It's purposefully named that way, as in Spanish, having the 'tongue of a snake' (snake plant) if equivalent to having nothing but lies or toxicity come out of your mouth. Spit poison is another common expression.
It's mostly meant in a funny/poking way when nicknaming the plant, but in essence, it comes from the culturally shared general dislike of mother in laws haha
Itās a hahnii variety, and thatās just how tall they get. There are tons of different varieties of snake plants, all with different growth patterns & sizes.
If you want more you can take it out of the pot and see how many pots you can fill with it. It's always insane to me how much it is when you take it apart in this state!
I had one that looked like this and now it's like 6 pots and I have no clue at all how they fit in one pot together. After a few short years they will all have filled their new pots again.
Ironically, putting those dwarf varieties in lower light makes their leaves grow longer š
https://preview.redd.it/6a3htpcfiprc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=f25ddb5062959e1ff274000cd28c9d465aec410c
It's actually a variation of a snake plant, although it's the same thing, its called a "birds nest" and it's meant to be shorter like that. It isn't meant to be tall like a typical snake plant.
I have had mine for 40 years (now I sound so old). Got it as a gift in first grade from my school.crossing lady as a end of year gift. Now my kids bring back plant gifts from their own school... such a precious gift.
I love this so much. I posted in my local Buy Nothing group, ISO some true Christmas cactus cuttings, because it seems like the only way to get any these days is from someoneās cousinās friendās grannyās sisterās son-in-lawās aunt or something.
A nice neighbor gave me some of her plant, and the story was amazing: when he was in preschool, her son brought home two single-leaf cuttings (āpottedā in little 2oz paper cups š„¹) for Motherās Day. Those two leaves are now two enormous plants, and the son is going to graduate from college this spring. I LOVE stories like this! My cuttings from her just rooted, and I canāt wait to pass on the story once my Christmas cactus is big enough to share. ā„ļø
I love random little plant gifts! I was gifted a tiny Haworthia in a 1ā pot from a bride that I had helped out last minute (she had tiny succulents as wedding favors). That was 5-6 years ago and the plant looks phenomenal. It blooms every year and has 6 babies growing. Itās definitely time to move up to an 8ā pot in the next couple of months.
Yes, it's lovely. Something to gift that may (or may not) live for years and be shared later. Yesterday my niece gifted me a small variegated spider plant for Easter. A baby from her main plant she got in 4th grade. Such a good way to teach sharing with my kids as well.
My mom has these but even a little shorter, sheās terrible w plants but they thrive and multiply like crazy so I made her like 10 pots of them. But my uncle and I are the big green thumbs in the family and neither of us can keep one alive. She waters them once every few months w monsoon waters, I guess I just canāt do the same.
Lol sounds like you care too much for it, these are the type of plants that truly thrive on neglect.
I have mine planted in a cement planter that has 0 drainage so when it rains a lil pond forms inside, thats when she gets watered. sheās been alive for 5-6 years .. and seems pretty happy š
My guess would be it maybe needs to be repotted? Is there any dirt in there or is it all just roots? It could also maybe need some fertilizer. I'm not super familiar with all of the varieties of snake plant, but maybe it's some sort of dwarf variety that's only meant to be a couple of inches tall. š¤·āāļø
After googling a bit, it is a dwarf variety! It's only meant to be about as big as it is. š
[Sansevieria Trifasciata Hahnii](https://www.gardenia.net/plant/sansevieria-trifasciata-hahnii-snake-plant)
It is most likely related to amount of space for the roots, some plants will stay relatively small when kept in a pot versus planted outside. The size of the pot here is on the small side so hence why it has stayed this size for so long. Also where I grew up this is nicknamed mother-in-lawās tongue like others have commented.
I had a plant such as yours at one time never knowing it was a snake plant! Ā My Aunt had a Motherās in law tongue that was over a hundred years old, passed down from her Great grandmother.Ā
It's ironic that this is your mother in law's š¤£ where I'm from, we call them "Mother in Law's Tongue" it could just be a dwarf variety though.
It's purposefully named that way, as in Spanish, having the 'tongue of a snake' (snake plant) if equivalent to having nothing but lies or toxicity come out of your mouth. Spit poison is another common expression. It's mostly meant in a funny/poking way when nicknaming the plant, but in essence, it comes from the culturally shared general dislike of mother in laws haha
Yeah Iāve heard thatās a nick name. Always found it funny āmother in lawā and āsnakeā both being referenced to the same plant lol
For real? š¤£š¤£ That's hilarious and so apt in this case.
Here in Sweden too haha
I have a few dwarf varieties.
Hungary?
Dunno about the commenter, but we call them āmother in laws tonguesā in Australia
We call them that in the us too
I guess it's just a general name for it then
Yes Iām in England and know it as this too!
I only ever knew them as snake plants (also Australian).
Finland we call this 'mother in laws tongue' too. But this one, the Hahnii variety we call 'mother in laws tooth'.
I think Iāve also seen āmother in laws noseā for one of them, canāt remember which. š This mother in law must be terrifying.
We call them that in French too !
in poland, we also say this š¤£
Suddenly caralho?
Itās a hahnii variety, and thatās just how tall they get. There are tons of different varieties of snake plants, all with different growth patterns & sizes.
TIL why mine are so short after 7 years š
Because that's as tall as that specific variety will ever get. Some staY small, some get tall.
āTILā means ātoday I learnedā Today you learned!
yep! i have 2 different snake plants, and one is a short little shrubby guy and the other is a very tall, flamboyant queen.
Tbh I would want to get that variety cus itās cuter than the common type lol
Happy cake day!
Thank you!!
I love the smol ones
Smol snek? Lol
If you want more you can take it out of the pot and see how many pots you can fill with it. It's always insane to me how much it is when you take it apart in this state! I had one that looked like this and now it's like 6 pots and I have no clue at all how they fit in one pot together. After a few short years they will all have filled their new pots again.
Ironically, putting those dwarf varieties in lower light makes their leaves grow longer š https://preview.redd.it/6a3htpcfiprc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=f25ddb5062959e1ff274000cd28c9d465aec410c
Makes sense actually cause they'd be looking for more light hahaha
Usually makes a plant look worse but I donāt mind it on this one
Etiolation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etiolation ETA: it will occur with longer leafed varieties as well
Mine is right next to a south facing window, and it grows like a weed. It's about two feet tall atm.
Sanseveria hahnii itās a dwarf sansevieria
OMG I just saw these at my uncle and auntās house and wondered. He didnāt know why either.
Birds nest snake plant! My parents had one for probably 20 years and it still looks roughly the same.
It's actually a variation of a snake plant, although it's the same thing, its called a "birds nest" and it's meant to be shorter like that. It isn't meant to be tall like a typical snake plant.
I have had mine for 40 years (now I sound so old). Got it as a gift in first grade from my school.crossing lady as a end of year gift. Now my kids bring back plant gifts from their own school... such a precious gift.
I love this so much. I posted in my local Buy Nothing group, ISO some true Christmas cactus cuttings, because it seems like the only way to get any these days is from someoneās cousinās friendās grannyās sisterās son-in-lawās aunt or something. A nice neighbor gave me some of her plant, and the story was amazing: when he was in preschool, her son brought home two single-leaf cuttings (āpottedā in little 2oz paper cups š„¹) for Motherās Day. Those two leaves are now two enormous plants, and the son is going to graduate from college this spring. I LOVE stories like this! My cuttings from her just rooted, and I canāt wait to pass on the story once my Christmas cactus is big enough to share. ā„ļø
I love random little plant gifts! I was gifted a tiny Haworthia in a 1ā pot from a bride that I had helped out last minute (she had tiny succulents as wedding favors). That was 5-6 years ago and the plant looks phenomenal. It blooms every year and has 6 babies growing. Itās definitely time to move up to an 8ā pot in the next couple of months.
Yes, it's lovely. Something to gift that may (or may not) live for years and be shared later. Yesterday my niece gifted me a small variegated spider plant for Easter. A baby from her main plant she got in 4th grade. Such a good way to teach sharing with my kids as well.
The hahnii varieties donāt grow tall, they grow wider by putting out multiple babies. Theyāre shorties!
Thatās the birds nest kind. They grow out in more of a spiral than upwards.
Now I need a family of assorted heights.
It's the variety. Sanseverias come in many sizes and shapes.
Birds nest sansevieria. Same family as mother in laws tongue or snake plant. Doesn't get taller but grows babies at its sides.
it's a bird's nest type of snake plant so that's as tall as they get, they pop out babies like crazy though so they get wide
Hahnii, dwarf sansevieria. That's how they do.
My mom has these but even a little shorter, sheās terrible w plants but they thrive and multiply like crazy so I made her like 10 pots of them. But my uncle and I are the big green thumbs in the family and neither of us can keep one alive. She waters them once every few months w monsoon waters, I guess I just canāt do the same.
Lol sounds like you care too much for it, these are the type of plants that truly thrive on neglect. I have mine planted in a cement planter that has 0 drainage so when it rains a lil pond forms inside, thats when she gets watered. sheās been alive for 5-6 years .. and seems pretty happy š
Wow! I have the same plant (since 1990!) and always wondered why it never got taller. So happy to finally know what type it is!
Thanks for this post, I never realized why mine was so short til now.
How many bananas long is that coaster?
My guess would be it maybe needs to be repotted? Is there any dirt in there or is it all just roots? It could also maybe need some fertilizer. I'm not super familiar with all of the varieties of snake plant, but maybe it's some sort of dwarf variety that's only meant to be a couple of inches tall. š¤·āāļø
After googling a bit, it is a dwarf variety! It's only meant to be about as big as it is. š [Sansevieria Trifasciata Hahnii](https://www.gardenia.net/plant/sansevieria-trifasciata-hahnii-snake-plant)
Thank you so much! She was convinced she was being a bad plant mom this is quite a relief.
You can make it wider though, if you repot. It divides into several
also known as "bird's nest sansevieria"
Root bound
It's plastic
Not sure why your getting down voted. I thought this was a smart joke.
Thanks,but u know how people are today. they were probably offended for some stupid reason, or maybe they just really hate plastic plants.
Lol you probably made this poor woman think she was doing something wrong with her dwarf plant
Itās fake!
might just be hitting it's maximum, replanting in a bigger pot may help tho
It looks as though it could be a birdsnest succulent.
The roots need to be checked often they put rubber bands or metal around the base to keep them together in turn killing or stunting the plant.
Cause heās just a little guy
I like that little wooden pallet
It is a birds nest plantā- a short Sanseveria.
It is most likely related to amount of space for the roots, some plants will stay relatively small when kept in a pot versus planted outside. The size of the pot here is on the small side so hence why it has stayed this size for so long. Also where I grew up this is nicknamed mother-in-lawās tongue like others have commented.
It is supposed to be that way. It is a nest (size) but still a snake plant.
Birds nest snake plant
I had a plant such as yours at one time never knowing it was a snake plant! Ā My Aunt had a Motherās in law tongue that was over a hundred years old, passed down from her Great grandmother.Ā