How to Make a Shower Caddy Garden

NOTE: This is a guest post by my incredible friend, Steve Asbell. Steve is the brilliant illustrator behind the gorgeous drawing in the MEG header, but he is also an accomplished gardener and a new author. I know you will enjoy this project as much as I did! – Michael

If you need an alternative to the same old vase of flowers that you give or receive every Valentine’s day, this project will turn each evening’s bathtime into a tropical spa getaway. Using nothing more than a shower caddy, a plastic loofah, orchid bark, an orchid and some air plants, I’ve managed to make a romantic vertical garden that will live happily in any well-lit bathroom for many winters to come. Best of all, it’s mess-free and easy to care for – all it needs is bright light and an occasional splash of water while showering.

Cut flower arrangements are already dead by the time you buy them and only stay fresh for a few days, but your living bouquet will stay in bloom for months and live for years.

You will need:

• 1 wire shower caddy
• Orchid bark (or sphagnum moss)
• 1 plastic loofah
• 1 orchid
• Optional – Air plants, bromeliads, etc.

How to Make a Shower Caddy Garden

Step One

Using a pair of sharp scissors, cut into the plastic loofah where it bunches together and unravel the netting. You will use this to line your shower caddy and wrap the orchid’s roots.

Step Two

Now it’s time to knock the orchid out of its pot, but first you should water the orchid to help the roots loosen their grip. If the orchid is in a plastic pot, squeeze it from different angles while you gently twist and tug at the orchid’s base.

Step Three

Once the orchid is out of the pot, wrap one layer of the loofah netting around the sides of the orchid’s roots and another layer around the base.

Step Four

Line the caddy with loofah netting so that the bark will not fall through the gaps. If you have a hard time keeping it in place, use twist ties or wire for now and remove them when finished.

Step Five

Place the lined orchid into the lined caddy. To keep it from toppling over, use a thin piece of the loofah or a twist tie to loosely tie the orchid’s stem to the caddy. Don’t tie it too tightly, since it could damage the plant.

Step Six

Now you can add other plants to the caddy. Hold the plant in place and start filling the area around the roots with orchid bark. Air plants (Tillandsia) need their roots exposed in open air, and can either be attached to the caddy itself or placed on the surface of the orchid bark.

Step Seven

Almost finished! Water the plants in the caddy, moisten the suction cups and attach it to the wall. Follow the care tips below.

What the Plants Need

• Bright light – Frosted bathroom windows are perfect for this
• Warm temperatures – Over 45 degrees Fahrenheit
• Moisture -  Easily provided by splashing the orchid bark while showering
• Fertilizer – Occasionally spray the plants with diluted orchid fertilizer
• Clean water – Avoid getting soap or chemicals on the plants

Notes about the Materials

The reason that this vertical garden works is that each of the plants included are epiphytes – that is, plants that naturally grow on the bark of trees. There are many different types of epiphytes available at the garden center; including mistletoe cactus (Rhipsalis), air plants (Tillandsia), orchids, bromeliads and a handful of more obscure ones like Dischidia, Hoya, along with many different ferns. Even Christmas cactus and Easter cactus can be grown epiphytically! If these plants are unavailable at your garden center, you can even try using succulents like Echeveria, Sedum or Haworthia.

You can use any of the plants listed above, but you’ll need an orchid for that romantic effect. The orchid I used in my arrangement is a very common Dendrobium which happened to be in bloom in time for my project, but is unfortunately not fragrant. When you’re shopping around for an orchid to use in your own shower caddy garden, sniff around and choose one with a great smell. My personal favorite is Oncidium ‘Sharry Baby’, which has an aroma that some compare to chocolate and others liken to lemon meringue.

While other houseplants require potting mix that would slip though the netting and make a mess, all orchids and other epiphytes need for soil is orchid bark or sphagnum moss. These materials are easy to find at your local garden center near the potting mix or houseplants.

There are lots of different shower caddies you can purchase, from those that hang from the shower curtain rod or showerhead to ones that sit on the edge of the bathtub. I chose one that sticks to the shower wall via suction cups because so that I could put the arrangement at eye level where it can be fully appreciated. Other alternatives to shower caddies include slat wood orchid baskets, hanging orchid pots or a hollowed out segment of bamboo like the one used in my book, Plant by Numbers: 50 Houseplant Combinations to Decorate Your Space

The loofah is quite literally what holds it all together since the netted plastic material can be cut out to line the caddy and prevent bark from falling through and making a mess in the bathtub. You can buy them for as little as a dollar, and you’ll use such a small amount of the netting that you can continue using the loofah after you’ve used what you need. You can try all-natural materials like burlap, but I can’t make any guarantees that they won’t get mildew-ey and gross. I’d love to hear if you have some ideas of your own though!

Steve Asbell is the author of Plant by Numbers: 50 Houseplant Combinations to Decorate your Space. He is also a blogger and illustrator, and his writing and art can be found at The Rainforest Garden.

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