Is a money plant a lucky gift for Diwali?
The money plant's reputation comes from Indian folk belief and vastu shastra, the traditional Indian system for arranging a home. It is kept for prosperity and good fortune, which is why it is a common Diwali, housewarming and new-business gift in Indian families across Dubai and the rest of the UAE. We are not in a position to promise luck. What we can help with is keeping the plant healthy, which the tradition asks for too: popular vastu advice says to remove yellowing leaves and not to keep a dying plant.
When someone in Dubai says money plant, they almost always mean golden pothos, Epipremnum aureum, AED 55 in a 12cm pot. Gift guides written for other countries can mislead, because the same name is used there for the jade plant, the Pachira money tree and Pilea; the full naming tangle is in golden pothos vs money plant.
The naming muddle matters most for pet owners. Look up 'money plant' on the ASPCA plant list and you find the money tree, Pachira aquatica, which it lists as non-toxic. The plant sold as a money plant in the UAE is listed separately, as golden pothos, and is toxic to cats and dogs: calcium oxalate crystals in the leaves irritate the mouth and cause drooling and vomiting if chewed. Our Good Luck Set, AED 249, pairs a golden pothos with a snake plant and a monstera, three plants often given as good-luck gifts; all three are toxic to pets, so it suits a home without a cat or dog. For a family with pets, a Phalaenopsis orchid or a spider plant, both listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic to cats and dogs, is the kinder gift; more pet-safe picks and order timing are in Diwali plant gifts in the UAE.
Diwali falls on Sunday 8 November 2026. There is no delivery-date picker at checkout, so orders go out on the normal schedule, same-day in Dubai on orders before 1pm and next day to Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, and it is worth ordering a few days early.
Where should a money plant go in a Dubai apartment?
Popular vastu advice puts the money plant in the south-east corner of the home or living room, avoids the north-east, and says the vines should be trained upward rather than left to trail on the floor. In a UAE apartment that fits what the plant needs. Pothos wants bright, indirect light: a south-east room with a window suits it, but keep it a metre or so back from the glass, because direct sun through a window from April to October scorches the leaves. In a dark corner it survives but grows slowly. Pothos is a natural climber, so leading the vines up a moss pole, a trellis or the side of a shelf satisfies the vastu advice and the plant. Keep it out of the direct stream of an AC vent; watering and water-growing detail are in the golden pothos care guide.