Spider Plant Light Requirements: What Lighting Does Chlorophytum Need?

Spider plants have a reputation for growing just about anywhere. That reputation is mostly earned, but surviving and thriving aren’t the same thing, and light is where the difference shows.

The spider plant, Chlorophytum comosum (kloe-roe-fy-tum koe-MOE-sum), is a classic for hanging baskets, kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms. It is non-toxic to dogs and cats, which makes it an easy pick for homes with pets.

Light advice for spider plants can sound contradictory: “low light is fine,” “keep it bright,” “no direct sun.” Here’s what extension services and botanical gardens actually say, and how to turn that into the right spot in your home.

How Much Light Does a Spider Plant Need?

Bright, indirect light is the sweet spot. The RHS says spider plants are best placed in bright but indirect light, and the Missouri Botanical Garden says indoor plants need bright indirect sunlight. Clemson Extension agrees: spider plants grow best with bright indirect light.

Can they handle low light? Yes, up to a point. University of Missouri Extension says spider plants tolerate low light but grow best in the medium range. The plant prefers medium light levels yet can tolerate deep shade, and spider plants are happy in bright or low light indoors.

So a dim corner won’t kill a spider plant in a hurry, but it won’t show off there either. Fuller growth, brighter stripes and more babies all come with more light, as long as it isn’t harsh direct sun.

Signs Your Spider Plant Needs More Light

In relatively low light, growth will be slower and the leaves may lose their variegation. University of Minnesota Extension adds that houseplants short on light can turn pale green to yellow, drop older leaves and fail to flower, and that a variegated plant may revert to solid green.

Yellow leaves are a big clue. Yellowing spider plant leaves are usually due to a lack of light rather than a nutrient deficiency, so feed only if moving the plant to a brighter spot doesn’t help.

Not every faded stripe is a light problem, though. The cultivar ‘Hawaiian’ shows variegation on new leaves that fades with age, and University of Wisconsin–Madison Extension says the narrow white line on ‘White Stripe’ is lost as the leaf ages. Check the newest leaves before you move the plant.

Signs Your Spider Plant Is Getting Too Much Sun

Direct sun is the bigger risk, and advice differs only on how much the plant will put up with. Some guides call spider plant intolerant of direct sunlight; others say it can tolerate some direct sunlight, but midday light may scorch the leaves. The foliage will scald if placed in direct sun.

Avoid direct sunlight, especially in summer, because it can scorch the leaves, and too much strong sunlight can turn them yellow or brown. Variegated plants exposed to direct sun get leaf scorch, so keep them out of hot, bright spots in summer.

Brown tips can be a sun signal too. Bright sunlight is among the causes of brown leaf tips, along with too much or too little water, fluoride in tap water and very dry air. Tip burn also comes from too much fertilizer or water high in soluble salts, and low humidity and very dry soil can also brown the tips. If the tips are browning on a plant in a sunny window, light is one suspect on the list.

Easy fixes: hang a sheer curtain, move the pot a few feet back from the glass, or use a window that a tree or porch shades for part of the day.

Where To Put Your Spider Plant, Window by Window

University of Illinois Extension rates spider plant as a medium-light houseplant and gives this rule of thumb for medium light (about 150 foot-candles):

• North window: directly in front
• East or west window: a few feet away
• South window: 3 to 10 feet away

Spider plant is among the medium-light plants that grow well in east windows or near a west window, but out of direct sunlight. East and west windows suit many medium-light plants, but plants that don’t need bright light can be sunburned at a south window in late spring, summer or early fall; at those times, use the side or interior of a large south window. Even low-light plants usually don’t get enough light more than 10 feet from an average window.

Winter check: move spider plants a few feet from windows in winter to protect them from drafts.

One more habit worth keeping: give the pot a quarter turn every week or two so every side of the plant gets its share of the light.

Spider Plants Under Grow Lights and Office Lights

No bright window? No problem. Spider plant tolerates artificial light very well, which makes it an excellent plant for offices and commercial settings. Medium-light plants are often found where fluorescent lights are on all day, such as an office building.

Setting up a grow light at home? Put supplemental lights on a timer and give foliage houseplants 12 to 14 hours of total light a day. Most plants should sit with their tips 6 to 12 inches from the light source, because light intensity drops quickly with distance, though a range of 12 to 24 inches from the light is also given for foliage houseplants. Fluorescent tubes are one of the best artificial light sources for home plants, and LEDs are extremely energy-efficient.

How Light Affects Spider Plant Babies and Flowers

Those small white flowers and dangling babies depend partly on light. NC State Extension says the runners (stolons) and plantlets are light dependent and develop when the mother plant receives short days and long, uninterrupted nights, less than 12 hours of light a day, for at least three weeks. Indoors, though, these long stems may appear at any time of year, and spider plants produce most of their offshoots as the days shorten in fall.

If you want babies, keep that “uninterrupted nights” wording in mind before you set a grow light or lamp timer that runs late into the evening.

Light isn’t the whole story. Most spider plants won’t flower or produce plantlets until they’re at least a year old, and too little light, cool temperatures and an overly large pot can discourage flowering. Over-fertilizing can mean fewer plantlets, too.

Spider Plants Outdoors: Think Shade, Not Sun

Moving a spider plant outside for the summer? Outdoor spider plants need bright light but can sunburn in full sun. Where outdoor growing is possible, spider plants should be grown in light shade. They are hardy in USDA zones 9a to 11b.

Spider plants can surprise you, though. I’ve photographed spider plants growing in full sun at neighbors’ homes, both as an in-ground groundcover and in pots. That’s an observation, not a rule: the extension cautions above still stand, so if you give yours more sun, watch the leaves for scorch.

Before you copy the groundcover idea in Florida: UF/IFAS Extension says its Assessment of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas predicted spider plant to become invasive in Florida, and that it no longer recommends the plant. Check that assessment before planting one in the ground.

Where does your spider plant live: an east window, an office desk or hanging in the bathroom? Tell us in the comments.