Pot it like its hot; the benefits of house plants!

Taking a bit of a different look at the environment and going out our comfort zone here!

Plants are a great way to love the environment (indoor and outdoor) and we defo want to learn more about how to look after plants and we will, but first the benefits.

Benefits include:

· They offset environmental damage by purifying the air in your house

· Reduced stress levels

· Increased work productivity

· Increased speed of reaction in computer tasks

· Increased pain tolerance, and in hospitals, patients reported decreased post-operative pain where plants had been in the room

· Reduced blood pressure

· Reduced fatigue and headaches by 20%

We started off thinking the only benefit was the removal of CO2 from the atmosphere, but we were shocked to find that there were so many other benefits to personal health as well!

Looking at the environmental benefits, they help clear the air of indoor air pollution. We’d like to think that our cosy homes keep us safe from pollution, but research has shown that indoor air has harsh pollutants too. And in 2011, 8.1 million people died in London from pollution!!

So, when you’re looking to buy a new plant look out for one of these plants that have been found to be the most effective:

Areca Palm

Philodendron

Rubber plant

Peace Lily – improves indoor air quality by 60%, most helpful in areas of high humidity like bathrooms.

Dracaena – has been shown to be one of the most effective – also tends to help with respiratory distress

Snake plant

Boston Fern - restores natural moisture, effective for people with dry skin or irritable noses

Aloe Vera – natural air purifier and reduces toxic chemicals that are found in cleaning products

English Ivy

Spider Plant – a study found that in 2 days it removed 90% of the toxins found in indoor air!!

Like we said we were shocked to hear about the health benefits as well, so that’s a bonus. Why wouldn’t you want more plants in your home? There’s been so many studies that prove the health benefits from how indoor gardening reduces stress levels to the literal presence of plants in hospital rooms reducing the pain medication needed!

Don’t get us wrong we’ve had our fair share of plant mishaps and deaths (oops) but we are going to look into the best way to care for your plants! So, keep an eye out for that!

In the meantime this is great article for where to place your plants in the house https://www.rhs.org.uk/garden-inspiration/houseplants/how-to-grow-beautiful-houseplants

G and M x