Bathroom plants, whether they love bright light or thrive in indirect light, need high humidity to survive. In fact, your bathroom has the perfect humidity levels and low light to support a wide range of different tropical plants from around the world.
Mimicking the unique conditions you'd expect from a tropical rainforest, your bathroom can become a home for Prickles that would suffer in your hallway or bedroom. First, we'll explain why some plants are better for bathrooms than others, then we'll count down our top five bathroom plants at Prickle.
Why put plants in the bathroom?
Your bathroom is typically the most humid room in your home. With daily showers and baths, the air in this room is kept moist with steam and is usually quite a few degrees warmer than other areas like the living room or hallway.
Plants that live in a humid and warm natural environment can make for fussy house plants. With unsatisfactory humid conditions, keeping tropical plants alive is a challenge. So, moving tropical varieties to near the bathroom wall can help them thrive, just like they would in the humid rainforest they originate from.
While humidity is the common factor that all bathroom house plants have in common, they often have varying lighting needs. Some prefer direct sunlight, others enjoy indirect sunlight, and some can even live under fluorescent lighting.
Snake plants aren't the right option
The Snake Plant, aka the Sansevieria Laurentii, is one of the most popular plants at Prickle. While the Mother in Law's Tongue is great for the living room or bedroom, like many other cacti and succulents, they prefer a dry environment. Your bathroom is definitely not the home for your Snake Plant.
The most popular plants at Prickle that love dry air include the Snake Plant and the Aloe Vera Plant, aka the Aloe barbadensis miller. When placed in your bathroom, these plants may lose shape, turn mushy and yellow, or even begin to rot at the roots.
Some plants like the occasional misting but aren't crazy about humidity - these might not be best for your bathroom either. Spider plants, including the Curly Spider Plant, aka the Chlorophytum Bonnie, are in this category. A little mist every now and then will keep the plant vibrant, however daily showers or baths will be too much humidity for them.
And finally, there are classic plants like the Peace Lily, aka the Spathiphyllum, which adore a steamy enviroment. These plants tend to come from tropical regions of the world, where air is consistently high. Common bathroom plants besides Peace Lilies include the Asparagus Fern, aka the Asparagus plumosus, and Weeping Fig, also known as the Ficus Benjamina Danielle, - two Prickles that need high humidity to thrive.
While we love the classics, there are several other exotic plants that can brighten your bathroom space. Below, you can find five more bathroom plant varieties that are ready and waiting to meet your acquaintance!
Our 5 best plants for the bathroom
Ideally suited to humid environments, any of the plants below would be perfect for your bathroom. Although lighting needs may vary, the bathroom mimicks their natural habitat and helps them thrive.
You can learn more about any of the plants at Prickle by exploring our range of plants, Lil' Pricks, and collections. For more detailed advice on a particular Prickle, take a look at our plant care guides next.
1. Swiss Cheese Plant
At the top of our list of the best bathroom plants, is the iconic Swiss Cheese Plant, aka the Monstera Deliciosa. This striking plant loves bright indirect light and high humidity. Easily recognisable by the swiss-cheese-like holes in it's large green leaves, the Monstera plant will quickly take over your bathroom.
Growing natively in Mexico, it climbs up a moss pole in a vine-like fashion. It may also sprout some aerial roots that you can trim back if you like. The Swiss Cheese Plant can grow to heights of 3 metres, but if you are short on space, trim this bathroom plant down when it becomes too much.
I love bright light
The Swiss Cheese will be happy in natural light, just make sure to dust off the glossy green leaves every so often. Although this plant prefers bright, indirect light, a little direct sunlight during the winter months won't harm it. Taking care of the Swiss Cheese Plant is quite simple, it is one of our easiest to care for plants. Check out more easy to care for plants here.
2. Polka Dot Begonia
The next Prickle on our best bathroom plants list is the Polka Dot Begonia, also known as the Begonia Maculata Polka Dot. Like many plants that originate from Madagascar, this plant loves hot air and a humid environment.
Placed on a window sill, the Polka Dot Begonia has pretty burgundy pink undersides on its distinctive white polka dot leaves. This one of a kind plant will make a statement in a dark and moody bathroom thanks to its unique foliage. The Polka Dot Begonia is part of our low maintenance collection of plants, check out its care guide for tips and tricks.
Place me in indirect light
This is a great plant for a bathroom that receives moderate light. It enjoys bright light, so pop it on the bathroom windowsill or in a bright spot. If your bathroom is too shady or has low light in general, your Polka Dot Begonia will struggle to grow any new leaves.
When it is kept happy, the Polka Dot Begonia can grow to heights of 1.5 metres at an average speed. In the winter months it will go into hibernations, don't worry if its looking a little sad, it will recover!
3. Whitestar Prayer Plant
The Whitestar Prayer Plant, aka the Calathea White Star, is one of our favourite bathroom plants for family bathrooms. Not only is it safe for pets and babies that take a curious nibble, but it also has air purifying properties so it can improve the air quality of your home.
Kept in humid conditions with regular watering when the top five centimetres of the soil become dry, the Whitestar Prayer Plant is a fast grower and may create baby plants in the form of new shoots. It may be small enough to fit on a shelf when it first arrives, however this fast grower can quickly reach its mature height of 1.5 metres.
If you want an eye-catching plant, this is definitely worth your consideration. The Whitestar Prayer Plant has large, slightly wavy oval leaves with one fo a kind white stripes on the surface and dark purple shades beneath. If they start to droop, give your Calathea a little mist.
I'm pet friendly
The fabulously patterned pet-friendly leaves of the Whitestar Prayer Plant prefer the bright indirect light that comes from a nearby bathroom window. As a low maintenance plant, you can pop it in the guest bathroom too - with constant humidity, it needs very little assistance to grow and stay healthy.
4. Stingray Elephant Ear
One of our most elegant plants, the Stingray Elephant Ear (Alocasia Macrorrhiza Stingray), is a tall plant with pretty crinkled heart shaped leaves. It's the shape of the leaves that give this bathroom plant its common name, they look very similar to the stingray fish. If you have a large bathroom, it's best to pick plants that grow to great heights, take a look at our statement plants for that wow factor.
Enjoying high humidity, this plant varieties will display yellow tips on its leaves when it doesn't get enough mist. If you notice its leaves crisping up and going brown, move it into a more shaded spot. Thankfully, a quick location adjustment and monthly feeding is all this Prickle needs to bounce back.
Ultra low maintenance
The big glossy leaves give an exotic spa feeling to your bathroom. With bright indirect light and plenty of mist (it loves humidity), the Stingray Elephant Ear is blissfully low maintenance. All you need to do is make sure that your primary bathrooms have all the space it needs to grow - it's a surprisingly fast grower.
During the colder months of the year, you might see leaves begin to droop or even fall. Don't panic, this is completely normal! The Stingray Elephant Ear tends to hibernate during winter then recover during spring. If any leaves do drop, keep them away from pets and small children as this plant isn't pet friendly.
5. Silver Queen Plant
The last Prickle on our list of bathroom plants is the aptly named the Silver Queen Plant (Philodendron Hastatum Silver Queen). If you have a near windowless bathroom, this is the plant for you! So long as you have a humid room, it can survive relatively well in low light. Cold drafts, on the other hand, are best avoided. The Silver Queen Plant likes temperatures between 18°C and 26°C, with an absolute minimum tolerance for temperatures as low as 15°C.
The silvery sheen on the leaves of this lush plant may be beautiful, but they are toxic to animals and small humans that come across it. Keep this tall climber out of the way, preferably in a gently lit corner of the room. Place it on the floor so it has space to grow - the Silver Queen Plant can reach heights of 2 metres when fully grown.
I tolerate low light!
Finding air plants that prefer low light over direct light or direct sun is not always an easy task. Thankfully, the Silver Queen Plant enjoys low light as much as it likes humid environments! If the leaves start to yellow, take it as a sign that it needs a darker, shadier spot in your bathroom.
Native to South America and the Caribbean, it likes to climb up structures and even other plants in it's natural environment. Supply it with a sturdy bamboo cane or moss pole to ensure it can reach its full potential in your bathroom setting.
Prickle about with these bathroom plants
Bathroom plants are great for any home. From those that love low light environments to others that sit happily in a bright spot, they have gorgeous leaves and unique shapes and sizes For a hanging pot or small window sill plant, don't forget to take a look at our Lil' Pricks too. These baby plants come in small sizes for even the smallest of bathrooms.
If you need help finding a plant for your bathroom hanging basket, or can't figure out how to make your Asparagus Fern happy, don't hesitate to reach out. We are here to hear you. You can contact us directly via contact@prickleplants.co.uk, or DM us on social @prickplantsuk.