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succulent friendship plant

succulent friendship plant Shop 'Friendship Plants – Pilea involucrata' Care & Growing Guide |Planet Desert

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Description

succulent friendship plant Shop 'Friendship Plants – Pilea involucrata' Care & Growing Guide |Planet DesertThe Friendship Plant, known as Pilea involucrata, is a compact, fast growing houseplant beloved for its deeply textured leaves and easygoing nature. Popular among plant lovers of all skill levels, it gets its name from how easily it can be propagated and shared with friends, making it a favorite for gift giving and plant swaps. In nature, it often grows as a groundcover or along shaded forest floors, which is why it prefers indirect light and moderate

The Friendship Plant, known as Pilea involucrata, is a compact, fast-growing houseplant beloved for its deeply textured leaves and easygoing nature. Popular among plant lovers of all skill levels, it gets its name from how easily it can be propagated and shared with friends, making it a favorite for gift-giving and plant swaps.  In nature, it often grows as a groundcover or along shaded forest floors, which is why it prefers indirect light and moderate humidity in home settings. 

Native to Central and South America, it's also sometimes called Moon Valley Pilea due to the dramatic craters and ridges on its leaves. 

The Friendship Plant has deeply veined, almost puckered foliage, which gives the leaves a three-dimensional texture.

These oval-shaped leaves typically grow in opposite pairs and feature a lush green hue with contrasting reddish-brown undersides or veins.

Its low, bushy form and trailing growth habit make it a great choice for terrariums, hanging baskets, or small pots on windowsills.

This plant remains compact and manageable, typically grows up to 12 inches tall and wide.

While it rarely outgrows its container quickly, its rapid vegetative growth makes it satisfying to watch as it fills out over time.

The compact form also makes it well-suited to small spaces and tight corners.

The friendship plant blooms in summer and produces tiny pink or pale green flowers in optimal conditions. These blooms are not especially showy and are often overlooked, but they add a subtle charm when they appear. However, the plant’s true appeal lies in its lush, velvety leaves rather than its blossoms. 

When and How to Water Your Friendship Plant 

The Friendship Plant prefers slightly moist but never soggy soil. It can tolerate short dry spells, making it forgiving if you miss a watering. Always check the top inch of soil—if it’s dry, it’s time to water. Overwatering is one of the most common problems, so err on the side of caution and use pots with drainage holes. Friendship Plant thrives with consistent moisture, needing water every 5-7 days during growth and 10-14 days during dormant periods. 

From March to September, during its active growing season, water your plant every 5–7 days with about ½ to 1 cup of water per session, depending on pot size. The soil should remain evenly moist without becoming waterlogged. Humid conditions and higher temperatures during this period mean your plant may need water more frequently.

From October through February, during the plant’s dormancy, reduce watering to once every 10–14 days using ¼ to ½ cup of water. Lower light levels and slower growth reduce its need for moisture, so allowing the soil to dry a bit more is key to avoiding root rot.

Light Requirements – Where to Place Your Friendship Plant 

When grown indoors, the popular Friendship Plant thrives in bright, indirect light for 6–8 hours a day, and should be placed near east- or north-facing windows for best results.

Inside the home, choose a bright spot away from the direct sun, which can scorch the delicate leaves.

Filtered sunlight or a sheer curtain is perfect. LED lights can also supplement low-light rooms. Rotate the plant weekly to ensure even growth.

When growing outdoors, Friendship Plants should be placed in partial shade or filtered sunlight, receiving 4–6 hours of gentle morning light.

Harsh afternoon rays should be avoided as they may bleach or burn the foliage. A covered patio or shaded greenhouse works well for outdoor growing in warm months. 

Optimal Soil & Fertilizer Needs 

The Friendship Plants grow best in a lightweight, well-draining potting mix and should be fertilized once a year in spring. Use a soil mix designed for houseplants or African violets, which holds moisture without becoming soggy. Planet Desert specializes in succulents and has specialized potting soil, opens in a new tab that includes an organic substrate with mycorrhizae to help with the growth of a healthy root system to help your Pilea plant thrive.  

Fertilize your Pilea involucrata during the growing season using a diluted balanced liquid NPK fertilizer of about 5-10-5. Fertilization supports lush foliage and compact growth. Do not fertilize during the dormant period from late fall through winter, as the plant’s growth slows and excess nutrients may cause root stress. Resume feeding in early spring once new growth appears.

Indoor Growing Friendship Plant Requirements 

When grown indoors, the Friendship Plant prefers temperatures between 65–75°F, high humidity around 50–70%, and bright, indirect light. Keep your plant away from drafts, AC vents, and radiators. Boost humidity with a pebble tray or humidifier. Bathrooms and kitchens often offer naturally higher humidity, making them great placement options. This plant prefers consistency—avoid sudden temperature drops or spikes, which can stress the plant. While it can tolerate slightly lower humidity, it performs best when the air around it remains moist and warm. 

Hardiness Zones & More 

In the United States, this is mostly an indoor plant, but if you live in southern Florida or Hawaii, then you can cultivate it outdoors in USDA zones 11-12.

In these zones, it enjoys filtered light, high humidity, and shelter from wind and sun. 

Even brief exposure to temperatures below 50°F can result in leaf drop, wilting, or permanent stem damage.

For gardeners in cooler climates, it’s crucial to bring plants indoors before nighttime temperatures fall, ideally keeping them in a stable environment with warm temperatures and consistent humidity year-round. 

Wildlife – Friendship Plant Flowers Attract the Following Friendly Pollinators 

The Friendship Plant can occasionally attract small pollinators such as fungus gnats and beneficial springtails in its natural environment. While not a pollinator magnet like flowering species, it may still host tiny insects in humid conditions, especially if placed near other tropical plants. These creatures help maintain soil balance and often go unnoticed.

According to the ASPCA, Pilea involucrata is considered non-toxic to humans, dogs, and cats, making it a pet-friendly option for indoor gardeners. It’s a great choice for households with pets or small children. 

How to Propagate Your Friendship Plant 

The most effective method to propagate your Friendship plant is through stem cuttings. Select a healthy stem with several leaves and cut a 4–6-inch section just below a leaf node. Remove the lower leaves and place the cutting in water or moist soil. If rooting in water, wait until the roots are about 1 inch long before transplanting into soil. Keep the cuttings in a warm, humid place with indirect light. Roots typically form within 2–3 weeks. Maintain light moisture during this process. This ease of propagation makes it a perfect “friendship” gift—affordable, personal, and a living symbol of connection. 

Key Takeaways

  1. The Friendship Plant is a popular houseplant, admired for its compact size, easy care, and soft, quilted leaves that add rich texture to indoor spaces.
  2. Its vibrant, crinkled foliage features deep green leaves with coppery or bronze undertones, making it a standout in terrariums, desktops, or small pots.
  3. While not a true succulent, the Friendship Plant is moderately drought-tolerant, meaning it can handle short dry spells but still prefers evenly moist soil for optimal growth.
  4. As its name suggests, the Friendship Plant is often shared among friends, making it a thoughtful, symbolic gift that’s easy to propagate and pass along.
  5. This low-growing tropical plant thrives in warm, humid environments, making it ideal for bathrooms or kitchens where the humidity mimics its native Central and South American habitat.

The Bottom Line 

Overall, the Friendship Plant (Pilea involucrata) is a charming, pet-safe houseplant loved for its quilted foliage and lush, compact growth. With its fast growth, unique foliage, and friendly reputation, it’s no surprise that the Friendship Plant is a staple in many houseplant collections. It’s easy to propagate, beginner-friendly, and makes an attractive addition to shelves, plant stands, or terrariums. Whether you're just starting out or expanding your green space, this delightful plant is both a visual treat and a reminder that good things are meant to be shared.

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Gary Carden
Grantham, US
★★★★★ 5
00 361 pages Hurricane Katrina spawned an awesome number of literary works
Format: Kindle
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward New York: Bloomsberry $24.00 361 pages Hurricane Katrina spawned an awesome number of literary works, and it may be that, given sufficient time to determine the full merits of Jesmyn Ward’s novel, Salvage the Bones, her work may be the most worthy. Perhaps the theory that great disasters (wars, natural disasters) invariably produce great works of art (operas, novels, paintings, etc.). This theory was often discussed by Flannery O’Conner who commented on the irony of the “creative renaissance” in southern literature which owes its origin to the extensive suffering and injustice associated with slavery and the Civil War. The narrator of Salvage the Bones is Esch, a fifteen-year-old girl living in Bois Sauvage, a predominately black bayou town which happens to be in the direct path of Katrina. Set in the twelve days leading up to, and just after the arrival of the hurricane, the novel presents each day as a distinct vignette. Esch and her brothers spend each day preparing for the terrifying arrival. They have no intention of leaving and attempt to help their drunken father reinforce their shack with sheets of plywood. They collect and store bottles of drinking water. Food supplies tend to consist of Top Ramen moon pies, vienna sausage, potted meat and eggs gathered in the woods. However, despite Katrina’s approach, Esch and her brothers seem to be primarily concerned about their white pit bull, China who has just given birth to five pups. China has developed a reputation in the dog fights that take place in “The Pit” in Bois Sauvage. She is a killing machine, a fact that makes Esch and her brothers the envy of their neighbors. The family’s meager economic security depends on China and each day is spent grooming, washes and feeding her. Indeed they fawn over the big dog, telling everyone that her puppies will grow up to have a killer instinct and therefore, they are invaluable. Much of the intrigue in Esch’s daily life revolves around protecting China and her pups. Skeetah is Esch’s oldest brother and the dog’s self-appointed trainer. Esch has a multitude of problems. She struggles to love her handicapped father and is haunted by the memory of her mother’s death. Now, she discovers that she is pregnant by Bois Sauvage’s “golden boy,” Manny, the boy who put the baby inside her is totally indifferent to the consequences of a rough and tumble frolic in the dark. As each day brings more distress, the homely, pug-faced teenager turns to her imagination, searching for a means to deal with the world around her, and as luck would have it, that is Edith Hamilton’s Mythology, which was a required reading at school. Esch begins to see the people around her as characters in her favorite book. She observes that all the girls in Bois Sauvage seem to be acting like their mythical counterparts: Psyche, Eurydice, Daphne - all of them running away from something or running after someone. However, the mythical character that Esch selects for her own role model is an ominous one. It is Medea, the fierce and vindictive wife of “the golden-haired Jason, who kills her own brother when he stands in the way of her love for Jason; and when that love turns to hate, she then murders Jason’s new wife, Creusa, her father, Creon and even kills her own children. Of course, Esch is not going to harm anyone. Although she is filled with rage at the world around her, she is actually one of the forces that is holding everything together; China, the white pitbull is another. When Katrina reaches landfall, it comes like some apocalyptic act of God, sweeping everything away, including Esch’s home and all of their feeble efforts to battle the rising water. In the end Salvage the Bones acquires a kind of epic grander. Like Noah or Gilgamesh, the waters finally withdraw, leaving a confused and humbled Bois Sauvage. How much has been lost? The puppies are gone and so is China - but given the dog’s character, she may have survived. Perhaps Skeetah and his brothers will find her. The reader is left with a singular image. Skeetah, the oldest brother sits in the wreckage of their home, and while everyone else is searching for missing children, furniture and cars, Skeetah looks at his brothers and announces, “She will come back to me.” Esch tells us: “He will watch the dark, the ruined houses, the muddy appliances, the tops of the trees that surround us whose leaves are dying for lack of roots. He will feed the fire, so it will blaze bright as a lighthouse. He will listen for the beat of her tail, the padding of her feet in the mud. He will look into the future and see her emerge into the circle of his fire, beaten dirty by the hurricane so she doesn’t gleam anymore. So, she is the color of his teeth, his eyes, of the bone bounded by his blood, dull but alive, alive, alive, and when he sees her, his face will break and run water. And what of Esch who loves the white dog? She says that China will look at me and know “I am a mother.” Hopefully, it is apparent that this is a remarkable book. However, it was almost lost in the loud braying and confusion that dominates much of publishing business now. Even so, it won the National Book Award in 2011. Now, after a strange silence, it is beginning to get the attention that it deserves.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2016
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Verified Purchase
Amazon Customer
Boise, US
★★★★★ 5
however the family takes precautions leading up to the storm to plan for one of the worst natural disasters in American history
Format: Paperback
Salvage the Bones is a deeply personal account of a young woman, Esch, and her family's life in the few days before Hurricane Katrina. The novel is set on the family's land in a small town in Mississippi. She lives with her father, her mother seven years deceased, and her three brothers, Skeetah, Randall, and Junior. Esch has recently learned that she is pregnant with the child of one of her older brother's friends. Skeetah takes care of his pitbull, China, helping her give birth and grooming her to fight for the family's honor. Randall plays basketball in hopes of gaining a college scholarship. Junior is a product of the mother's death, as she passed away giving birth to him, and leaves the family to mother him for the rest of his life. The novel describes the family's relationships with one another before the hurricane will rock them and test their connections to one another. The novel is not set decisively around the hurricane, however the family takes precautions leading up to the storm to plan for one of the worst natural disasters in American history. Jesmyn Ward provides a semi-autobiographical context of the hurricane, as she was born in a small, rural community in Mississippi, similar to the one she describes in Salvage the Bones. Ward writes commonly in this tone, and her newest novel, Men Who Reaped, describes the lives of four men in her life that had suffered deaths far too young. The novel is poetic in its writing style, and a beautiful read. Ward describes herself as a "failed poet," however, by reading the novel, it is clear that she succeeds in her poetry. Metaphors follow each line of description, and Ward is able to connect figurative language with the colloquial language of characters living in a rural community. It is undeniably pleasurable to read through the pages. Ward creates lovable characters and leaves the reader longing to discover what happens after the hurricane, and how the favorite characters are surviving in the wake of the natural disaster. There is a large dog presence throughout the novel, in addition to family ties, the novel provides a sense of companionship and a person's human relationship with his dog. The dog becomes a member of the family, and the relationship is called into question with the severity of the storm and the need to hold onto the most important things in times of crisis. I am overwhelmed with the poetic nature of this book and applaud Ward as an exceptional writer.
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Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2015
K
Verified Purchase
Kindle Customer
Cuba, US
★★★★★ 3
A deceptively brilliant novel.
Format: Kindle
This novel does a great job of weaving careful diction and sentence structure to give each chapter a sort of charm. The writing is definitely one to praise and cherish. However, this is unfortunately where most praise ends. The novel is incredibly slow and has very little points. The whole entire time, we are made to believe that Katrina is at the core of the story when in reality, it only spends about 2 chapters really focused on the disaster itself. Although, I would still recommend this novel if you are looking for a more slice of life in the middle of Mississippi. But it's not the ultimate tale of disaster it was made out to be.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2023
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Verified Purchase
Gridley
Waukegan, US
★★★★★ 4
Listening to Life
I don't remember why I bought this book. It probably wasn't that it won the National Book Award for 2011; more likely that it's about the Mississippi coast in the time prior to Hurricane Katrina. I have family living on that coastline, and have visited the area many times, being from the not-so-far-away Louisiana "hill country." (Don't laugh - there are some.) I'm white, though, and while all Southerners of all classes and races interact (although they sometimes don't act like it), this book has a lot to say about the underprivileged of all ilks throughout the South. The book is about a black family - or what remains of one - in the two weeks or so leading up to Katrina. The principal character and narrator is the girl of the family, Esch, and she's pregnant. Esch has an alter ego of sorts in her brother Skeetah's pit bull, China, who in the first few pages gives birth to her first litter. Skeetah is something of a dog whisperer, and his hold on China is little short of magical. There's another brother, Randall, who has hoop dreams, and a late addition to the family, Junior. A young lad named Manny has done the dirty with Esch; she's in love with him, and is reluctant to tell him she's pregnant. She goes through all the usual throes of morning sickness, having to guess what's going on in her biology, but she's a plucky kid, and she perseveres. When Katrina hits, the family, which has already been turned upside down by poverty and the brood's mother's earlier death, is turned - I don't know - sideways. But this isn't a story about victimization. It owes a lot to Hugo's underclass in Les Miserables - they improvise, they adapt, they attempt continually to overcome. Ward's book leaves us with a poignant ending, but one with resilience and promise. Jesmyn Ward knows how to hold a reader, she takes us deep into the souls of Esch, particularly, but each of the others in the family as well. She paces her story like a pro, never leaving us in despair, with a hint of promise just over the horizon. The story's details are what continued to charm me: Esch-as-narrator's eloquence, her insight (although she often spoke more "street" in dialogue - but it works) into her condition, the family's ongoing plight as well as their separate and collaborative dreams. The attention to nature: the weather, of course, the dog's fleas, ants crawling across Esch's toes, the smell of the unkempt house, the feel of sweat, the ramen and Vienna sausages they eat. Even the details of a series of dogfights. This book clearly deserves the award. It's about life, and I can tell you it speaks to life as a Southerner, regardless of race, or color, or creed.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2011
Z
Verified Purchase
Zoya G
Boise, US
★★★★★ 5
An important, powerful story
Format: Paperback
Salvage the Bones tells the story of an African American family in Mississippi in the days leading up to Hurricane Katrina. The narrative follows Esch, a young girl who has just found out she is pregnant and is reluctant to tell her brothers and father about it. Her father, with the help of her brothers, is preparing for the impending storm, certain that it will be devastating even when others doubt it. Additionally, her brother Skeetah tends to his dog who has just given birth, China. This novel tells an important story of survivors who are often overlooked. It is an intense and well-paced read, as both Esch’s baby and Katrina are constantly looming. I greatly enjoyed the interweaving of Esch’s family’s story with the broader history of Katrina that I am more familiar with; it really empowered me to consider the individual lives of all those affected and just how much was lost. The familial relationships in this novel are its best part— they are all so complex but feel very true to life. Ward’s writing is accessible and clear while still providing a rich and powerful reading experience. Sometimes, the novel felt a bit on-the-nose with its themes and allusions, to the point where I found certain images and phrases overly repetitive. However, that was just one small gripe to much richer reading experience. If you are interested in themes of maternity, poverty, survival, and climate, or simply want to experience a powerful and necessary story, I would recommend Salvage the Bones.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2019

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