Bathroom plant: with a window, without a window, what to choose?

In a bathroom with a window, many tropical plants do well: the humid air suits them. In a bathroom with no window, no living plant lasts. The only honest choice there is an artificial plant.

So the question is not "which plant likes humidity". The question is "how much light comes into the room".

With a window: the real plants that do well

The Royal Horticultural Society, the British horticultural society, sums it up: a bathroom that gets plenty of natural light can be an ideal place for houseplants. The humid air recalls the tropical forest, where many of these plants come from.

Here are species from its list.

The small ones, for a shelf or a ledge

• The chlorophytum, or spider plant: easy, it forgives forgetfulness.
• The maidenhair fern (Adiantum): it likes humid air and bright light, with no direct sun.
• The selaginella and the mind-your-own-business (Soleirolia): two small green carpets that like humidity.

The large ones, for the floor or a stool

• The spathiphyllum, or peace lily.
• The Boston fern (Nephrolepis), lovely hanging.
• The zamioculcas, or ZZ plant, very tolerant.
• The monstera, if the room is large enough.
• The pothos, which trails from a shelf.

Two notes. A guest bathroom, little used, is much less humid: the RHS advises taking that into account. And the living monstera is toxic to cats and dogs that chew it.

Check the light before you buy

A small window in frosted glass, facing north, gives little light. Do the test: at midday, lamp off, can you read at the spot planned for the plant?

If reading is hard, the living plant will stretch and turn pale within a few months. Our guide to terrarium lighting explains how to judge the light of a spot.

Without a window: why no real plant lasts

A plant makes its food from light. Without light, it lives on its reserves, then declines.

The RHS is direct on this point: plants need natural light, and bathrooms with no window are not suitable for living plants.

You often read the opposite. Lists promise "plants for a room with no light". These plants tolerate low light. None tolerates the absence of light. In a windowless room, they last a few months, then you throw them away.

The two false solutions

• The ceiling light. It is on for a few minutes a day. A plant needs light for many long hours.
• Rotation. Taking the plant out one week in two works for a while. Few people keep up this rhythm for more than one winter.

A horticultural lamp on a timer does work. But it needs a socket, space and a budget. In a small bathroom, it is rarely realistic.

The artificial plant: what to choose for a bathroom

In this room, a fake plant does not jar. Nobody expects a living plant in a room with no window. Choose it with three rules.

1. 1

   A species that would belong in a bathroom

   Take a plant that you can picture in humid air: an orchid, a fern, a monstera, a trailing plant. A cactus or an olive tree, plants of dry climates, look fake there.

   The orchid is the most classic choice. Our artificial Vanda orchids are about 60 cm tall and are sold in pairs, each in its black pot of 13 cm in diameter. Put one near the basin and the other on a shelf, or keep the second for another room.

   Our guide to the artificial orchid explains how to choose it.

2. 2

   A size suited to the place

   The bathroom is often the smallest room of the home. Measure before you order.

   • On the edge of the basin or a narrow shelf: under 20 cm. A small plant as a stem in a glass or a small vase is enough.
   • On a piece of furniture or the edge of the bath: 30 to 60 cm.
   • On the floor: only if the room is large.

   Our artificial mini pilea is 15 cm tall. It comes as a stem, with no pot: it slips into a small vase or a jar. Take several for a fuller effect.

3. 3

   Away from running water

   Here is what we know about our plants. The product pages state indoor use and a "synthetic material". The maker says nothing about steam or splashes.

   As a precaution, follow these four steps.

   • Place the plant outside the shower and away from the spray.
   • Ventilate the room or leave the extractor fan running after the shower.
   • Wipe off the drops with a dry cloth.
   • Lift the pot from time to time: water can collect underneath.

   Limescale leaves white marks on the leaves, as on a mirror. A dry cloth wiped over once a week prevents them.

And the vase or the pot?

In a humid room, choose a container that does not mind water on the outside: glass, glazed ceramic, porcelain. Avoid wicker and raw wood, which turn black.

A plant supplied as a stem goes in any vase. A potted plant means checking the diameter of the cache-pot: it must exceed that of the pot by one or two centimetres.

In summary

Unsure about the other rooms? Our guide to artificial or natural plant takes up the question room by room. And for a living plant that is content with little space, see the terrarium in a flat.

All our plants are on the artificial plants page.

Sources

• Best bathroom plants, Royal Horticultural Society
• Cutleaf Philodendron (Monstera deliciosa), toxic plants list, ASPCA
• Technical data sheets from the maker of the artificial plants (heights, pots, use, care)