room and impart a touch of warmth to the decor. And what better way to add color to a space than with houseplants?
In this article, I’ll introduce you to some of the most eye-catching house plants with red leaves to add a spark of romance and color to your home. From shades of deep maroon to faint red, you’ll surely find a red houseplant that catches your eye.
Let’s dive right!
- Coleus Wizard Scarlet
The Coleus Wizard Scarlet is an herbaceous perennial with distinctive red and yellow leaves. It’s a low-maintenance plant and one of the easiest to grow and propagate. It thrives in fertile, well-draining soil and grows best in areas with partial shade.
The flowers of this plant aren’t as beautiful as its leaves. In fact, the flowers may actually detract from their ornamental features. As such, the blooms are often pinched off during the blooming season as they don’t add any aesthetic value to the plant.
The Coleus Wizard Scarlet is heat tolerant and well-branched but doesn’t do all that well in cold temperatures. Therefore, it must be potted and brought indoors when winter comes.
- Philodendron Imperial Red
Native to South America’s tropical forests, the Philodendron Imperial Red, also known as Red Leaf Plant or Blushing Philodendron, is an evergreen perennial plant with glossy leaves that starts off as bright reddish-green and turns darker over time.
The Philodendron Imperial Red is an easy-care plant that adapts to various temperatures and conditions. It’s sturdy, robust, and long-lasting, making it a great plant for beginners.
The only thing you need to look out for is humidity levels. Since it’s native to rainforests, its ideal humidity is as high as 70%. Ensure the humidity levels are between 50 to 70%.
- Poinsettia
Said to represent the Star of Bethlehem, the Poinsettia is a holiday plant that’s closely associated with Christmas time.
It’s a finicky, short-day plant with specific growing needs, so it’s not the easiest to care for. It needs just the right amount of light, water, and temperature conditions to thrive past the winter season.
The Poinsettia enjoys semi-cool, humid locations and bright, indirect light for six to eight hours. It needs to be watered at least one to two times a week, lest it wilts under your care. Make sure the pot has enough drainage holes as excess water can lead to root rot.
- Phalaenopsis Scarlett Jubilee
The Phalaenopsis Scarlett Jubilee, also known as the Scarlett Moth Orchid, is a cross between the Phalaenopsis Clara I. Knight and the Phaliella New Horizon.
The Phalaenopsis Scarlett Jubilee has maroon-red blooms with short, leafy stems and coarse, long roots. The leaf base often overlaps each other, making it look lush and abundant. The leaves themselves are large and almost leathery in both appearance and texture.
Though it appears delicate, the Phalaenopsis Scarlett Jubilee is actually quite hardy and easy to care for. It’s a low-maintenance plant, so it doesn’t need all that much attention to thrive. With enough sunlight and water, the plant can be kept for years.
- Begonia Barkos Baladin
The Begonia Barkos Baladin is a perennial flowering plant that produces bright red blooms in abundance throughout the season.
It’s hardy and low-maintenance, making it another great choice for beginners. Besides the occasional pruning, it doesn’t need all that much attention. It’s known to “self-clean,” so deadheading isn’t necessary.
Heat and drought-tolerant, the Begonia Barkos Baladin thrives in both sun and shade. It needs consistent watering but doesn’t like to be left too wet. Watering should be done every two to four days when the top of the soil is relatively dry to the touch.
- Hypoestes Phyllostachys Confetti Red
The Hypoestes Phyllostachys Confetti Red, also known as Polka Dot Confetti Red or Freckle Face, is a flowering plant native to South Africa, South East Asia, and Madagascar. Its leaves are heart-shaped and speckled with dark green and bright red blotches.
The Hypoestes Phyllostachys Confetti Red blooms sporadically during the summer. When grown indoors, it requires bright indirect light from an east- or south-facing window. It prefers organically rich soil with decent drainage and moderate amounts of soil moisture at all times.
This plant thrives best in humid conditions, preferring a humidity level of at least 50%.
- Caladium
Caladium plants, also known as Hearts of Jesus, Angel Wings, or Elephant Ears, are bi-colored flowering plants with contrasting borders and backgrounds. They come in dozens of colors and species, making them a fantastic ornamental plant that brightens up any interior.
Some of the most gorgeous Caladium variants with red and green leaves include the Florida Sweetheart, the Florida Red Ruffles, the Red Flash, and the Bombshell.
These plants grow best in rich, well-draining potting mix and high humidity. During the growing season, they need to be fertilized every two weeks.
- Anthurium
Anthurium, also known as Tailflower, Laceleaf, Painter’s Palette, or Flamingo Flower, is a heart-shaped plant with bright, shiny red leaves and a bright yellow spadix.
Like most aroids, Anthurium plants can be grown indoors all year round. They’re relatively easy to take care of and don’t require much maintenance.
It grows best in humid conditions at temperatures of 60°F to 90°F. It tolerates all levels of indirect light, but grows slower and blooms fewer flowers in low light. Depending on the species, it can grow anywhere between 20 to 35 inches at full growth.
- Aglaonema
Aglaonema, also known as Chinese Evergreen, is a flowering plant native to the tropical and subtropical regions of New Guinea and Asia. It comes in various colors, including red, green, pink, and silver.
Popular red cultivars of this category include Red Anjamani, Valentine, and Siam Aurora.
Red Anjamani Aglaonemas have bright red oval leaves with pointed tips, while Valentine Aglaonemas have big red leaves with green margins. Siam Auroras have red and green lanceolate leaves with rich veining and margins.
Aglaonema plants are easy to grow and take care of. They’re slow-growing, so they only need to be repotted every three or so years. They grow best in moist soil and bright, indirect light, though they won’t complain if placed in lower-light conditions.
- Neoregelia Carolinae
The Neoregelia Carolinae, also known as Blushing Bromeliad, is one of the most common indoor species of the neoregelia genus. It’s best known for its tendency to “blush” before blooming. Its leaves are green towards the top and red towards the center.
The Neoregelia Carolinae grows well indoors as long as it’s provided with the right amount of sunlight and temperature. It thrives in humid environments, so you may need to invest in a humidifier if you live in a cold region.
As for the temperature, it does best in 65 to 80ºF, with a minimum of 50ºF.
- Acalypha Wilkesiana
Known for its striking, brightly-colored red leaves, the Acalypha Wilkesiana, also known as Copper Leaf, Fire Dragon, or Jacob’s Coat, is a fast-growing evergreen plant native to Fiji and South Pacific islands.
It has a closely arranged crown, with an upright stem and branches covered in fine hairs. Its coppery-red leaves are large and wide with teeth around the edges.
Indoors, it can grow up to five to six feet in proper conditions. Outdoors, this plant can shoot up to an impressive 15 feet.
The Acalypha Wilkesiana needs to be placed in a space with partial-to-full sunlight. If grown indoors, it must be placed in a soilless potting mix. The soil needs just enough water to become evenly moist. If the water pools above the surface for more than a minute, it needs to be reduced.
- Fittonia
Fittonia, also known as Nerve Plant, is a spreading evergreen plant with veined, red-green leaves.
When raised as a houseplant, it can be somewhat temperamental and tricky to grow. It requires constant humidity and doesn’t tolerate stagnant conditions. Frequent misting is necessary to keep it glowing year-round.
Fittonia is sensitive to strong, direct sunlight and will quickly develop leaf burn if left under the sun for a few hours. As such, it needs to be placed in indirect light, such as that offered by north-facing windows.
- Peperomia
Peperomia, also known as Radiator Plant, is a small tropical indoor plant with red-green leaves and red stems. The Emerald Ripple Red, the Red Log Peperomia, the Jelly Radiator Plant, and the Peperomia Rubella all belong to the red-flowering species of Peperomia.
Peperomia plants don’t need a lot of sunlight and generally prefer to grow in partial shade. It needs loose, well-draining soil and regular watering, but not to the point that the ground gets soggy.
As for temperature, they do well in rooms with temperatures between 65 and 80ºF and moderate to high humidity levels.
- Codiaeum Variegatum
Known for its colorful foliage, the Codiaeum Variegatum, or simply Croton, is an easy-to-grow houseplant with nearly limitless leaf forms.
It needs a lot of light to produce colorful leaves, so it should be placed in eastern, southern, or western windows.
When caring for this plant, keep the room above 60°F and the humidity level at 40 to 80%. Placing it in areas with low humidity may cause the plant’s leaves to wilt and fall. If your room can’t reach 40 to 80% humidity, a plant humidifier will help.
- Sedum Rubrotinctum Aurora
The Sedum Rubrotinctum Aurora, also known as Pink Jelly Bean or Pink Pork and Bean, is an indoor succulent plant with plump, pinkish-red leaves that fade into a pale green hue. It can grow up to six inches and can spread up to three feet if not contained.
Like most succulent plants, the Aurora is extremely low maintenance. It needs a lot of sunlight to grow, so placing it in a south-facing or west-facing window is ideal. It isn’t too picky with its soil; it grows in well-draining, sand, garden, and even poor soil with no issues.
Temperature-wise, try to keep it between 65°F to 75°F during summer. If the temperature drops below 50°F, the plant’s leaves might lose their plumpness and suffer from frost damage.
- Sempervivum Red Lion
The Sempervivum Red Lion is a maroon-red succulent that has small “hairs” growing around the leaves, thus giving it the “lion” moniker. It’s an extremely hardy plant that can tolerate cold temperatures of up to -30°F.
Like the Sedum Rubrotinctum Aurora, the Sempervivum Red Lion needs to be placed in an area with plenty of sunlight, especially during the winter months.
If your room doesn’t get much natural light, you can supplement it with an artificial grow light to ensure the succulent meets its daily light requirements.
During the summer, the Sempervivum Red Lion needs to be watered once a week. When winter comes, the watering routine should be reduced to once a month.
Though it tolerates most temperatures, the Sempervivum Red Lion grows best in temperatures between 65 and 75°F.
- Bromeliad Guzmania
The Bromeliad Guzmania is a perennial plant that grows in the tropical forests of Northwest South America and the Caribbean. It’s best known for the colorful bracts that grow from the center of the plant, which can be red, purple, yellow, or orange depending on the species.
The Bromeliad Guzmania is easy to take care of. It prefers bright, indirect light but can tolerate lower light if need be. It thrives in temperatures of at least 55°F and moderates to high humidity environments. To keep it looking its best, it needs to be misted regularly.
- Tradescantia Spathacea Dwarf Tricolor
The Tradescantia Spathacea, also known as Oyster Plant, Boat Lily, or Moses-in-the-Cradle, is an eye-catching easy-to-grow houseplant with deep red-purple foliage.
It grows best in well-draining soil and indirect light with temperatures of 55 to 80°F. It prefers bright light, but it can tolerate dimmer indoor conditions. However, the foliage may lose its reddish color and become greener when placed in low-light conditions.
The Tradescantia Spathacea grows anywhere between six to eight inches tall. When given enough light, you’ll be rewarded with purple boat-shaped bracts year-round.