20 Bathroom Plants That Absorb Moisture: Maintain a Fresh Bathroom

Bathroom plants that absorb moisture do not just add beauty to your bathroom, they help you to maintain a bathroom that is quick to dry.

Here in this article, we have selected the best and most effective plants to absorb your bathroom moisture for you.

List of Bathroom Plants That Absorb Moisture

Here’s a list of the plants that you can keep and grow in your bathroom that would absorb the moisture and humidity:

1. Boston Fern

These beautiful ferns can grace your bathroom with plants in the family Lomariopsidaceae that naturally grow in the Americas. They are perennial, evergreen plants, growing to reach as high as 16 to 35 inches, and in some cases up to five feet tall. The Nephrolepis Exaltata fronds grow 20 to 98 inches long and 2.4 to 5.9 inches wide.

They can grow as epiphyte plants, linear to glandular and lanceolate. In your bathroom, they do not just absorb moisture, they can also help to reduce the carbon content.

If you want to keep them in the bathroom, place them on a windowsill so that they can get access to sufficient light. You Should rotate their pot regularly so that they can get uniform light.

Grow the Boston ferns in USDA zones 9-11. As plants that need up to 80 percent humidity, they will surely thrive well in your bathroom. They are also easy to propagate as you can propagate them by division.

2. Spider Plant 

These plants which also go by the names ribbon plant, spider ivy, and “hen and chickens” are common, perennial, evergreen, beautiful species of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae you could even find them under the name of Chlorophytum Comosum. 

These beautiful plants are naturally growing in the tropical and southern parts of Africa, reaching heights of 24 inches. They can even grow longer when you grow them in hanging baskets as they can descend with grace.

The plants have tuberous, fleshy roots, each growing to reach about two to four inches long. They have narrow, long leaves that can grow somewhere between eight and 18 inches long and about 0.2 to one inch wide.

They produce long, branched inflorescence flowers that can get to lengths of 30 inches. They are easy to grow indoors because of their resilience, but they can be sensitive to the fluoride which is in tap water.

Fluoride gives the plants burnt tips. The plant’s flowers and leaves eventually bend, so when you plant the hanging spider plant in your bathroom, be sure that they are not drenched by water splashes.

Grow spider plants in USDA zones 9-11. REmember that the humidity level of the room should be never as low as 45 percent, so consider keeping the plants in busy bathrooms.

3. Peace Lily 

Peace lilies or Spathiphyllum Wallisii are one of the species of flowering plants in the family Araceae, naturally growing in southeastern Asia and the tropical regions of the Americas.

A Clean Air Study by NASA discovered that plants in the Spathiphyllum genus are not just moisture absorbers, they also remove some gaseous environmental contaminants such as formaldehyde and benzene.

These plants are herbaceous, evergreen, perennial, growing large leaves that can reach from five up to 25 inches in length and one to ten inches in width. They produce their flowers in a spadix that is surrounded by a white, greenish, or yellowish spathe that grows 4 to 11 inches long. They are very beautiful or even too beautiful to serve as plants in the bathroom.

These plants need an average of 60 percent humidity in their surroundings, so they make awesome bathroom moisture-absorbent plants. Grow them in USDA zones 10-11, close to the bathroom doors or very far from the sources of water and light. They need their substrate to be dry before watering, so do not plant them too close to the bathtub, toilet, or tap in the bathroom.

4. Snake Plant

Snake plants are beautiful air purifying plants from the family Asparagaceae, naturally growing in West Africa from the eastern parts of Nigeria down to Congo. Other names for this magical plant are Saint George’s sword, viper’s bowstring hemp, and mother-in-law’s tongue as the scientific name is sansevieria Trifasciata. These plants are evergreen, perennial plants that form dense stands.

They spread underground with the help of their creeping rhizome. Their firm leaves grow vertically from a mostly soil-surfaced rosette.

Their mature leaves are dark green and usually have a cross-banding of light gray-green. These beautiful plants can grow 2.3 to 3.0 feet long and five almost to six and 2.0 to 2.4 inches wide. However, they have been seen to reach heights of 6 feet.

They produce flowers in their natural habitats. Their sticky-textured flowers are cream-colored or greenish-white.

Some flowers produce fine scents at night while others do not. These plants love bright direct or indirect, so they can grow anywhere in your bathroom. However, grow them near the window as they grow better in bright light. Grow these plants in USDA zones 10-12.

5. English Ivy

English or common ivies are popular weeds turned indoor plants in the family Araliaceae, indigenous to many parts of western Asia and Europe where they grow on woodlands, forest edges, coastal areas, salt marsh edges, and hedgerows. These plants are also called Hedera Helix, and they are climbing evergreen plants that can grow 66 to 98 feet long if you do not prune them.

They have alternate leaves that grow two to four inches long, growing on 0.6 to 0.8 inches-long petioles. These ivies have two types of leaves; some are five-lobed, juvenile, palmate leaves growing on the climbing stems while the others are unlobed, cordate, leaves that are usually the mature forms, growing on fertile stems.

These plants bloom in late summer and make greenish-yellow flowers growing on 1.2 to two inches-long umbels. You can grow them in your bathroom, just ensure that you live in USDA zones 4 to 13.

Keep them close to a filtered window or the door of the bathroom in summer to protect them from the hot direct sunlight. You may even let them grow in hanging baskets if you like from the ceiling of your bathroom.

6. Aloe Vera

Here is a popular plant that people grow all over the world. Aloe plants are evergreen, perennial plants that originate from the Peninsula of Arabia but now grow naturally in arid, tropical, and semi-tropical climates worldwide.

Aloe Vera plants are stemless, but sometimes produce a very short stem, growing to reach heights of 24 to 39 inches in total. These plants are spread by offsets and can be invasive.

The green or grey-green leaves of these plants are succulent and some varieties have white flecks on the top and bottom surfaces of their leaves. Note that the leaf margin is serrated and usually has small white or green teeth. Aloe pendulous flowers come in summer on a spike that grows up to 35 inches tall. 

While these succulent plants will prefer to grow outside as they love the sun, you can grow them in your bathroom if the windows are south-facing. Grow them in USDA zones 8-11. Note that these plants are better air purifiers at night as that is when they carry out their photosynthesis. Check for aloe barbadensis miller when looking for which succulent to buy.

7. Bird’s Nest Fern

The Asplenium Nidus or bird’s nest fern may just be the bathroom plant that you are looking for. The fern is a plant in the family Aspleniaceae that is native to the tropical parts of the world such as eastern Africa, eastern Australia, and southeastern Asia.

These ferns have simple, large fronds that look very similar to the leaves of banana trees. Their fronds can grow up to 20 to 59 inches tall and four to eight inches wide.

Some fronds have been recorded to grow up to 6.6 feet in length and two feet in width. The fronds are often crinkled, light green, with black midribs, and show circinate vernation just like the fronds of other ferns. As a fern plant that loves humidity levels as high as 90 percent, you need to add this plant to your bathroom plants collection.

The nest ferns prefer filtered light or shade and grow best in USDA zones 11-12. If you like, you can grow them near the bathtub as they will be completely fine.

8. Air Plants 

These are weird-looking but very special plants in the family Bromeliaceae, naturally growing in the mountains, forests, and deserts of Mexico and the United States.

They also grow from the Caribbean and Mesoamerica to Argentina. The beautiful plants have silvery leaves that are covered in trichomes that help the plant to rapidly absorb water droplets that fall on the leaves.

The plants produce purple, red, yellow, pink, or multicolored flowers. With the help of the trichomes on their leaves, these beautiful epiphytes can absorb a lot of moisture from your bathroom, keeping it almost dry so long as you have a lot of them in the bathroom.

You may even grow the Tillandsia Spp in a ceiling basket in your bathroom. Just ensure that you are living in USDA zones 7-12.

9. Reed Palm 

Here is a beautiful native of the Mexican and Guatemalan rainforests, called Chamaedorea Seifrizii. It is one of the most sold indoor plant palms in the world. The palm is a rhizomatous, woody plant with a thin, green trunk. It grows up to nine feet tall and sometimes reaches heights of 16 feet.

The palm has 0.5-inch-long stigmas and crescent-shaped punctured leaves. It also has firm buds and flexible stems without spines.

When it is young, you can place it close to your bathroom door, meaning as long as there is enough light in the room, it grows best in very humid conditions.

An advantage of growing the plant in your bathroom is that you will no longer need to install a humidifier. Grow it in zones 8 and above and at 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

10. Zanzibar Gem

Here is a beautiful plant from African countries such as South Africa and Kenya. Other names for this plant include ZZ plant, aroid palm, Zuzu plant, emerald palm, and eternity plant.

The Zanzibar plant is a plant in the Araceae family and the only species in the genus Zamioculcas, specifically it is the Zamioculcas Zamiifolia. It is a perennial, and herbaceous plant that would reach somewhere between 18 to 24 inches in height. 

The plant has a stout succulent, underground stem or rhizome. It is an evergreen plant that becomes deciduous when there is drought. The dark green smooth, and shiny, leaves of the Zuzu plant are pinnate and grow 16 to 24 inches long with twelve to sixteen leaflets that grow three and even to six inches long.

You can grow the Zanzibar plant in your bathroom, but make sure that you are living in USDA zones 9-10. It prefers average humidity, so keep it nearer to an open window. 

11. Cast Iron Plant

These plants are flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, naturally growing in Taiwan and Japan. Unlike many other bathroom plants, this plant is tolerant of being abandoned. This means that if you will not have time to care for your bathroom plants, this is the plant for you. the Aspidistra Elatior is a very popular houseplant that grows 24 inches tall and wide.

This rhizomatous, evergreen, perennial plant grows 12 to 20 inches long, with dark green, glossy leaves and eight-lobed fleshy, creamy flowers that are colored maroon on the inside. The beautiful hardy plant blooms in early summer.

These plants grow best at 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit with low to medium light. This means that you can keep them far from the bathroom window if you want. However, they prefer average humidity, so do not keep them too close to the bathtub. Grow them in USDA zones 7-11.

12. Devil’s Ivy

Devil’s ivies or the Epiprenum Aureum, are plants in the arum family, Araceae naturally growing in the Society Islands. Other names for the plant include hunter’s robe, golden pothos, ivy arum, Ceylon creeper, Solomon Islands ivy, silver vine, marble queen, and money plant. They are popular, evergreen house plants that can grow more than 66 feet tall and have eight inches long leaves.

These aureum plants can grow in USDA zones 10-12 and at 60 to even 80 degrees Fahrenheit. They are plants that grow tall, so consider growing them on a corner of the bathroom wall. However, you must make sure that they get a minimum of 45 percent humidity, keeping in mind that they thrive more when the humidity level is high enough.

13. Moth Orchids

These orchid plants in the family Orchidaceae are epiphytes or lithophytes with coarse and long roots, short and leafy stems, and flat and long-lasting flowers.

They are naturally growing in Taiwan, India, China, New Guinea, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Their leaves are sometimes succulent and often arranged in double rows. They are leathery, large, and either elliptic or oblong.

The flowers of these orchids are arranged in a stem that branches close to the end. These flowers are flat, long-lasting, and often fragrant growing on hanging or erect racemes.

The orchids are warmth-loving plants and grow best in USDA zones 10-12. As 55 to 75 percent humidity-lovers, they are suitable as bathroom plants. In addition, you can place them on top of your bathroom shelves so that the Phalaenopsis Spp would absorb all the moisture.

14. Prayer Plants 

“Calathea” refers to any one of about 60 species of plants in the family Marantaceae, naturally growing in the tropical parts of America. They are very popular potted plants because of their very beautiful leaves and flowers. The bracts and young leaves can retain drops of water that provide a home for so many types of invertebrates.

The calathea leaves are usually variegated, having bright colors like pink, red, white, and orange. The bottom of the leaves is frequently purple while the flowers can be purple white or yellow, blooming in summer.

Grow your prayer calatheas in USDA zones 11-12 and you must make sure that they get eight or more hours of light. This means that you should place them closer to the bathroom windows. As plants that love high humidity, grow them somewhere in the middle of the bathroom window and bathtub.

15. Azalea

Azaleas are very beautiful woody plants in the Rhododendron Spp family of heaths. These popular plants are deciduous or evergreen according to the species and naturally grow in the Himalayan region, North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia.

The leaves of azaleas are arranged spirally and their size ranges from 0.4 to 0.8 inches to 20 inches tall. In addition, there are some species with leaves growing over 40 inches tall.

These beautiful plants are the Nepali national flowers and also those of West Virginia and Washington in the United States. While these plants are shrubs that do best in full sun, they tend to be good moisture-absorbent plants.

You can grow your azaleas in large pots, placing them in open windows in the bathroom the reason why would be that they can get access to the full sun. They are hardy in USDA zones 6-10, so consider growing something else if you live outside these zones.

16. Tree Philodendron

This is a very beautiful plant in the family Araceae, naturally growing in South American countries, especially places like Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay. The plant is a popular landscape plant in places with subtropical, tropical, and warm temperate climates, its scientific name, on the other hand, is Philodendron bipinnatifidum.

The deep green leaves of this philodendron are simple, deeply lobed, large, and usually drooping. The plant has small flowers that grow without petals on a spadix that is hidden inside a spathe. The flowers are mostly white.

You can keep the plant wherever you want in your bathroom so long as it can get full or partial sun. It needs 70 to 80 percent humidity and should grow in USDA zones 9-11.

17. Common Asparagus Fern 

This plant is not a real fern; however, its leaves resemble those of lace fern, so it goes by the name ferny asparagus or climbing asparagus, or Asparagus Setaceus. The beautiful, perennial plant is a climbing plant that has tough green leaves and stems with barbed thorns growing on the stem.

The plant produces greenish-white, bell-shaped flowers from spring to autumn. The small flowers grow 0.1 inches long and when they successfully pollinate, they produce small green berries that later turn black when they mature.

Grow your common ferns in USDA zones 9-12 and the ideal temperature of 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. They love high levels of humidity, so they can grow in bathrooms and absorb moisture. Nonetheless, you must only make sure that they get dappled shade or filtered light as they do not grow well in full sunlight.

18. Lucky Bamboo

You’d imagine that all bamboos grow very tall and are definitely not plants suitable for bathrooms. Well, here is a bamboo plant in the family Asparagaceae, naturally growing in Central Africa. Its name “Sanderiana” comes from the English-German gardener, Henry Frederick Conrad Sander. This is a perennial plant that can grow up to 39 inches in height.

The bamboo has twisted grey-green leaves that grow nine inches tall. Their stems are fleshy, unlike others with hollow or slightly-hollow stems. Plant the bamboo in USDA zones 9-12 and at 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

Note that this plant requires bright sunlight, so if you are considering planting it in your bathroom, it needs to grow close to walls directly opposite the large bathroom window. Also, ensure that the bathroom is well-ventilated. 

19. Canary Islands Dragon Plant 

You may be surprised to see a large tree in the list of plants that you can grow in your bathroom. These trees grow naturally in western Morocco, the Canary Islands, Madeira, and Cape Verde and have been introduced into the Azores.

They are evergreen long-lived trees that can grow more than 49 feet in height. When mature, the Dracaena Draco trunk can be as wide as 8 feet or more.

Why they can grow in your bathroom is that for the initial phase of their lives, they grow very slowly and may need more than 10 years to reach heights of four feet.

After that, they will start growing faster. They are suitable for your bathroom because they are very effective in absorbing gas, so they may work better than other plants.

These trees prefer bright indirect light, so you can keep them close to your shelf in the bathroom. Ensure that they grow at 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit and 60 to 80 percent humidity. If you want to reduce their growth rate, you should reduce their level of light exposure.

20. Baby’s Tear 

Baby tears plants are plants in the nettle family with other names like peace in the home, angel’s tears, bits, and pieces, Corsican creeper, Corsican curse, friendship plant, Paddy’s wig, mother of thousands, and Pollyanna vine. They are creeping herbaceous plants with bright yellow or green leaves and so many tiny white flowers.

These cute plants grow very close to the ground, so they grow as mat plants. The Soleirolia Soleirolii leaves usually grow about 0.2 inches across and are usually slightly stalked.

Their little flowers successfully pollinate to produce oval seeds. As plants with high humidity need, baby tears are not just suitable to grow in the bathroom, they actually prefer the bathroom environment.

These plants need 60 to 80 percent humidity. You can grow them if you are living in USDA zones 9-11 as they are slightly warm-loving plants. Just ensure that you do not grow them too close to your bathtub so that you do not drench their substrate with water.

Conclusion

These bathroom plants that absorb moisture indoors have truly proven to add splendid beauty to your bathroom as well as effectively do their jobs; to keep your bathroom fresh and dry. Some plants such as Tillandsias, Asparagus Fern, and Nidus ferns are truly effective and easy to grow, so consider growing them.

After seeing all these beautiful plants listed in this article, they are all perfect to give them the right amount of humidity or moisture, which they would absorb. Which one of them would you like to add to your bathroom plant collection?

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