Should you water your ZZ plant? This answer is based on botanical science, not hype. Zamioculcas zamiifolia (ZAM-e-o-cul-cas, ZAM-e-eye-foll-e-a) is an unusual aroid found naturally in eastern Africa primarily in the countries of Zanzibar and Tanzania. True, those countries have a dry period but it does not last year round. There is also a very wet period of heavy rain. Before you read this text you should be aware the basis of the information used is found in the scientific text The Genera of Araceae by Dr. Simon Mayo, J. Bogner and P.C. Boyce. Dr. Mayo is a staff aroid botanist at the Royal Botanic Garden Kew in London while the other authors are both professional aroid botanists. This information is not based on internet myth! And yes, we grow our Zamioculcas zamiifolia in tropical conditions right next to orchids and a large Anthurium! The species is an aroid. Aroids are a fairly large group of specialized plants that reproduce by producing an inflorescence which contains a spathe and spadix. You have likely seen an aroid inflorescence if you have ever grown a Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum). But the internet is filled with factual fantasy and outright mistruth about this plant species and its supposed "dislike" for water! Zamioculcas zamiifolia needs water like any other plant! Some sellers advertise Zamioculcas zamiifolia as a "new plant" but in truth, Z. zamiifolia has been around since the beginning of time. The plant's common names include Aroid Palm, Arum Fern, ZZ Plant, Zu Zu Plant, Money Tree, Fat Boy, Eternity Plant, and Zanzibar Gem. It is not related to any orchid, palm or fern. The species is often found in its natural habitat in dry grassland and lowland forests on rocky lightly shaded terrain but rarer in deeper shade. It appears to enjoy moderately bright light. But once the rainy season arrives, the habitat is no longer dry. As a result, the plant can do very well in a tropical setting! A member of the Arum family (Araceae) along with Philodendron sp, Anthurium sp., Alocasia sp. and many other exotics, most websites recommend this plant be under or even rarely watered. As a result, growers on internet garden sites are always saying this aroid "prefers" to be kept either dry all the time or damp only in summer with drier conditions in the winter. I constantly read it should be watered every few weeks! Read further. You may be surprised. Zamioculcas zamiifolia needs water just like any other plant! The assumption it should be kept dry at all times is a total internet myth and house plant seller's fabrication perpetuated via the internet. It appears the sellers want to think the plant requires no maintnance to live. That information clearly does not match up with the scientific study. If you check some of the garden websites and many internet care instruction articles you will read where people constantly say the plant "needs little water". But when it begins to decline they can't figure out why their ZZ plant is dying while they are "following the rules". Quite simply, those "rules" are wrong! The answer is scientifically the plant is likely only entering the natural deciduous stage as it would when the seasonal rains end as a result of lack of water. In nature the plant can survive for long periods only as a petiole (stem) with no leaflets but as a house plant it certainly wont' be attractive without the leaves. In the wild the plant naturally looses the leaflets ias one method of reproducing. A new plant can be grown from a single leaf. Just because nature has designed the species to survive with little water in a climate with both a very rainy and a dry season does not mean it should be under watered or not watered at all! It appears sellers are actually promoting this plant as a good house plant because you can "forget to water it for long periods of time". Not so! The plant may survive, but it will also not prosper and in time will look quite bad. It is likely a very large number of plants are thrown away every year once all the leaflets yellow and drop because the grower incorrectly believes it has died. The grower assumes it is dead when all the plant needs is water and the proper soil. In most cases, unless the plant has endured a very long spell without water, it could be easily saved. But not in soggy potting soil! If you grow this plant in normal potting soil, GET IT OUT! This species is found in a region of Africa which has very extreme growing conditions. As a result, it is quite tolerant of both wet and dry. The growing habitat in its native growing zone includes such extreme dryness the plant may naturally loose all of its leaflets while the the bases of the true petioles (stems) swell as succulent water retention structures. This feature is limited in the family Araceae (aroids) to Zamioculcas zamiifolia and Gonotopus bovinnii. As a result, many websites often recommend incorrectly to rarely water the plant. If you examine qualified scientific data such as the information in The Genera of Araceae you will quickly learn the plant enjoys and endures long periods of wet followed by the normal dry season. It should be potted in a mixture of potting soil, sand, and Perlite with a few other amendments.. Cactus soil is also acceptable if a bit of moisture holding material is added. We often recommend 40% moisture control potting soil, 40% sand, and the balance peat moss and Perlite. A small amout of orchid bark with charcoal will also help. Some sites will tell you to water regularly but sparingly in the summer and even less during winter but as discussed that also does not appear to benefit the plant based on science. We water it like any other tropical plant in our atrium, and our water regimen is 10 minutes of water from an overhead system 4 to 7 days a week in summer with 2 to 3 days in winter. Sometimes we water multiple times daily depending on the heat,and our specimen has prospered for 3 years! But our specimen is in the soil mix described above. Since this species is an aroid, in the first week of August, 2007 one of the world's best known aroid botanists, Dr. Thomas B. Croat Ph.D., P.A. Schulze Curator of Botany of the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis, MO. asked a group of well qualified aroid growers, experts, researchers, some botanists and numerous professional aroid growers from all over the world this question via the discussion group Aroid l (L). Dr. Croat does not specialize in African species, "A colleague here at the Gardens asks what are the best soil conditions and general care for this species. We have it in the greenhouse where it thrives but do any of you grow it in your house. Does it require special care? I would appreciate it if anyone has any advise." The answers were quite varied, and surprising! "My daughter gave me one about two years ago. I read everything i could find and according to what I can locate Zamioculcas zamiifolia enjoys drier arid conditions. Supposedly, it likes water in the rainy season and little moisture during the dry season. That just didn't fit into the way I grow aroids in my tropical atrium, so I just planted it! In fact, it is just feet away from my large Anthurium regale. The plant is watered as often as all the other tropical aroids and does just fine! It is in very loose soil with lots of sand added. But other than that, we don't do anything special. To be honest, I wasn't crazy about the thing. But my daughter read it was an aroid so she got it for me. It may eventually not survive, but for several years it has tolerated my "tropical conditions" well." "I agree with what (name removed) reported, both on what research will tell you the plant wants, some moisture and then a dry season, and on what his reality was, and mine as well. We planted ours in an upper planter pocket in the rain forest simulation at UNC Charlotte, where it was fairly well drained but pretty constant moisture as well, and it just thrived, flowered, the whole nine yards. It got some sun, but not much - just good bright light, well drained soil, and good moisture. It got real good sized for us under those conditions." The second answer came from the curator of a botanical garden! Others offered similar answers. As a result of the science and experience of some professionals I'd say it is not critical how you water Zamioculcas zamiifolia as long as you don't under water for long periods of time. Just put it in sandy soil and do your thing! Remember, in the wilds of Africa the plant is subjected to periods of dryness followed by a very wet rainy season. That extended dry spell certainly does not appear to be critical to keeping it alive but water is essential. In fact, it seems the people who water it more actually have better results with better growth and a healthier plant! The key appears to be in having well draining sandy soil. The species is also considered a suitable plant for lightly shaded landscapes (in warm and humid conditions) or terrariums. Don't believe everything you read on the internet! It is filled with myth. And in the case of this plant species someone who wanted to sell a lot of plants to people who don't like to spend time caring for their plants has stretched it way beyond the truth! This plant both needs and enjoys water! This is a condensed version of my on-line article on Zamioculcas zamiifolia . You can read the entire text with much more information here: http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Zamioculcas zamiifolia pc.html
