Walking into Grandma’s cozy New Mexico home feels like stepping into a living botanical museum. Sunlight streams through the windows, illuminating rows of unusual plants that she’s lovingly tended for decades.
What she doesn’t realize is that some of these green treasures sitting quietly on her windowsills could actually be worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars to collectors worldwide.
1. Variegated Monstera Deliciosa
Grandma’s favorite corner plant might just be her most valuable possession. With leaves that look like they’ve been hand-painted with splashes of creamy white and emerald green, this stunner can fetch anywhere from $500 to several thousand dollars depending on size.
Collectors go absolutely wild for these because the variegation is unpredictable and totally unique. Each leaf tells its own story with different patterns.
New Mexico’s dry climate actually helps prevent the root rot these plants hate, making Grandma an accidental expert grower without even trying!
2. Philodendron Pink Princess
Picture a plant that looks like someone spilled bubblegum pink paint across deep chocolate-colored leaves. That’s exactly what sits on Grandma’s kitchen table, casually soaking up morning sun.
This Instagram-famous beauty can sell for $200 to $600 per cutting when the pink coloring is vibrant and stable. The pink comes from a lack of chlorophyll, making it somewhat rare in nature.
Grandma’s been propagating it for years, completely unaware she’s sitting on a goldmine that plant influencers would trade their ring lights for!
3. Anthurium Clarinervium
Those heart-shaped velvet leaves with striking white veins aren’t just pretty—they’re pricey. Grandma picked this up at a local nursery decades ago when nobody knew what they had.
Now, mature specimens command prices between $150 and $400 from serious collectors. The velvety texture feels like stroking a rabbit’s ear, and those contrasting veins glow under light like roadmaps.
Native to Mexican rainforests, it surprisingly thrives in New Mexico’s indoor conditions with proper humidity. Grandma mists hers daily while watching her morning news, accidentally providing five-star plant care.
4. Hoya Carnosa Compacta ‘Hindu Rope’
Hanging near Grandma’s bathroom window is what looks like twisted green ropes covered in waxy leaves. When it blooms, clusters of star-shaped flowers smell like chocolate and vanilla mixed together.
Established plants with multiple vines can bring in $100 to $300, especially if they’re flowering. The curled, contorted leaves grow incredibly slowly, making older specimens particularly valuable.
Did you know these can live for decades? Grandma’s has been thriving since the 1980s, meaning it’s practically a family heirloom that also happens to clean the air beautifully.
5. Monstera Adansonii Variegated
Grandma calls it her Swiss cheese plant because of all the natural holes in the leaves. What makes hers special is the random splashes of white that dance across each leaf like snowflakes.
A single cutting can sell for $300 to $800 when the variegation is this consistent and bright. The holes, called fenestrations, help the plant survive strong winds in its native Central American jungles.
Grandma’s been training hers up a wooden ladder for years, creating a living sculpture that professional plant stylists would photograph endlessly for magazines and design blogs.
6. Alocasia Azlanii ‘Red Mambo’
Metallic burgundy leaves that shimmer like polished copper catch everyone’s eye in Grandma’s living room. She inherited this beauty from a neighbor who moved away, never suspecting its true worth.
These rare Alocasias fetch between $200 and $500 because they’re notoriously difficult to find and even trickier to keep happy. The leaves almost look artificial with their metallic sheen and deep purple undersides.
Originating from Borneo’s tropical forests, it somehow adapted to Grandma’s consistent watering schedule and her tendency to talk to her plants every evening while watering them lovingly.
7. Philodendron Gloriosum
Crawling across Grandma’s sideboard like a green velvet blanket, this showstopper grows horizontally instead of climbing. Each massive leaf can span over a foot wide with veins that glow bright white.
Collectors happily pay $150 to $350 for established plants because they’re slow growers and relatively uncommon. The leaves have a texture so soft you’ll want to pet them constantly.
Fun fact: Unlike most Philodendrons, this one grows from a rhizome underground, making propagation trickier. Grandma’s been dividing hers for years, unknowingly creating multiple valuable plants she gives away to friends!
8. Stephania Erecta
What looks like a lumpy potato sitting in soil with delicate umbrella-shaped leaves sprouting from the top is actually a botanical treasure. Grandma thought it was quirky and cute, so she bought it years ago.
That potato-like caudex stores water and makes each plant unique. Specimens with large, established caudexes sell for $100 to $400 depending on size and age. The thin, circular leaves on wire-like stems create an almost Dr. Seuss-like appearance.
Native to Thailand, it goes completely dormant in winter, which initially worried Grandma until she realized it bounces back every spring like magic.
9. Syngonium Albo Variegated
Arrow-shaped leaves splashed with bright white variegation cascade from a macrame hanger Grandma made herself in the 1970s. She’s been propagating cuttings from this plant for neighborhood friends for decades.
If she knew each well-rooted cutting could sell for $75 to $200, she might reconsider her generous giveaways! The variegation remains stable through propagation, making it highly desirable. Originally from Latin American rainforests, these adapt remarkably well to indoor life.
Grandma’s secret? She waters it whenever she makes her morning coffee, creating a consistent routine that keeps the plant thriving beautifully year-round.
10. Rhaphidophora Tetrasperma Variegated
Often mistaken for a baby Monstera, this fast-growing climber in Grandma’s sunroom sports rare yellow and cream variegation. She’s had it so long she can’t remember where it came from originally.
The regular green version is affordable, but variegated specimens command $150 to $400 because the mutation is uncommon and unstable. Some leaves emerge completely yellow, while others show artistic streaks and sectors.
Grandma’s has climbed nearly to her ceiling on a bamboo stake. The variegated sections grow slower since they have less chlorophyll, creating an interesting two-toned growth pattern that looks intentionally designed.
11. Monstera Obliqua Peru
Grandma’s most fragile-looking plant appears to be more holes than actual leaf. The tissue-thin foliage looks like lace doilies hanging from delicate stems, and she babies it more than her other plants.
This is arguably the holy grail for Monstera collectors, with prices ranging from $500 to several thousand dollars for established specimens. It’s extremely rare in cultivation and grows painfully slowly. The leaves are so fenestrated they’re about 90% holes, an adaptation for surviving in extremely low-light jungle floors.
Grandma received a cutting from a botanical garden volunteer decades ago, completely unaware she was entrusted with botanical gold!