As each new year arrives, we embark on an eager search for a new houseplant that gives our collection the extra pizazz that it didn’t have the year before. These priorities are what have inspired this plant feature: the Raven ZZ. Some may be familiar with the traditional ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamifolia), having outstretched thick stalks and evenly distributed green-waxy leaves like you see in the picture to the left. Their diverse texture has managed to instill a reputation amongst common household plants. The most memorable quality of the ZZ is certainly its tolerant and low-maintenance nature that most plant parents can appreciate.
Instead of rich green leaves though, the Raven has deep black ones that make you wonder if it’s real or if it can really continue to produce such a natural beauty. When a new stock first emerges the new growth will demonstrate a brilliant and young green, but after a few weeks as it matures it fades into the rich black that it exudes on its older growth. The Raven ZZ is a relatively new cultivar, only having entered the retail realm in 2019, which leaves us with little information as to why and how this variety got its black leaves.
The other quality that attracts us to this plant aside from its exotic appearance is its easy care. Like the original ZZ plant they do well in a wide range of light conditions, all of the way from very low, to fairly bright, with the exception of very harsh direct sunlight. Additionally, they are highly tolerant of low humidity, which is music to our Central Oregonian ears. And they are fairly drought tolerant. In fact, they prefer and require a lower watering schedule, as their thick stalks and bulbous rhizomes are so full of water that they can actually be highly susceptible to root rot. An extension to this combination of preferences, they also like a tight squeeze in their pot, needing that root boundness to help mediate moisture levels so that it’s soil medium is drying out appropriately.
If you’ve been looking for an extremely low maintenance plant that tolerates low light, low water and doesn’t disappoint in beauty, the Raven ZZ is the specialty plant that you have been waiting for. You can start with a 6” size and watch it grow up with you, or jump in big with a matured 10” that fills your difficult corner with a plant that no one can believe is real. Or even better, you might get lucky with our $1 propagation section, full of cuttings we have rooted from plants around the nursery. After all, you can’t know if you don’t try. Who wouldn’t want to give a go at a $1 houseplant project?
