Psychology student Poetica talks about house plants, why they are popular and how to choose the right one and take care of it:
If you’ve ever been to a nice house, worked in an office, or looked up home decor tips, you’ve probably realized that people love to decorate their homes and workplaces with plants. But you may have asked yourself what the big deal is. After all, if you wanted to see a plant, you could just go outside and save yourself a lot of money and effort. Or, if you’re like me, you may get the plant hype, but accidentally kill every plant you bring home. If you’re either of these people, or just a plant connoisseur looking to learn more, this blog is for you.
Why do we love plants?
What’s not to love about them? They’re aesthetically pleasing, fairly low maintenance, and you can find them in almost every size and colour. But less people realize that keeping plants actually has psychological and health benefits. Psychological studies have found that keeping plants indoors can lead to lowering your stress levels, increase your pain tolerance, and boost your attention and productivity (Bringslimark et al., 2009; Lohr, 2009). Beyond that, they can also clean the air of toxins and provide fresh air for us to breathe. This can have huge benefits for people with allergies and asthma, as well as reduce your risk of lung damage (Aydogan & Cerone, 2020). No wonder we love having them around!
What type of plant is right for me?
So now that you know why it’s a good idea to keep plants around, what type of plant should you bring into your household? Plants vary greatly based on the type of environment they thrive in and how much attention they need.
If you live in a sunny climate, you might want a plant that thrives best with lots of sun, such as most succulents, geraniums, or a basil plant. However, if you live in a cloudy place or want to put a plant in a space away from the sun, you’re going to want to steer clear of any of the previous plants. Instead, try bromeliads, snake plants, or dracaenas.
You’ll also need to factor in how much time and attention you can give them. Some plants, such as orchids or fiddle leaf figs, are beautiful but high maintenance. If you don’t think you’ll be able to commit to regular watering and humidity management, you might want to opt for aloe vera or snake plants which only need watering once a month.
How do I take care of them?
Regardless of which type plant you choose, there are some common care tips that’ll help it thrive.
- Research what type of environment and care needs your plant has and do your best to meet them. Find out what type of lighting it thrives best in, what sort of temperature it needs, and be careful not to under or over-water it.
- If possible, water your plants with rain water.
- Keep them near open windows to make sure they get plenty of fresh air from the outside world
- Make sure your pot or plant holder has drainage holes! A common cause of death for houseplants is too much moisture, so it’s a good idea to make sure excess moisture has somewhere to go.
- Trial and error: if you see your houseplant isn’t doing too well in its original location, try moving it to see if it does better elsewhere.
Hopefully this guide was helpful in explaining why houseplants are beneficial and how you can welcome the right ones into your home or office. But if you want to learn more and do any further reading, you can check out the following sources:
Choosing the right plant and plant care:
- Plants for sunny environments
- Plants that don’t require much sun
- High maintenance plants
- Low maintenance plants
- Plant care tips
Health and wellbeing benefits of plants
Aydogan, A., & Cerone, R. (2021). Review of the effects of plants on indoor environments. Indoor and Built Environment, 30(4), 442-460. https://doi.org/10.1177/1420326X19900213
Bringslimark, T., Hartig, T., & Patil, G. G. (2009). The psychological benefits of indoor plants: A critical review of the experimental literature. Journal of environmental psychology, 29(4), 422-433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2009.05.001
Lohr, V. I. (2009, June). What are the benefits of plants indoors and why do we respond positively to them?. In II International Conference on Landscape and Urban Horticulture 881 (pp. 675-682). https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2010.881.111
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