Large leafy indoor plants that will bring your home to life

Large indoor plants are an easy and affordable way to make a style statement in your home.

We all have that one space in our home that's hard to style – a blank wall, an empty corner, that awkward spot under the stairs – a sad spot that brings the rest of your beautiful home down.
But fear not! We've found a quick and affordable solution for these hard-to-navigate zones, guaranteed to inject life into your interior: big leafy indoor plants. The size of the space you're looking to fill will determine just how large you go but if you really want to make a statement, the bigger the better in our eyes.
Here are six large-scaleindoor plants and trees set to steal the show.

1. Giant bird of paradise

Turn that dull and empty corner into a tropical oasis with a Giant bird of paradise. It's large, banana-like leaves fan out to create a striking display, with mature plants producing bright orange bird-like flowers in the warmer months. Although its natural habitat is outside in a sunny, tropical location, the Giant bird of paradise can be grown indoors, provided it has plenty of sunlight.
Photo: Gaelle le Boulicaut

2. Elephant ear

The green and leafy elephant ear is perfect for those low empty spaces where it's best to go wide rather than high - like that awkward spot under the stairs. Growing elephant ear plants is easy. Most of these plants prefer rich, moist soil and can be grown in full sun, but they generally prefer partial shade – making them ideal for indoors.
Photo: Simon Whitbread

3. Monstera deliciosa

We love the monstera deliciosa for its detailed and defined leaves and its amazing ability to grow upward and outward to fill even the sparsest of spaces. You can train the monstera deliciosa to grow tall by securing it to a wooden stake or simply pop it on a plant stand to give it a bit of extra height.
Photo: Annette O'Brien

4. Fiddle-leaf fig

There's a reason the fiddle-leaf fig takes the cake as the most popular house plant of all time. Its large, deep green leaves will make any interior sing especially when contrasted against a stark white wall. If you don't have a lot of space, you can keep your fiddle leaf in a small pot to stunt its growth but if you really want to make a statement, continue repotting your fig to let it grow tall like this beauty below.
Photo: Maree Homer

5. Boston fern

Hanging plants in a bare corner is a great way to soften a space and add another dimension to a room. Create a dramatic display of greenery with an oversized Boston fern and let its lush fish-tail fronds do all the hard work for you. These guys love the humidity making them perfect for brightening up a boring bathroom!
Hanging pots and greenery create a resort-like feel in this sandstone bathroom.

6. Rubber tree

These can be kept small but if you allow them to grow, boy do they grow! The perfect indoor plant for a minimalist home, the rubber plant is simple yet strong in appearance and requires very little maintenance.
Consider a light fertilise every second week in spring/summer. Rubber plants can grow incredibly tall if allowed. Photo: Martina Gemmola

7. Banana Palm

With their large green leaves, banana plants will add a touch of the tropics to your decor. Because they grow quite tall, choose a dwarf variety for indoors unless you having soaring ceilings like this.
Photo: Nick Scott