Aspidistra is a genus of extraordinary persistence. Native across much of Asia, these rhizomatous perennials evolved beneath the dense canopy of forest understories, where they learned to subsist on the residual light, endure poor soils, and wait out whatever the world overhead chose to do. The common name cast iron plant applies to the whole genus, though it is the species Aspidistra elatior that most gardeners encounter. Flowers range from the truly ornamental to the barely noticeable; it is the foliage that commands attention — large, upright, deeply veined, with a quality of permanence that suits them to formal and informal settings equally.

As houseplants, the aspidistras have few peers in terms of tolerance: they accept indirect light, withstand fluctuating temperatures, perform their air-purifying work without complaint, and ask only for well-drained soil, moderate water through the growing season, and protection from direct sun, which bleaches the leaves. They spread by rhizome at their own measured pace. Mites and scale insects are occasional nuisances; overwatering causes root rot more reliably than any pest. Outdoors in zones 8 to 10, they fill shady corners that other plants abandon, spreading steadily into handsome clumps with no encouragement required.