5 Hardest Plants to Grow Indoors: High-Maintenance Choices
Why Are These Houseplants So Hard to Keep Alive?
Published: March 4, 2025 | Updated: September 12, 2026
Back when I worked in a plant shop, I saw the same scenario play out over and over again: hopeful plant parents would bring home a gorgeous new leafy friend, only to return weeks later, heartbroken, with a sad, crispy, or mysteriously wilting mess.
Some plants are just dramatic! If you’re new to the houseplant hobby, pressed for time, or simply want an easygoing green companion, stick with tried-and-true indoor plants like pothos, ZZ plant, and snake plant.
But if you’re curious about the hardest plants to grow indoors, these five high-maintenance houseplants gave people the most trouble. Let’s take a look!
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Fiddle Leaf Fig
Botanical name: Ficus lyrata
Image © kb group via Canva
The fiddle leaf fig is a popular houseplant and a favorite of interior designers, renowned for its height and striking sculptural leaves.
However, it is equally notorious for being a finicky plant and one of the hardest house plants to grow and keep alive long-term.
Fiddle leaf figs are native to the tropical jungles of Africa, and they have specific humidity and lighting requirements that can be difficult to replicate indoors.
They thrive in bright, indirect light, yet are sensitive to direct sun and lower light levels, which can cause their leaves to drop.
Achieving the right balance of moisture is another challenge - they love water, but too much and their roots will brown and rot; not enough, and their leaves will brown and drop.
Fiddle leaf figs do not like cold temperatures and drafts, and will shed their leaves in protest.
These plants are also susceptible to insect pests like mealy bugs, mites, scale, whiteflies and aphids.
If you want a tall, sculptural and elegant plant without the hassle, try the more forgiving and less finicky cousin of the fiddle-leaf fig: Ficus Audrey.
2. Pinstripe Plant
Botanical name: Calathea ornata ‘Pinstripe’
Image © carlofranco via Canva
The pinstripe plant is notorious among plant enthusiasts for being one of the hardest plants to grow indoors.
This stunning houseplant is admired for its striking pink-striped leaves and vibrant green coloration.
However, the pinstripe plant is a finicky choice that demands constant attention and a controlled environment to thrive.
This houseplant dies easily because it struggles outside its native environment, the tropical rainforest understory, where high humidity and low light levels are the norm.
Leaves will brown and curl without enough humidity, and too much light will cause the pink coloration to fade.
It’s also sensitive to both under-watering and overwatering, making consistent soil moisture a must.
If you want a less demanding plant with striking leaf coloration, try a Marble Queen pothos. It’s much easier to care for, and extremely forgiving if you forget to water!
3. Maidenhair Fern
Botanical name: Adiantum species
Image © kjohansen via Canva
Maidenhair ferns, with their delicate, feathery fronds, are among the hardest plants to grow indoors. These ferns require extremely precise and consistent care to survive!
The maidenhair fern genus Adiantum is native to stream banks, tropical forests and moist, shaded woodlands. It thrives in high humidity and consistent moisture, conditions that are hard to replicate in most homes.
Low humidity causes maidenhair fern leaves to dry out and brown quickly, and they are also highly sensitive to temperature fluctuations and drafts.
Inconsistent watering patterns make them wilt, and they will succumb to underwatering in no time.
Keeping a maidenhair fern happy requires the right balance of light, water, and humidity. This can be challenging, especially for plant lovers with busy schedules.
Instead of a maidenhair fern, try a bird’s nest fern. It’s more forgiving if you forget to water, and not as fussy about humidity levels.
4. Venus Flytrap
Botanical name: Dionaea muscipula
Image © photocpl via Canva
Venus flytraps are carnivorous houseplants, commonly sold as novelty plants at grocery stores and big box retailers where many people purchase them on a whim.
These fascinating plants are native to boggy areas of the Southern United States, and maintaining the right conditions in your home to mimic these boggy conditions can be a complex task.
Venus flytraps require at least 6 hours of full sun daily, and must have consistently moist soil.
These plants do not like alkaline or mineral-rich water. Avoid watering Venus flytraps with tap water and use distilled water or rainwater instead.
They need a period of dormancy and cooler temperatures during the winter, and replicating these conditions can be demanding for any well-intentioned plant lover!
If you are looking for an interesting, unusual plant without the high maintenance of a venus flytrap, try a living stone plant (Lithops) for a fun, low-maintenance succulent plant that needs little watering.
5. Florist Hydrangea
Botanical name: Hydrangea macrophylla
Image © Plant and Bloom Design Studio
Florist hydrangeas are commonly sold as gift plants around Mother’s Day and other spring holidays. Although they look beautiful indoors, they are bigleaf hydrangea shrubs and are difficult to maintain as long-term houseplants.
These hydrangeas prefer partial shade and fertile, consistently moist, well-draining soil. Indoors, their small pots dry out quickly, causing the flowers and leaves to wilt when watering is even slightly inconsistent.
If you already have one, my guide to caring for a potted hydrangea indoors explains how to keep it looking its best while it blooms and what to do with it afterward.
For a more dependable flowering houseplant, try a moth orchid or Easter cactus instead. Both are easier to maintain and can live for many years indoors.
More Houseplant Guides
Once you’ve chosen the right plant for your home, these guides can help you keep it healthy and avoid a few common problems: