Well, your profile just says Canada, so it's not likely that you're going to find anything that can deal with this year-round. Do you have wild temperature fluctuations during the course of a year (or day)? Is the outside air drier or moister than the inside? How much of the year are you wanting to be able to do this? How close are you wanting to put the plant to the window?

I should clarify: I'm hoping to do this from now until maybe October/November. In the winter months, the window will be closed. Thanks!

Frank,
You could try a Wandering Jew. They don't need a lot of light (a north-facing window in Canada does have its limitations LOL), and they don't mind cool drafts. You may also want to try English Ivy--it's very cold hardy and shade-loving. Both are toxic though, so be sure to keep away from children and pets.
Elfinn

Buddhist pines like a cool spot, I've read, especially in winter.

It's kind of a tall order, because we're looking for something that likes cool air, doesn't mind dry air, and can deal okay with low light. Individually, these conditions are no problem, but taken together, it's a lot to ask of a plant. The saving grace is that you're not expecting it to be in that position long, so let's see.

Buddhist pine (Podocarpus macrophyllus), like pageysgirl suggested, is a good choice if the window gets decent light, or if you can get it to a spot with decent light after November. They're not easy to come by, in my experience, but they seem to be nice plants.

English ivy (Hedera helix), per elfinn's recommendation, is also probably a good choice. They're supposed to be hardy outdoors in fairly cold climates, so that would probably work well. I'm not a big fan personally, because I have trouble keeping spider mites away from them, but some people love them.

Vining stuff like Swedish ivy (Plectranthus nummularis), wandering Jew (Zebrina spp., Tradescantia spp.), purple heart (Tradescantia pallida), pothos (Epipremnum aureum), grape ivy (Cissus rhombifolia), heart-leaf philodendron (Philodendron hederaceum), etc., might work out. They wouldn't necessarily be thrilled with the location, but they all root easily from cuttings, so you could refresh the plant midway through the season with a new batch of cuttings and keep it looking decent, if it was having a tough time. Grape ivy and Swedish ivy are both supposed to like cooler temperatures, and purple heart is supposed to be hardy outdoors down to about 20F (-7C).

Yucca elephantipes probably wouldn't mind, though you'd really have to watch the watering; the canes will rot if they're too wet.

Jade plant (Crassula argentea, ovata, arborescens, or portulacea, depending on who you're talking to) wouldn't like the lower light, but it would be able to take it if it was only for a couple months.

Haworthia spp. would prefer better light, but I have personally grown one for about a year, year and a half in a north window, and it liked that just fine. Plus they're great plants anyway. Gasteria spp. and some Aloe spp. might also be able to pull this off, though you would need to have a sunnier spot ready to receive them when temperatures got really cold.

Euphorbia tirucalli is another one I've grown for an extended period in a cold north window.

Aspidistra elatior (cast-iron plant), if all else fails, is supposed to be able to handle anything and everything. This is not technically true (I've found out the hard way that they do not like to be messed with during the winter, and they are susceptible to spider mites.), but they're tough plants that wouldn't be thrown by a little draft, if everything else was working for them.

There are probably other possibilities, but that's what comes to mind for me.

We have a pothos hanging about six feet away, but directly in front of the ac. It has been there for three years and has not in the least suffered from it. The plant is also about eight feet away from a north window. I had to give it an extreme cutting down to three inches of stem with only one leaf, and it is doing great. The stems were over nine feet long, but looking gangly. Hope this helps.

Almost all plants tolerate constant drafts well; after all, no one protects them from drafts where they naturally occur. The problem arises when we remove the plants from their natural surroundings & bring them indoors. In nature, no one opens a window to let a 30* breeze blow over a plant that has been long surrounded by 70* air. It is the combination of the sudden change in temperatures and/or having ambient temperatures drop below the lower limit at which the plant can efficiently photosynthesize that causes harm.

Further complicating the effect of draft is that it stimulates to varying degrees, the production of abscissic acid. This is a hormone that reduces the flow of nutrients & water in the plant while causing a barrier between the plant stems and leaf petioles. This effect is generally more noticeable in dicots (plants that produce 2 cotyledons from the seed) than it is in monocots (leafy & grass-like plants, such as dumbcane or lilies, that produce a single embryo or leaf from the seed). The result of sudden chill in dicots is usually evidenced in leaf loss, which, of course has substantial impact on o/a plant vitality when it occurs.

If you are not too particular about the pedigree, and want a plant that is generally less susceptible to sudden chill, do some research & choose from the ranks of monocots on your list.

Al

I agree a spring/summer/early fall draft will not bother plants..When we place outside they sit in drafts/strong wind gusts, also in their natural habitat. I would think an ac/heating vent directly hitting a plant would have negative results..but as Scareygirl mentioned she has a pothos that sits in front of an ac w/o problems.
Unless the temps dropped under 45F degrees there's nothing to worry about. As a matter of fact, IMO, I believe plants enjoy a breezy area.
If temps drastically drop at night, don't water..do so, only in the morning or early afternoon. Especially w/succulent-type plants which can rot..some faster than others..Toni

Thanks for all the great advice. I've learned a lot!

I'd suggest a rubber plant or a zz plant.

Pothos

post was from 2008. It's 2023 and it's still relevant and helpful. Hello to others reading this 🤓