Aglaonema
Aglaonema commutatum
Among the most genuinely shade-tolerant foliage houseplants, and one of the few sold for low light that actually performs in it. The heavily variegated and pink-leaved forms are the exception and need considerably more light than the plain green ones.
- Position
- Moderate light
- Water
- moderate demand
- Drainage
- Free-draining
- Grows to
- 45–90 cm × 45–75 cm
- Frost
- Frost tender
- Difficulty
- Straightforward
Described view
A plain green aglaonema beside a pink-variegated cultivar, showing the difference in light requirement
August
Nothing to do
No sowing, planting, harvesting or pruning window falls in August.
Aglaonema’s year
Resolved for United Kingdom (general). Every window is stored against a climate event rather than a date, so a late frost pocket runs later than the band shows. What else August calls for.
| Activity | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Take cuttings | May. | June. | July. |
Timing that travels
The band above resolves this plant's windows into months for one region. These are the windows themselves, stored against a climate event rather than a date — which is the form that survives being carried to a colder garden, a frost pocket, or next year.
Conditions it needs
- Light
- Dappled shade, Full shade
- Frost
- Frost tender
- Grows best at
- 18–27 °C
- Soil
- Peat-free compost
- Soil pH
- 5.5–6.5
- Drainage
- Free-draining
- Water needs
- moderate
- Drought
- moderate tolerance
- Waterlogging
- poor tolerance
- Heat
- good tolerance
- Wind and exposure
- poor tolerance
Where these figures come from
- LightSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — position
Checked 2026-08-13
- FrostSourced guidancehigh confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — hardiness
Checked 2026-08-13
- Grows best atSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — temperature
Checked 2026-08-13
- SoilSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — soil
Checked 2026-08-13
- Soil pHSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Aglaonema commutatum — culture
Checked 2026-08-13
- DrainageSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — soil
Checked 2026-08-13
- Water needsHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- DroughtHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- WaterloggingHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- HeatHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- Wind and exposureHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
On your soil
Computed by comparing this plant's recorded requirements against each soil's recorded characteristics. A recorded horticultural fact overrides the comparison where GrowingHQ holds one.
| Soil | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy clay | Works, with one condition | Aglaonema will crop on heavy clay, but one thing has to be dealt with first. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. For a crop lifted before winter the risk is not rot but the season: waterlogged ground is cold and unworkable in spring, so sowing is late and germination patchy.Improve the drainage before planting — a raised bed, or bulky organic matter worked in over several seasons. Do not add sand to clay in small quantities; it makes the problem worse. |
| Sandy | Grows well here | Aglaonema grows perfectly well on sandy without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose. |
| Chalky and alkaline | Works, with one condition | Aglaonema will crop on chalky and alkaline, but one thing has to be dealt with first. The soil is substantially too alkaline for it: it wants pH 5.5 to 6.5, and this soil sits around 7.8 to 8.5.The pH is the obstacle. Small shifts are achievable and slow; large ones are not. On chalky and alkaline the dependable answer is a container of the right compost rather than an attempt to change the ground. |
| Loam | Grows well here | Aglaonema grows perfectly well on loam without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose. |
| Silty | Grows well here | Aglaonema grows perfectly well on silty without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose. |
| Peaty and acid | Works, with one condition | Aglaonema will crop on peaty and acid, but one thing has to be dealt with first. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. For a crop lifted before winter the risk is not rot but the season: waterlogged ground is cold and unworkable in spring, so sowing is late and germination patchy.Improve the drainage before planting — a raised bed, or bulky organic matter worked in over several seasons. Do not add sand to clay in small quantities; it makes the problem worse. |
| Shallow over rock | Grows well here | Aglaonema grows perfectly well on shallow over rock without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose. |
| Made ground and urban soil | Struggles here | Aglaonema struggles on made ground and urban soil: The soil is substantially too alkaline for it: it wants pH 5.5 to 6.5, and this soil sits around 7.2 to 7.8. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. For a crop lifted before winter the risk is not rot but the season: waterlogged ground is cold and unworkable in spring, so sowing is late and germination patchy. A container or a raised bed of imported soil sidesteps the problem entirely. |
Not sure which you have? Four hand tests will settle it.
Space and spacing
- Mature height
- 45–90 cm
- Mature spread
- 45–75 cm
- Rooting depth
- 20 cm
Where these figures come from
- Mature heightHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- Mature spreadHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- Rooting depthHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
In a container
- Minimum volume
- 3 litres or more
- Minimum depth
- 18 cm
Where the container figures come from
- Minimum volumeHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
- Minimum depthHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence
No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
Slow-growing, so it needs potting on only every few years.
Where and how you can grow it
Each way of growing is assessed separately, and “not assessed” is a real answer rather than a gap we have filled in with a guess.
| Method | Suitability | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Indoor pot | Well suitedsourceSourced guidancemoderate confidence
Checked 2026-08-13 | |
| Container | Well suitedsourceSourced guidancemoderate confidence
Checked 2026-08-13 | Indoors, or outdoors in summer only |
| Windowsill | Not suitablesourceSourced guidancemoderate confidence
Checked 2026-08-13 | |
| Open ground | Not suitablesourceSourced guidancemoderate confidence
Checked 2026-08-13 | Tender: will not survive a British winter outdoors. |
Growing it
- ProtectionKeep it above about 15 °C and away from draughts and cold glass. Cold damage shows as greasy dark patches that do not recover.
- WateringLet it dry down noticeably between waterings, especially in winter. A cold pot of saturated compost is what turns a tolerant plant into a dead one.
- FeedingHalf strength, once a month between April and September, and nothing over winter. Aglaonema is one of the most shade-tolerant houseplants there is, which is also why it should not be fed hard: a plant in low light cannot use much, and the surplus stays in the compost as salt. It is more often lost to being kept wet in a cold room than to anything else, and feeding is part of that same over-attention. The strongly variegated and pink forms need brighter light than the plain green ones to hold their colour.
- TransplantingSpring, every second or third year, and only ever one pot size larger — aglaonema has a modest root system and is perfectly happy tight. Do not repot in autumn: fresh compost in a dim cool room stays wet for weeks and rots the roots of a plant that has stopped drinking. If it is struggling in October, improve the light and water less rather than repotting it.
Where this guidance comes from
- ProtectionSourced guidancehigh confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — temperature
Checked 2026-08-13
- WateringSourced guidancehigh confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema — watering
Checked 2026-08-13
- FeedingSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Aglaonema
Checked 2026-08-13
- TransplantingSourced guidancemoderate confidence
- Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Aglaonema
Checked 2026-08-13
Safety and edibility
Listed as harmful to cats or dogs
Aglaonema is listed as harmful if eaten. All parts carry needle-shaped insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which drive into the soft tissue of the mouth on contact. The pain is immediate, which is why an animal rarely takes a second bite and why fatalities are rare — but the drooling and swelling that follow are real and distressing.source
Sourced guidancehigh confidence
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center — toxic and non-toxic plant list — American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: Aglaonema commutatum — toxic plants list
Checked 2026-08-13
Affected parts: all parts.
- Pets and livestockpetschildrenAll parts contain insoluble calcium oxalate crystals. Chewing causes immediate burning of the mouth, drooling and swelling — painful and distressing rather than usually life-threatening, and the pain generally stops an animal after one bite.
source
Sourced guidancehigh confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Aglaonema commutatum — toxicity
Checked 2026-08-13
Keep aglaonema out of reach of pets that chew plants and of small children. If chewed, rinse the mouth and offer water; seek veterinary or medical advice if swelling affects breathing or swallowing.
Sources for this page
GrowingHQ editorial synthesis · Plant Finder · Royal Horticultural Society
Each figure on this page carries its own citation, under the “where these figures come from” note in its section. Record last reviewed 2026-08-14.
If something is wrong with it
- Lower leaves turning yellow — 2 causes GrowingHQ holds for aglaonema
Something else? Work through it with the diagnostic tool.