Have you seen an indoor plant with red leaves and are searching for red leaf indoor plant identification? Here I will provide you with names and images of the 13 most common houseplants with red leaves and a brief overview of them.
In addition, I will teach you an easy but accurate method to identify houseplants: free online tools. I will introduce one of the best plant identifiers and teach you how to work with it.
Please note that a house plant may show red, deep red, maroon, and burgundy hues in various varieties or caring conditions. Additionally, in some varieties, you may spot leaves with variegated colours including green, orange, and red.
In this article, I don’t mention the houseplants whose under-leaf are red or burgundy, if you are interested in identifying your indoor plant with green leaves on the surface and red underneath, read my previous article.
If you are ready, lets get going to identify house plants with red leaves.
➡ You can also hear the audio version of this article.
In this part, I provide you with images and names of 13 indoor plants with red leaves. Please note that common names may vary in different cultures and countries, additionally, sometimes various species have similar common names but scientific names are specific to every plant species.
Hence, I always recommend using scientific names for searching or buying a plant. Now, come on to start our journey to the red leaf indoor plant identification. Scroll through the images and find your intended plant.
Scientific name: Aglaonema spp.
Another common name: Chinese evergreen
Botanical Family: Araceae family
Appearance:
Aglaonema is one of the common houseplants. The leaves of Aglaonema plants are large, typically around 6-8 inches long. As you see in the picture, they have elongated oval shape and glossy leaves. The images will help you with red leaf indoor plant identification.
Some varieties of this plant such as Aglaonema Diamond Red have red to pink leaves, however, you may spot green edges too. You see the leaves on upright reddish stems that can grow up to 2 feet tall and are sturdy.
Scientific name: Anthurium Moodeanum
Another common name: Flamingo flower
Botanical Family: Araceae family
Appearance:
Anthurium plants are famous due to their large heart-shaped leaves that can grow up to 6-8 inches in length. In most species, the leaves are deep green but Anthurium Moodeanum sometimes produces maroon to red leaves among the green ones. The surface of the leaves is smooth and glossy.
This plant can also produce red and heart-shaped flowers that resemble waxy, shiny spathes.
Scientific name: Dracaena marginata
Another common name: Dragon tree
Botanical Family: Asparagaceae family
Appearance:
I love this variety of Dracaena marginata . This plant has long slender leaves that can grow up 2 feet in length. Most varieties of Dracaena marginata have deep green leaves with red edges along their margins but the red dracaena has red leaves that have a green line in the center.
The brownish-red stems are thick and woody and leaves are arranged in a rosette at the top of them.
Scientific name: Caladium bicolor
Another common name: Angel wings
Botanical Family: Araceae family
Appearance:
Red Caladium has large and arrow-shaped leaves that can grow up to 12 inches in length. Its red leaves are green at the edges. You may also see spots on leaves that make an eye-catching pattern. As you see in the following picture, the leaves have a smooth texture and a glossy sheen.
Scientific name: Alocasia infernalis
Another common name: Elephant ear
Botanical Family: Araceae family
Appearance:
Its large leaves are heart-shaped and can grow up to 8-10 inches long. Most leaves are deep green however this plant can produce purple to red leaves too. Red Alocasia has short and thick stems that support its large foliage.
Scientific name: Philodendron erubescens
Another common name: Imperial red
Botanical Family: Araceae family
Appearance:
Philodendron erubescens has large glossy leaves that are heart-shaped and can grow up to 6-10 inches in length. The young leaves have vibrant red surfaces. But the mature leaves transition to a dark green shade with red veins. Very beautiful.
I love this houseplant because it is an ivy houseplant that has long and trailing stems, and the stems can climb or hang from baskets or trellises.
Scientific name: Cordyline sp.
Another common name: Ti plant
Botanical Family: Asparagaceae family
Appearance:
Cordylines have long and strap-like leaves that can grow up to 2 feet in length. The leaves in various species and varieties are green, red, or a combination of both. This plant has brownish-red stems that are thick and woody and leaves are arranged in a rosette form at the top of a woody stem.
Scientific name: Euphorbia pulcherrima
Another common name: Christmas star
Botanical Family: Euphorbiaceae family
Appearance:
The Poinsettia plant has large and showy leaves that can grow up to 6-8 inches in length. The leaves are red with green edges that create an eye-catching view. The leaves have a slightly velvety texture and a glossy sheen.
This plant also produces small yellowish flowers in the centre that are surrounded by modified red leaves called bracts, although they can also be white or pink.
Do you know why people call it the “Christmas star plant”? It is due to Poinsettias are often associated with the holiday season.
Scientific name: Fittonia albivenis (Fittonia verschaffeltii)
Another common name: Mosaic plant
Botanical Family: Acanthaceae family
Appearance:
This plant has small, round to oval-shaped leaves (around 1-2 inches in length) with a delicate texture. This plant has also thin and creeping stems with dense mats. In most varieties of Fittonia albivenis the leaves are bright green but in three varieties the leaves are red with green vines.
The ˈRed Anneˈ variety has a slightly larger leaf size compared to ˈPearceiˈ.
Scientific name: Cryptanthus bivittatus
Another common name: Starfish plant
Botanical Family: Bromeliaceae family
Appearance:
This plant is famous due to its small and star-shaped leaves. As you see in the below picture, the leaves are reddish-brown with white stripes or bands that radiate from the centre of the leaf.
Scientific name: Peperomia caperata ˈLuna Redˈ
Another common name: Radiator plant
Botanical Family: Piperaceae family
Appearance:
Peperomia ‘Luna Red’ has small and heart-shaped leaves that can grow up to 2-3 inches in length. I love the velvety texture of its leaves. The leaves are deep red that can turn into maroon in certain lighting conditions. this plant has short stems that grow close to the ground and its leaves are arranged on them in a rosette form.
Scientific name: Hypoestes phyllostachya
Another common name: Freckle face
Botanical Family: Acanthaceae family
Appearance:
The small and spotted leaves of this plant can grow up to 1-2 inches in length. In red varieties, the leaves are red with green vines. They are However, there are varieties with green or white leaves with pink spots. Its thin stems grow close to the ground and the glossy leaves are arranged in a rosette form.
Scientific name: Iresine herbstii
Another common name: Beefsteak plant
Botanical Family: Amaranthaceae family
Appearance:
Herbst’s bloodleaf has small, pointed, glossy leaves that can grow up to 2-3 inches in length. Their deep red coloration brings vibrancy to your house. this plant has short stems that grow close to the ground and the leaves are arranged in a rosette form on them.
Did you find your red leaf indoor plant in the previous part? If you are interested in identifying houseplants with their images, I want to introduce an easy way: getting help from plant identification tools. Working with them is very easy.
One of the best plant identifiers is the “House plant identifier”. It can identify houseplants, trees, flowers, and wild and ornamental plants in only 2 seconds with about 92% accuracy. This free online tool can also detect plant diseases.
From now than, red leaf indoor plant identification will be easy for you. you must just take an online pic from your intended plant (or upload it from your gallery) and click on the start button, Finished. Experience it and enjoy it.
In this article, about red leaf plant identification, I provided you with names and images of 13 houseplants with red leaves. I also introduced a free online plant identification tool to you that can detect plants with high accuracy.
Have you ever experienced plant identifiers? Do you think they work well? Please share your ideas and experiences with us below this page.
Hi, I’m Elaheh. My Academic major is plant protection, and houseplants are my expertise. As a houseplant lover, my house is full of indoor plants and it is my passion to take care of them. Hence, I’m here to share my knowledge and experience about growing healthy houseplants. I am also a plant protection advisor, so feel free to ask me any questions you may have.