50+ houseplants tested for Thirsty Pot (here's our top 10)
We trialled more than 50 houseplants in self-watering pots. These ten thrived on steady moisture, each with the pot we would pair it with.
- Anything that likes evenly damp soil is a strong candidate. Pothos is the safest place to start.
- The moisture lovers gained the most: peace lily, fittonia, calathea and the ferns.
- Match the plant to the reservoir. Small in the Egg, medium in the Hexagon, large in the Classic.
- Skip snake plants, ZZ plants, succulents and cacti. They want to dry out, and a wick will not let them.
How we tested
Every plant went into a Thirsty Pot on the floor of a real home, next to a control plant of the same species in an ordinary pot watered by hand. Same room, same light, same mix. We refilled when the red light came on and otherwise left them alone.
No app, no schedule, no notes in a calendar. That was the whole point: we wanted to know which plants do well when the only thing you ever do is top up a reservoir. Anything still healthy at six months made the shortlist.
The top 10
Pothos
Epipremnum aureumThirsty Pot pickThe one we hand to anyone who has killed a plant before. It takes to a wick almost immediately, trails happily off the side of a pot on the floor, and forgives the week you forget it exists. If you are buying your first Thirsty Pot, put a pothos in it.
Peace lily
SpathiphyllumThirsty Pot pickLoves consistent moisture and droops loudly when it is thirsty. With a full reservoir it simply stops complaining, which is why it is our easiest pairing on the plant guide too. Several of ours started flowering again within a season.
Fittonia
Fittonia albivenisThirsty Pot pickWants damp soil at all times and faints dramatically when it does not get it. A wick gives it exactly that. Small enough for a tight corner, and the fastest plant in our trial to show the difference.
Boston fern
Nephrolepis exaltataThirsty Pot pickThirsty, fast growing and unforgiving of a dry week. The largest reservoir we make keeps its fronds green instead of crisp. On the floor it also gets the still, humid air near ground level that it likes.
Calathea
Calathea spp.Thirsty Pot pickFamously theatrical about dry soil. Ours stopped curling once the moisture stopped swinging, and the leaf patterns held their contrast instead of bleaching at the edges. This is the plant people most often tell us they had given up on.
Maidenhair fern
AdiantumHas a reputation for being impossible, and that reputation is really just about watering. Take the dry spells away and it behaves like an ordinary fern. Keep it out of a draught and it will not shed on your floor.
Philodendron
Philodendron spp.Thirsty Pot pickHeart-leaf, brasil or a climbing variety, all of them did well. Steady moisture plus 6.5 litres of root space is what turns a tidy shelf plant into something that fills a corner of the room.
Monstera deliciosa
Consistent water and room to root shows up directly in leaf size and fenestration. It is heavy once it is grown, which is another argument for keeping it on the floor rather than a table.
Anthurium
Anthurium spp.An aroid that wants moisture and air at the same time, which is exactly what sitting above the water line rather than in it provides. Happiest for us in a chunky mix rather than dense potting soil.
Peperomia
Peperomia spp.Watermelon and ripple types both thrived. Small root systems, modest thirst, and a shape that suits the Egg on its iron stand. A good second pot once the first one has convinced you.
What the winners have in common
Every plant on this list suffers when watering swings between soaked and bone dry, and every one of them stops suffering when it does not. The cotton wick draws up only what the mix has given away, so the soil stays evenly damp rather than flooding and drying in cycles.
The roots also sit above the water line rather than in it, which is the part people miss. Damp and airy at once is what these plants want, and it is difficult to achieve by hand no matter how attentive you are.
The ones to skip
Snake plants, ZZ plants, succulents and cacti are built for drought and prefer to dry out substantially between drinks. They will survive in a Thirsty Pot, but they will not thank you for it. Keep those in terracotta and let the pot look after the fussier half of your collection.
Common questions
Which pot for which plant?
Small plants like fittonia and peperomia in the Egg, most medium plants and aroids in the Hexagon, ferns, philodendrons and monsteras in the Classic with its 6.5 litres of root space.
Soil or LECA?
Both work. Soil is easier if you are moving an established plant, LECA is cleaner and better for aroids. Our semi-hydro guide walks through the switch.
What about the other forty plants?
Still being written up. Join the list at the bottom of the journal and the next batch lands in your inbox first.
