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Plants are amazing. They look beautiful, they purify your environment of certain toxins, you can grow them in small spaces, and I find it mind blowing that I can put a seed in the ground and watch something grow.

Plants like herbs or vegetables look interesting and you can cook with them, while plants like lavender create a beautiful natural scent in your home. Plants promote healing in hospitals and have even been said to improve mood and lower the risk of some illnesses.

So all that being said, plants are a pretty awesome thing to bring to school (they’re on our college packing list for a reason).

Dorm rooms can be pretty sterile, and many people have lived in the room before you. Bringing your own little plant friends helps turn that room into a home. Even if you don’t have a green thumb — believe me, I spent most of spring semester trying not to kill my high-maintenance plant, so I know the feeling — there are many plants that only need minimal effort.

Here’s a little guide to the most important things to know about plant care, and a list of the best dorm plants.

Table of Contents

Quick Tips: Things to Know About Caring for Plants

1. Consider their environment

Your room has a specific environment that is best suited for certain plants. Picking plants that work within your environment will make it easier for them to flourish without a lot of aid, and is much less work for you in the long run. A great example is this; my roommate had an orchid that died fairly quickly after coming to school. It wasn’t warm or humid enough in Seattle for that particular plant to live. That doesn’t doom all Seattleites to an orchid-less existence, but it does mean more work for you if you chose to buy that particular plant breed.