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I wanted to write today’s post as a bit of a follow-up to my other post on creating humidity for your houseplants. To be honest, I didn’t think that topic would be so popular, but many of you really liked it! In that post, I did an in-depth review of easy ways to create humidity for your houseplants, and I briefly listed a few common houseplants that really like humidity.
In today’s post, I’ll do the opposite. I’m going to give a quick refresher on the easiest ways to create humidity for your plants, and then I’m going to go more in depth into some common houseplants that thrive off of humidity.
Is humidity good for indoor plants?
While houseplants in their natural habitats can be found all over the world, the majority of common houseplants come from tropical climates. And what else is found in tropical climates? Very humid rainforests!
This is why many houseplants respond well to added humidity and some even NEED it to survive. It’s also why you might see articles around the internet titled 10 Houseplants That Will Love Your Bathroom, because that’s the most humid room in the home.
Plants “breathe” through stomata, which are the pores in their leaves. If the air is low in humidity, more water is pulled out of the plant’s stomata, creating a dry, unhappy plant. The leaves can turn crispy, have brown edges, or fall off. Humidity is particularly important if you get cold, dry winters or if you use the air conditioner in the summer.
Let’s do a quick recap of easy ways to create humidity for your plants. I go over these methods more in depth in my original creating humidity for your houseplants post.
Are humidifiers good for indoor plants?
Yes! Humidifiers are an excellent way to provide your plants with lasting humidity. Check out these humidifier options below:
- Humidifiers that are under $50 and available on Amazon Prime
- Two humidifiers that I really like (click the images for more details):
Make a pebble tray for your plants
Putting your plant on a pebble tray filled with water means that when the water will surround your plant as it evaporates, creating humidity around the plant. It’s another great way to provide lasting humidity. Here are the materials you will need to create a pebble tray (the larger tray is great for more than one plant):
Use a greenhouse for your plants
If you have a full-size greenhouse in your backyard, great! However, you can also purchase smaller, portable greenhouses. Check out some of these awesome greenhouses (click the images for more details):
Group your plants together
Your plants will benefit from each other’s humidity. Just be careful with pests. They spread easily when plants are grouped together.
Keep your plants in the bathroom
As the most humid room in your home, the bathroom is the perfect place to keep high-humidity plants. You can also just move them in there when you shower. It will do wonders for your humidity-loving plants.
Does misting plants help with humidity?
I’ve talked about this in my other humidity post so I’ll talk about it here, too. A lot of people like this method because it’s really easy. However, there’s the school of thought that it doesn’t actually create humidity, it just gets your plants wet. Also, there’s a possibility that this could spread pests and disease.
Personally, I have not found this to be the most effective method for my plants, but why not give it a try and see if it works for you?
- Here is a simple plant mister, which is all you’ll need for this method
15 Common Houseplants that Like Humidity
Below are the basic care requirements of 15 common houseplants that like humidity. By no means is this a comprehensive list of humidity-loving plants, but I wanted to talk about some plants that you might already have in your home.
- Ferns – Ferns are classic moisture- and humidity-loving plants. Ferns do well with dappled light (if possible), or medium, indirect light. The potting medium should be kept evenly moist, but not overwatered, and never dried out.
- Peace lilies – Peace lilies like bright to medium, indirect light. They also like to remain somewhat moist, but not overwatered. A good rule of thumb is to water your peace lily when the top inch of the soil is dry. If your peace lily is too dry the leaves will droop significantly. They should perk back up with a good watering.
- Pothos – Pothos do well in bright to medium, indirect light and can tolerate low light. Water your pothos when the top inch of the soil is dry. Pothos are one of the easiest plants to care for and are pretty difficult to kill. I definitely recommend them to anyone looking for a beautiful, low-maintenance plant.
- Air plants – Air plants like bright, indirect light but will do fine in medium light. Water your air plant once a week by soaking it in a bowl of water for about an hour. In hotter weather, increase this to two to three times a week depending on how hot and dry your area is.
- Spider plants – Spider plants do best in bright, indirect light but can tolerate medium light. Allow the soil to dry out between waterings. On average, you’ll probably need to water this about once a week but check the soil first. Spider plants are another plant on the list that are ridiculously easy to care for, and they give off lots of “spiderettes” which are fun to propagate!
- Calatheas – Calatheas like bright, indirect light but can also live in medium to low light. Calatheas like to remain evenly moist, but not wet. Water your plant when the top one to two inches of the soil is dry. Don’t let it totally dry out but be very careful not to overwater it.
- Monsteras – Monsteras prefer bright to medium, indirect light. They can survive in lower light, however, they might not grow as large with as many holes and splits on the leaves. They like to dry out between waterings. You’ll probably need to water it once a week or so, but be sure to check the soil first.
- Peperomias – Peperomia like bright to medium, indirect light. They are semi succulent and therefore like to dry out completely in between waterings. Depending on your climate you might be watering them every one to three weeks. Check the soil first to make sure it’s dry.
- Philodendrons – Philodendrons prefer bright to medium, indirect light but can also grow in lower light. Water your philodendron when the top one to two inches of the soil is dry. Philodendrons are very easy to care for and make great lower-light alternatives to pothos.
- Lucky bamboo – Lucky bamboo likes bright, indirect light, but it will tolerate low light. It grows in distilled or purified water and therefore doesn’t need to be “watered” except to refill or replace what it’s growing in.
- Ivy – Ivy grows best in bright, indirect light but can tolerate low light, although they may not look as nice. Water ivy when the top inch or so of the soil is dry. They like to remain slightly on the drier side so be careful not to overwater them.
- Orchids – Orchids like bright, indirect light. Be very careful not to give them any direct light. Watering will depend on your potting medium (for example, if it’s made up of more bark or more moss). Be very careful not to overwater your orchid. Orchid care is a whole entire world within houseplant care, so do some thorough research if you’re caring for an orchid for the first time.
- Prayer plants – Prayer plants like bright, indirect light but also do well in medium light and can tolerate low light. They like to remain somewhat moist, not wet. Water prayer plants when the top inch of the soil is dry. Prayer plants also have obvious curling of their leaves when they are getting a little too dry.
- Alocasias – Alocasias like bright, indirect light and can tolerate medium light. They like to remain somewhat moist, not wet. Water your alocasia when the top inch or so of the soil is dry, but be careful not to overwater it.
- Fiddle leaf figs – Fiddle leaf figs like bright, filtered light. This plant won’t do very well in low light. They like to be consistently moist, but not wet, with short periods of drying out in between. Water your plant thoroughly when the top two inches of the soil is dry.
Houseplant Humidity Shopping List
Check out my original creating humidity for your houseplants post for more detailed instructions on the methods I listed in this article. And check out the “shopping list” below of links I mentioned in this post!
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