Plants

Air Purifying Plants for the Home

Are you looking to make your home a healthier, happier, more breathable place to relax? Then why not invest in an array of air-purifying plants? Asides from adding a little greenery to your interiors, these picture-perfect plants can also be beneficial to your health.

Ideal for any room in the house, these plants can breathe new life into your home, and many are incredibly easy to care for.

Which plants to choose?

Picking the right air purifying plants for your home is easy when you follow a few simple tips. The rewards are plentiful and will help you to detoxify the air in your bedroom, living room, kitchen, study, and hallway.

These air-purifying houseplants not only add an injection of colour into your home, they work hard to clean the air you breathe in. This is actually backed up by NASA’s Clean Air Study.

The results reveal that there are a number of air-purifying plants that are able to detoxify the home and office from the airborne toxins, including the likes of dust and germs. These can be found in a variety of household products, materials, and furniture.

We’ve listed a few of the tried and tested air-purifying plants below, all of which boast impressive aesthetic and health benefits!

Barberton Daisy

Asides from adding a joyful burst of pink, red, yellow or orange into your home environment, the Barberton daisy is an effective air cleanser, able to rid the air of an array of harmful toxins including formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, and benzene.

These nasty chemicals are found in a range of household materials, some of which we use every day, such as in paints and synthetic fibers. To ensure you get the most out of this air-purifying plant, it’s a good idea to place the plant in a room that boasts plenty of natural light and to use a quality soil that is both moist and well-drained.

English Ivy

This easy-to-grow perennial vine is one of the most effective air-purifying plants to choose, especially if you wish to reduce airborne fecal particles within the home. This makes it an ideal air purifier for the bathroom or ensuite. In addition to this, studies have shown that English ivy can also help to combat high levels of mold in the home.

To ensure your English ivy thrives in the home environment, allow for a generous watering schedule and around four hours of direct sunlight per day. In return, this plant will provide you with clean, detoxified air.

Spider Plant

For those who are new to the houseplant game, a resilient spider plant is an ideal option for your first houseplant. It will quietly yet effectively rid your home of toxins including the likes of carbon monoxide and xylene. This is a solvent used in the printing and rubber industries.

If you have pets at home, this is a great investment as it is one of the few houseplants that are non-toxic to animals. If you wish to have one of these plants in every room, simply repot the tiny ‘spiderettes’ and grow a whole family of plants!

They are extremely low maintenance and will pretty much take care of themselves… and of course you, by purifying the air in your home and office.

Aloe Vera

This healing aloe plant is a great addition to your kitchen windowsill, especially if that windowsill receives a good dose of sunlight as it loves a particularly sunny spot.

While a great antidote to kitchen burns, this succulent will also work to purify the air of formaldehyde and benzene, which is found in varnishes, detergents, and floor finishes.

Chrysanthemums

If you wish to add an instant injection of colour into your kitchen or living room, look no further than the chrysanthemum. These beautiful blooms help to filter out a host of toxins, including ammonia and benzene, which is often found in detergents, plastics, and glue.

This plant is extremely fond of sunlight, so be sure to place it in a spot near a sunbathed window.

Dragon Tree

Trichloroethylene and xylene are a few of the harmful pollutants found in our homes, but the Dragon Tree can fight both of them using its spiky, slow-growing structure as a chemical deterrent. The leaves boast a bright red trim, which works to add a flash of colour to your home, whilst also improving your health.

This plant has the potential to grow to an impressive eight feet in height so it’s important to choose its location wisely. You should opt for a room with high ceilings, a lot of floor space, and reasonable sunlight.

Snake plant (Mother in Laws Tongue)

If you place this plant in your bedroom, you’re in for a great night’s sleep! Nicknamed Mother-in-Law’s Tongue, this yellow-tipped succulent gives off oxygen at night, which helps you to breathe better while sleeping.

It is, in fact, said to be one of the best plants for filtering the air of harmful chemicals such as formaldehyde, xylene, benzene, toluene, and trichloroethylene. When caring for this plant, remember to avoid overwatering as this can cause root rot.

These plants also require a limited amount of natural light and are watered sparingly on a monthly basis, making them ideal for those with busy work and social lives.

Weeping Fig

This prevalent houseplant has been popular since Victorian times. Weeping figs are said to help tackle high levels of formaldehyde, xylene, and toluene in the air, all of which can be detrimental to your health. These plants are a little harder to grow as they are quite fussy plants, and they don’t like change.

For best results, place your weeping fig in an area that boasts bright, indirect light with few drafts. However, if you provide it with the correct location and care, it will be a trusty purifier for many years to come.

As you can see, there is an array of air-purifying plants to pick from, so be sure to pick one that is suitable for the conditions in your home and you should be able to notice the benefits long into the future.

Source: countryliving.com

Lily Calyx is our in-house flower whisperer, an expert on all things botanical and an enthusiastic orchids collector. She loves discussing the insights of the secret world of flowers, shares her gardening tips and hacks and moons over the latest additions to Serenata Flowers flower range. Ask Lily anything about flowers and we can guarantee she will have the answer.

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