Norfolk Island Pine

Norfolk Island Pine 

Norfolk Island pine trees (Araucaria heterophylla) are commonly used as those cute, little houseplant Christmas trees that you can buy around the holidays, but then the holidays end and you are left with a seasonally dated, living plant. Just because your Norfolk pine is no longer needed as a holiday plant doesn’t mean that you need to abandon it in the trash. These plants make wonderful houseplants. This leads people to ask how to care for a Norfolk Island pine houseplant.

First thing to keep in mind with the care of Norfolk pines is that they are not cold hardy. They are a tropical plant and cannot tolerate temperatures below 35 F. (1 C.). For many parts of the country, the Norfolk Island pine tree cannot be planted outside year round. It also needs to be kept away from cold drafts. The second thing to understand about indoor Norfolk pine care is that, being a tropical plant, they need high humidity. Paying attention to humidity is very important in the winter when the indoor humidity normally falls significantly. Keeping the humidity high around the tree will help it thrive. This can be done by either using a pebble tray with water, using a humidifier in the room, or through a weekly misting of the tree.