Plant Encyclopedia

Search and identify 1,000+ plants, flowers, trees, and succulents — with care, light, water, and how to tell them apart.

all houseplant flower tree shrub succulent herb fern grass

Peony

A long-lived perennial famous for huge, often fragrant late-spring blooms in shades of pink, white, and red. Peonies are tough, cold-loving, and can thrive for decades.

flower

Pencil Cactus

A nearly leafless succulent shrub whose mass of slender, pencil-thick green branches gives it a coral-like silhouette. It is striking and easy to grow.

succulent

Ox Tongue

A low-growing succulent with thick, tongue-shaped leaves arranged in flat fans, often mottled with white spots. Tolerant of low light, making it an easy indoor plant.

succulent

Majesty Palm

A graceful feather palm with arching fronds, popular as a large indoor floor plant. It demands plenty of light, moisture, and humidity to look its best.

tree

Gasteria

Gasteria is a slow-growing South African succulent with thick, tongue-shaped leaves often arranged in fans, named for its curved, stomach-shaped flowers.

succulent

Chrysanthemum

A classic autumn-blooming perennial with dense, colorful flower heads in countless forms. Mums are a staple of fall displays and a major cut flower worldwide.

flower

Bay Laurel

Bay laurel is an aromatic evergreen tree or shrub, a classic culinary herb most often grown as an elegant clipped topiary or hedge. Slow-growing and easily shaped.

herb

Tatsoi

Tatsoi is a cold-hardy Asian leafy green that forms a low, dark-green rosette of spoon-shaped leaves. A fast-growing cool-season plant, it shrugs off frost.

herb

Wild Mustard

Wild mustard, or charlock, is a fast-growing annual weed of fields and roadsides with bright yellow four-petaled flowers. It is an aggressive crop weed.

herb

Shagbark Hickory

A tall native hardwood instantly recognized by its shaggy, peeling gray bark. A long-lived tree of eastern North American forests.

tree

Red Spruce

Red Spruce is a cool-climate eastern conifer of high Appalachian and northeastern forests, known for its reddish bark and resonant tonewood.

tree

Red Currant

A hardy deciduous shrub that bears glistening strings of translucent red berries in summer, grown in gardens as an ornamental and fruiting shrub.

shrub

Papaya Tree

A fast-growing tropical plant with a single trunk topped by a crown of large lobed leaves and clusters of melon-like fruit. It can fruit within a year of planting.

tree

Horse Chestnut

Horse chestnut is a large deciduous shade tree famous for its showy upright spikes of spring flowers and shiny brown conkers in spiky husks.

tree

Heartleaf Philodendron

An easy trailing vine with glossy, heart-shaped leaves that thrives in a wide range of conditions. Often confused with pothos but with softer, thinner leaves.

houseplant

Cleome

Cleome is a tall, airy annual topped with spidery clusters of pink, white, or purple flowers and long whisker-like seedpods, blooming all summer.

flower

Zinnia

Zinnias are fast-growing, heat-loving annuals that produce bold, daisy-like flowers in vivid colors all summer. They are easy from seed, beloved by pollinators, and excellent cut flowers.

flower

Sorrel

Sorrel is a leafy perennial herb in the dock family, grown in herb and vegetable gardens for its bright green, arrow-shaped leaves. It grows from a deep taproot and is among the earliest greens to emerge in spring.

herb

Rubber Tree

The rubber tree is a striking indoor tree with large, thick, glossy leaves that can be deep green or burgundy. It is easy to grow and can become an impressive floor plant several feet tall.

tree

Pear Tree

The pear tree is a deciduous fruit tree grown for its abundant white spring blossom and glossy foliage. European pears (Pyrus communis) are long-lived ornamental and orchard trees.

tree

Moon Cactus

The moon cactus is a brightly colored grafted novelty cactus, with a red, yellow, orange, or pink top fused onto a green rootstock. The colorful top lacks chlorophyll and depends on the host cactus to survive.

succulent

Okra

Okra is a heat-loving annual in the mallow family, grown in warm-climate gardens for its showy hibiscus-like flowers and slender, ridged green seed pods. It thrives in hot summers.

herb

Indian Pipe

A ghostly white, leafless woodland plant that lacks chlorophyll and survives by parasitizing fungi, appearing as eerie translucent stems on the forest floor.

flower

Jelly Bean Plant

The jelly bean plant is a small, easygoing sedum with plump, bean-shaped leaves that turn from green to bright red at the tips when grown in full sun. It is fast-spreading and very simple to propagate.

succulent