How to start a houseplant jungle

Everyone’s into houseplants lately, for a reason! Turn your bathroom or any other room into a houseplant jungle with these easy steps.

Bathrooms are a great place for many houseplants because when you shower, you create a humid environment once a day (or more). Awhile ago, I moved my Pothos plant (also called Devil’s Ivy or sometimes “generic house plant”) into my bathroom temporarily and I loved how it looked. My previously plant-free bathroom just felt so much more alive. Plus the green leaves really added a nice contrast to my pink/red walls.

I propped the Pothos unceremoniously on top of the toilet and left it there until I concocted a plan – a bathroom houseplant jungle plan!

My plan had two potholes though – 1. I needed a shelf and 2. I needed more plants. So let’s remedy that!

Table of Contents

• Making an easy DIY pipe shelf
• Propagating houseplants from cuttings
• Adding to your houseplant jungle
• Some tips on houseplant pot decor
• Shop the look for your own houseplant jungle

Making an easy DIY pipe shelf

So, first the shelf. This is our upstairs “master” bathroom. It’s pretty good sized, but as with all things in my house, it’s kind of weird shaped. It’s long and skinny. The far end had a useful and attractive hamper and on the wall was a lonely looking towel rack. The rest of the wall looked barren, and the waste of space kind of irked me.

So I asked Jon, my hubby, to help me make a shelf. I could’ve done it myself, sure, but I’m a busy woman, and he’s built shelves to my satisfaction before. Ultimately, he called in his sister, my coblogger Jill, for help (because she’s the real carpenter in the family – don’t tell Jon I said that!). I’ll do a full tutorial on how to make a pipe shelf soon, but here’s a sneak preview.

They built a pipe shelf, using plumbing parts, which we have a few of around the house. I kind of like the industrial look and Jon seems to like making them. Jill helped him with the wood shelves and then I painted the shelves with Rust-o-leum oil rubbed bronze spray paint, to match fixtures and accessories in the bathroom. So voila shelf!

Propagating houseplants from cuttings

Next, I had one Pothos plant – many short of a jungle. Sure, I could go out and buy a bunch of houseplants, but that’s not what DIYers do! I just “made” some more!

So how do you make a houseplant? There are a few ways, but this way works for a large variety of common houseplants, including snake plants, ficus plants, philodendrums, and more. It’s called “propagating by cuttings,” which just means you’re making more plants by cutting off part of the stem and growing new roots in water or soil.

Here’s how you do it – and I tested this with 2 plants and hey, they both grew! Follow these directions and you too will have the makings of a jungle. Do NOT just cut the plant anywhere and stick it in water. It won’t work – I tried that first. But it is that easy – you just have to cut the plant in the correct place.

1.     Choose a healthy stem from your plant

2.     From the end of the stem you chose, count back 3 leaves

3.     Cut the stem at a 45 degree angle, about ½ inch beyond the 3^rd leaf from the end, so you’re left with 3 leaves, plus a ½ inch of the stem beyond the 3^rd leaf.

4.     Cut the 3^rd leaf off by cutting it close to the stem with a clean sharp knife or scissors.

5.     Put your cutting in some warm water, making sure the section where you cut off the third leaf is underwater.

6.      Place in a sunny window and replace the water every 3 days.

7.     Be patient. Mine took three weeks to get to the point of repotting. Yours might take even longer.

8.     Once it has some good healthy roots, transplant it into a pot with houseplant soil and water well.

That’s it! It really was so easy. A few days after I transplanted both of my cuttings, they grew a new shoot above the soil. Very gratifying. Now I had THREE plants instead of one.

Adding to your houseplant jungle

The great thing about this method is that you can swap with friends. Jill has a ton of houseplants and is going to give me cuttings of her snake plant and spider plant so I can continue to add to the jungle. You can even find local groups that swap plants like this – I found one on the Nextdoor app. I did cheat a little and bought a new Pilea Depressa (also called baby tears) at my favorite local garden center. I love how it spills over the shelf. At the same garden center, I also found a new air plant for my Target bunny planter.

There’s room for more, though, don’t you think? Jill has made a number of macrame projects, and I’m thinking I may ask for her help in making a macrame plant hanger. I grew up in the 80s and I remember some friends of mine still had these 1970s relics in their houses at the time, and I LOVED them. I’m so glad macrame is back!

Some tips on houseplant pot decor

Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re looking for pots for all of your new plants.

1. Be sure to research your plant to find the best size pot. For example, Pothos plants don’t require a big pot, and rarely need to be replanted. Majesty Palms, on the other hand, should be replanted every year, with the new pot being 2 inches larger than the previous one.
2. Choose a pot that goes with your decor. I feel like my bathroom has kind of a Florentine Renaissance kind of feel to it. So I bought pots that I felt reflected that vibe.
3. Mix up the colors and choose some that contrast with the areas around it. My bathroom has red walls with white beadboard on the bottom half, so I chose blue as a third color that would pop and add interest.
4. Not every pot has to be round. For my Pilea Depressa, I chose an oval shaped pot that allowed it spread out.

Final tip: Jungles have animals, so don’t forget to add your favorite animal planter. Find our top 12 adorable animal planters here.

Shop the look for your own houseplant jungle

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