Plant Your Way to an Eco Friendly Home

While we are on the topic of gardening I thought I would introduce you to a few house plants and talk about the importance filling your home with them (well, remember everything in moderation.)
 

When I first learned that in most cases your indoor air quality is actually more polluted than the outdoors, I freaked out a bit. I mean, I’m such a stickler for germs. Chances are if you’ve ever walked into my home I’ve yelled at you to take your shoes off  (the thought of tracking subway grime into the house…eeewww) After freaking out and researching some more I realized that it doesn’t have to stay that way, in essence you can grow your own “fresh air”. 

The three most common toxins found in our home are the following: Benzene which is found in common household items like paints, plastic and inks. It can lead to dizziness, weakness and headaches. Formaldehyde, which is used as a preservative can be found in items like paper bags, carpet backing and waxed paper. It’s effects can lead to respiratory problems, eye irritation, headaches and asthma. Finally there’s Trichloroethylene, it’s the most dangerous of the three. It’s  found in items like dry cleaners, printing inks, varnishes and adhesives and can lead to liver damage, respiratory and reproductive problems. But have no fear, house plants aid in removing these volatile substances from the air. Hey, they even aid in depression and alleviating seasonal allergies!

The rule of thumb is  two or more medium to large plants per hundred square feet. Now from a design point of view, there’s nothing worse than a window full of 15+ house plants haphazardly placed. (i’ve seen it!) Try placing them beside your bed, desk, TV and perhaps a few in the window sill. Let them flow throughout the house instead of clumping them all in one area. 

Here’s a list of  the top ten air purifying houseplants: Spider Plant, Bamboo Palm, Snake Plant (my personal favorite; it’s impossible to kill and grows like a weed!) Rubber Plant, Weeping Fig, Boston Fern (I named mine Peter) Peace Lilly, English Ivy, Janet Craig and Schefflera. The list goes on, but I’ll stop there. Don’t worry if you don’t have a”green thumb” yet (mine developed over time) most of these are hard to kill. 

As I’ve mentioned before I love to rerpurpose items in my home, like using vintage plates as a saucer for my pots or, instead of using your typical planter I’ve used everything from a serving bowl to an old flour sifter. So with fresh eyes take a look around your house…you never know what you may already have laying around to house your plants!

So what about you guys, what are some of your favorite house plants and what do you like to keep them in?

Tagged as: clean air, fresh air, gardening, Green Thumb, house plants, planters, pots, repurposed