Tropical plant: Philodendron Xanadu or something else?
Looking for a compact, dense tropical plant for a west facing porch in South Florida.
The porch is shaded until around 2pm, then gets:
\- filtered sun from palm tree shadows from 2-3pm
\- more direct/mid angle west sun from 3-5pm
\- lower angle filtered evening sun around 6-7pm
So it’s not blazing full sun all day, but it \*does\* get some afternoon west exposure.
I’ve been considering a Philodendron Xanadu mainly because I love the look (compact, dense, architectural, tropical, etc) but I’m worried those couple hours of west sun might be too intense long term.
Are there any other plants with a similar lush/compact aesthetic that might be better suited for these conditions? Preferably something:
\- dense/full, not sprawling or vining
\- tropical looking
\- relatively low maintenance
\- suitable for a container on a covered porch
Would love suggestions from people in South Florida or similar climates.
Posted May 6, 2026, 11:12 PM UTC