11 Houseplants With Delicate, Lacy Foliage

What classifies houseplant foliage as delicate or lacy? Ferns are one of the first plants that come to mind. They have feathery fronds that flow in the wind and are somewhat sensitive to touch. Succulents, though drought-hardy, can have thin stems and small leaves that break easily. They fit the bill.

Some woody shrubs and trees sprout lacy leaves off their branches, while vining plants grow dozens of tiny leaves on their rambling stems. These two types are also delicate and lacy, though they’re tough and hardy in their native habitats.

Whether you’re looking for ferns, succulents, trees, shrubs, or vines, this list has many options for the curious collector. Without further ado, here are 11 houseplants with delicate, lacy foliage. 

Climbing Asparagus Fern

Climbing asparagus fern isn’t a fern at all! It’s a close relative of edible asparagus, though this species is purely ornamental. It sprouts thin, needle-like leaves on arrow-shaped fronds. The wiry green stems have small, white pricks, so use caution when handling them. 

This hardy asparagus fern stays small, under two feet tall, unless it has support to grow up. It’ll climb as high as the trellis or pole you support it with. Although this houseplant’s foliage is incredibly lacy and delicate, don’t be fooled! This perennial is tough as nails.

Give your specimen bright indirect light indoors in a good location away from drafty air. Hot or cold gusts can lead to leaf drop, so choose a safe site. The asparagus fern stores water in its roots and is drought-tolerant. It appreciates water after the top layer of soil dries, about every two or three weeks. 

Shatavari

Shatavari is another asparagus relative with lacy plumes of bright green needles. This species grows much bigger than the climbing asparagus fern, reaching ten feet tall outdoors! It stays smaller and daintier indoors when growing with reflected sunlight.

Growers cultivate Shatavari for medicinal purposes, grinding the roots into powder and liquid extracts. The roots grow into tuber-like structures that look like sweet potatoes. They’re not edible in this form, so avoid digging up your tender houseplant. Leave the thick roots be and watch the fluffy leaves grow over time.

Shatavari tolerates short dry periods like the climbing asparagus fern. Give the roots a chance to breathe by letting the soil dry between waterings. If you notice yellow or brown leaves, check the soil moisture to make sure it’s moist, not soggy.  

Artillery Fern

Artillery fern isn’t a fern! It’s a succulent perennial that looks like a fern. Fleshy, green stems emerge from the soil with thin, delicate leaves. This specimen is a stunning indoor houseplant—your friends will surely ask what kind of plant it is! 

This fleshy perennial needs bright light to perform well. It’ll grow leggy and weak in low-light conditions. Grant it bright but reflected sunlight near a window and keep its soil consistently moist. When happy, it’ll quickly drink water; you may have to water artillery fern once a week during the growing season!

This succulent propagates easily. Clip stems, remove their lower leaves, and place them in glasses of water or pots with soil to root. The species type sports bright green leaves, while the rare cultivar ‘Variegata’ has splashes of white on dark green leaves. 

Sensitive Plant

Bring the tropics indoors with the sensitive plant! This unique species responds to touch, which is why some call it the touch-me-not plant. After sensing movement, the leaves fold up to protect themselves. They also respond to light, opening during the day and closing at night. 

Although hardy outdoors in zones 10 through 12, this species grows better as a houseplant. It’s invasive in warm regions of North America, spreading rampantly and choking out native plants. Keep it in a pot indoors to enjoy its sensitive leaves year-round.

Although this plant is likely unavailable at your local nursery, its seeds are widely available online! Sow them in spring under bright light, keeping them moist but not soggy. They’ll sprout in one to three weeks. If you’d like to transplant them outdoors, harden them off first before planting them in full sun. 

Silver Fern

With its delicate, lacy foliage and silver accents, the silver fern is a longtime favorite houseplant for indoor spaces. Popular in American homes in the 1980s and 90s, this old favorite is making a comeback! It sports green, finely serrated fern fronds with silver markings on their inner leaves. 

This true fern grows in tropical regions of India on shaded forest floors. It grows well with filtered or reflected light indoors. Keep its roots moist but not soggy, and the fern will live for many years. 

If you like the delicate fronds of the silver fern but prefer different colors, try growing its close relative, the tricolor fern! This related species grows red leaves that turn green as they age. 

Delta Maidenhair Fern

Ferns are treasures indoors, and the delta maidenhair fern is a special gem. Growing dainty, ginkgo-like leaves on thin, wiry black stems, this variety is perfect for the experienced collector. It requires some care to thrive indoors, although the work is worth the reward.

Grant your delta maidenhair fern high humidity, regular water, and reflected or filtered sunlight. It dislikes dry air or drafty winds, so place it away from heaters and doors. If humidity is low in your home, consider creating a pebble tray below the plant, or buying a small humidifier for the room. 

Pebble trays are easy to make! Stack a thin layer of pebbles or stones on a pot saucer, fill it halfway with water, then place the pot on top of the pebbles. Ensure the container’s drainage hole doesn’t sit in the water to prevent it from soaking into the soil. The water will evaporate slowly, providing ambient humidity around your fern. 

Baby’s Tears

Baby’s tears sprout tiny, tear-dropped leaves on short, fleshy stems. The foliage is succulent and the stems are free-rooting. They fill out pots, spreading like a groundcover and spilling over the edges. They’ll quickly cover shady areas as a groundcover outdoors in warm zones.

Baby’s tears prefer filtered sunlight, as direct sun rays may cause scorching and burning. Grant these plants regular water to ensure their short roots stay sufficiently moist. They love humidity, thriving in bathrooms, terrariums, and other humid areas.

Baby’s tears are particularly dramatic when they’re thirsty. The leaves shrivel and fall, and your plant may lose some vitality. Keep the roots moist but not soggy, and the plants should bounce back in a few days. If the main plants die, try propagating healthy stems as new plants. 

String of Turtles

This tropical dweller is unlike any other plant you’ve seen! It sports round, succulent leaves that look like turtles’ shells. They’re light green with dark green spots in them. Happy plants sprout long, slender flowers that turn yellow-brown with pollen.

A string of turtles needs bright, filtered sunlight and medium to high humidity levels. Grow one in a plant cabinet with a humidifier, or place it on a bathroom windowsill. This species takes well to growing under grow lights and can live for many years in the same pot. 

A true stunner, the string of turtles is easy to propagate. Take stem cuttings, place them on top of fresh soil, and water them well. Ensure the stems touch moist dirt so that roots form. Rooted stems grow new shoots that spread in all directions, turning empty containers into ones crawling with turtles!

Red Log Plant

The red log plant grows like a string of turtles, except it extends a bit longer and has red stems instead of green ones. Its small, oval leaves are maroon on their undersides and dark green-black on top. Perfect for hanging baskets, containers with trellises, or terrariums, this spreader is an excellent houseplant. 

Although gorgeous, this Peperomia sometimes attracts scale insects, especially when unhappy. Grant it high humidity, regular water, and bright filtered light. Avoid direct sunlight, as it can cause scorching and weaken your specimen. 

Like the string of turtles, the red log plant propagates easily from stem cuttings. Cut healthy stems, remove their lower leaves, and stick them an inch deep in the soil. Keep them moist and humid while they form roots, which they’ll grow in two to three weeks. 

Threadleaf False Aralia

This delicate-looking houseplant is a tree in the wild! Native to New Caledonia, a tiny island nation in the Pacific Ocean, the threadleaf false aralia reaches up to 50 feet tall. Indoors, it’ll stay between three and eight feet tall, depending on how much light the plant receives. 

This woody tree sprouts finger-like leaves that have thin, slender segments. They turn darker green the more light they receive, and mature specimens tolerate direct sunlight indoors. Ensure your tree stays healthy by giving it lots of humidity, either from a bathroom, a pebble tray, or a humidifier.

To grow a large, bushy specimen, you can move your threadleaf false aralia outdoors in the spring and summer and indoors for fall and winter. This keeps the tropical tree safe from frost while giving it the sunlight it craves during the growing season.

Lacy Tree Philodendron

Rounding out this list of gorgeous, delicate houseplants is the lacy tree philodendron! This plant is best for big, well-lit homes with lots of humidity. It’s a tropical species that grows long, split-leaf fronds from a central, woody stem. The stem grows thick with age, eventually turning into a trunk.

Tree philodendrons may reach ten feet indoors if they have sufficient light. They prefer partial shade, with two to six hours of daily direct sunlight. They’ll also thrive in dappled sunlight if it’s constant throughout the day.