Think All Chinese Evergreens Look Alike? Check Out These 23 Striking Varieties

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Chinese evergreens are houseplants belonging to the genus Aglaonema. There are a little over 20 species of aglaonema and countless varieties today.

Originally, Chinese evergreens came from Southeast Asian forests. They grew short between thick vegetation where they adapted to thrive with little light.

That’s why many varieties of Chinese evergreen are great to keep as houseplants where they can tolerate the shade. These low-maintenance plants thrive in homes, offices, and other indoor locations.

Although they don’t bloom often, Chinese evergreens have colorful leaves and pretty patterns. As a bonus, NASA says that some varieties can purify the air by absorbing toxins.

Since most of the world population consists of visual thinkers, I’ve sorted out these Chinese evergreen varieties by color.

What Colors Do Chinese Evergreen Come in?

Chinese evergreens come in many different colors and patterns such as pink, green, red, and white. However, most varieties include a mixture of these colors forming unique patterns.

Some common patterns in Chinese evergreens are spots, stripes, blotches, and even camouflage prints! Stay with me as I describe over 20 varieties of aglaonema.

Red Chinese Evergreen Varieties

Red aglaonema varieties are probably propagated for their striking hues. Instead of stressing over how to care for roses, you can get one of these plants to give your home a pop of color all year round.

1 – Lucky Red

Like a juicy watermelon, Lucky Red starts out green and white and only turns red when mature. At this time, most of the leaf surface is red except for a thin green margin.

In the growing phase, the leaves appear pink before their shade turns into a bright red. Lucky red can grow up to 12 to 23 inches.

This jazzy plant grows well in the shade.

2 – Siam Aurora

This is one of the earliest colorful aglaonema cultivars to propagate and grow in homes. It’s also called Red Lipstick aglaonema.

Siam Aurora has several shades of red, pink, yellow, and green. Most commonly, you’ll see it with a bold red margin on the edges and spotty towards the middle. Meanwhile, most of the leaf blade is green.

3 – Red Star

This variety belongs to the species Aglaonema commutatum. Originating from the Philippines, the Red Star variety grows up to 20 inches tall.

It has shiny red leaves with green margins concentrated near the apex. Unfortunately, the Red Star is one of the rare types of aglaonema. So, you may not find it in all houseplant shops.

4 – Red Zircon

Belonging to the same species as the Red Star, Red Zircon resembles its sister variety once it’s mature. The Red Zircon has pinkish leaves with green edges when it’s young.

With time, the pink part turns into bright red. You can identify this cultivar by examining the leaves.

The foliage has a green background with pink veins and occasionally spots.

White Chinese Evergreen Varieties

In the list below, I’ve included many Chinese evergreen varieties with white, pale green, and silver streaks. As a rule of thumb, aglaonemas with white need more light than the ones with darker leaves.

5 – Silverado

As the name suggests, this plant has a lot of silvery tones on the leaves. Silverado leaves have a distinct jagged pale grey line along the midrib, surrounded by light green and dark green edges.

This beautiful Chinese evergreen is native to tropical and subtropical forests in Asia and New Guinea. In fact, Silverado was first created in India in 1988.

This cultivar can tolerate both dim and bright lighting. However, growth slows down when it’s too dark.

The best time to expose this plant to indirect sunlight is early in the day. So, you can strategically place your Silverado near a window where the sun shines in the morning.

6 – Foxii

Aglaonema costatum ‘foxii’ is the most popular cultivar within its species. It’s a compact and low-growing indoor plant that tolerates little light, making it ideal for dark offices and homes.

Foxii has broad dark green leaves with a white midrib and white speckles. These spots resemble splashes of white paint.

7 – Spring Snow

The Spring Snow variety looks similar to the above Foxii in color distribution and shades. However, you can tell them apart by their leaf shapes.

Spring Snow aglaonema has narrow leaves. In addition, this houseplant has a bit more white than its sister variety, Foxii, giving it an enchanting frosty look.

8 – Silver Queen

Also known as Painted Drop Tongue, Silver Queen shows a lovely contrast of silver and green. From far away, the pattern looks like diagonal stripes of both colors running along the veins.

From up close, you’ll see irregular green spots over the white background.

The Silver Queen can tolerate both dark and bright places. Yet, it grows faster in the light.

It can grow up to 24 inches tall.

9 – Silver Bay

If we’re in Turkiye, Silver Bay would translate into Mr. Silver, so can we assume this variety is the spouse of Madame Silver Queen?

Silver Bay resembles Silver Queen in terms of color, except that the green markings don’t come all the way to the center of the leaf. Instead, they leave a thick river-shaped white streak along the middle.

This variety needs to stay in medium to bright light settings to flourish.

10 – Spilt Milk

The name of this variety is a close description of its appearance. A modestum ‘spilt milk’ has white and faint green blotches resembling poured milk.

Spilt Milk grows up to 20 inches tall and is also known as the Lily of China. It grows well in shady places.

Green Chinese Evergreen Varieties

If you’re looking for a houseplant to decorate a dark room in your home, a green Chinese evergreen is your man for the job. That’s because Chinese evergreens with dark leaves can survive with little light and don’t need too much attention.

Green aglaonema have distinct elliptic leaves with smooth edges. Their leaves also have a glossy surface that’s easy to clean from dust.

11 – Pictum Tricolor

Did you know that it’s illegal to wear camouflage prints in many countries around the world? Luckily, there’s no rule against keeping plants with a camo pattern like the Pictum Tricolor.

As the name implies, this aglaonema cultivar has three shades of green mixed in an unusual design. Aglaonema pictum ‘tricolor’ is native to Sumatra and Borneo and grows up to only four to eight inches.

Another similar variety is the Pictum Bicolor, which has two green shades in a camo print.

12 – Debora

A. roebelenii ‘debora’ is also called Painted Drop Tongue. It’s a large shrub growing up to 39 inches tall, and its leaves grow up to 12 inches long.

Debora has pale leaves and dark green veins and stems.

Since it tolerates the dark, Debora can be perfect if you have dark corners in your house that you’d like to liven up with some greenery.

13 – Curtisii

A nitidum ‘curtisii’ comes from the forests of Burma, Sumatra, Borneo, and Myanmar. This plant grows slowly and peaks at 35 inches tall.

Curtisii has silver veins on the top side of the leaf, while the bottom is plain green. It’s easiest to spot Curtisii aglaonema by the green chevron leaf design.

14 – Ernesto’s Favorite

Another all-green aglaonema variety is Ernesto’s favorite. It has a pale squiggly pattern along the midrib of the leaves. The foliage is elongated and elliptical.

15 – Cutlass

If you’re a fan of the monochromatic look, the cutlass variety is one color throughout. Cutlass has long thin leaves with light and dark green marbling.

The plant is also lush with thick sword-shaped leaves growing from the green stalks.

Pink Chinese Evergreen Varieties

Valentine’s Day is coming up, and gifting your loved one a pink aglaonema can be a cute way to express your love. Check out the following varieties for inspiration.

16 – Pink Dalmatian

This variety of commutatum has a similar pattern to the Dalmatian dogs, only in pink and green. On the same plant, you may notice that some leaves have yellowish spots instead of pink, which is completely normal.

Pink Dalmatians are hardy houseplants that can tolerate both dark and bright places.

17 – Lady Valentine

This variety has a noble name with pale pink and dark green leaves. Lady Valentine (A. commutatum) flourishes in well-lit corners indoors.

The leaves of Lady Valentine range from light to deep pink with some green splatter around the edges.

18 – Wishes

In Asia, it’s believed that this plant brings good luck and prosperity to people who grow it. Even if you don’t believe it, this pink plant is sure to bring some joy to your office when sitting at your desk.

Wishes Aglaonema looks like a love child of Pink Dalmatian and Lady Valentine. This doesn’t come as a surprise since it originates from the same species.

19 – Sparkling Sarah

Sparkling Sarah has pink veins and a midrib on a green leaf blade. Similar to how bubbles move in your fizzy drink, small splashes of pink stray from their points of concentration along the veins.

20 – Crete

Although it’s named after an island in Greece, Chinese evergreen Crete is native to Thailand and Indonesia. It has bright pink borders surrounding glossy deep green leaves.

Crete’s leaf bottoms are yellow and its branches are pink.

Other Colors of Chinese Evergreen Varieties

If you’re looking for something unique, here are a few Chinese evergreen varieties that stray from the common shades:

21 – Chocolate

This Chinese evergreen variety is most comfortable growing in the dark. Chocolate cultivars have dark green leaves with deep red veins and stems.

Chocolate is a perfect aglaonema for beginners because it’s easy to handle. The ideal temperature for its growth is 70 to 85 F, which is the typical room temperature in homes.

22 – Golden Fluorite

Golden Fluorite has bright yellowish-green leaves with a pink midrib and pale pink stalks. It’s also known as Golden Papaya.

You only need to water this cheerful shrub once a week.

23 – Golden Lipstick

With glossy deep green leaves and bright yellow margins, Golden Lipstick is both rare and charming.

Final Thoughts

There are hundreds of Chinese evergreen varieties to choose from based on your taste and the color palette of your living space. They’re versatile, hardy, and easy to care for.

Chinese evergreen houseplants come in several basic colors like green, pink, and red. Depending on the variety, some of these colors come together in splashes, stripes, bold outlines, and spots.

Apart from the varieties in this article, there are many others with similar shapes and shades. Check with your local nursery to know which ones are available.

You may be surprised at how easy it is to grow Chinese evergreens that you may start making a collection!

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