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Houseplants that thrive in a steamy bathroom

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fern frond
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1The number most rooms fail to hit

ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity be maintained between 30 and 60 percent, and during winter heating season indoor humidity can easily fall below 30 percent. Furnaces produce warm, dry air; a bathroom that runs a hot shower daily spikes well above that baseline, at least for a while.

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2Most houseplants come from a wetter world than your living room

Many houseplants are native to tropical regions, adapted to rainforest or riverside humidity levels most heated homes never approach. That mismatch, not neglect, is the real reason a lot of houseplants struggle indoors over winter specifically.

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3Watering, not just humidity, is the top killer

Houseplants are probably killed or injured more often by improper watering than by any other single factor; there's no general watering schedule that works for every plant, since pot size, light, temperature and humidity all change how fast soil dries out. A steamy bathroom changes that math again, usually in the plant's favor.

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4Temperature still has its own rules

Most foliage plants prefer day temperatures between 65 and 75°F with nights 5 to 10 degrees cooler, and cold glass near a window can damage foliage even if the room's air temperature is fine; a bathroom plant still wants to sit clear of a drafty window regardless of how much steam it's getting.

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5Which plants actually want the steam

Ferns, orchids, rex begonias and caladiums are the ones extension lists as liking highly humid air, so they're the natural bathroom picks. Cacti, jade plants and anything with waxy or fleshy leaves prefer drier air and belong on a different windowsill.

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