People need clean air, and while shade has been thrown at the idea of indoor plants helping purify the air in a home because they say air from outside is constantly circulating through most homes, people can tell when their house has enough insulation to feel the difference from having some indoor plants. It depends on if windows are open, how insulated the house is, how many indoor plants there are, and other factors.
You need a lot of indoor plants for purification of the air to be successful. In articles about air purifying plants, it is often cited that NASA said 15-18 air purifying plants are necessary to make a difference in an 1800-square-foot residence.
Here are 12 indoor plants you can get right now and place all around your home, to purify the air and just made it feel like home.
1. PEACE LILY
The peace lily is a plant known to filter the air and take out harmful chemicals such as benzene, trichloroethylene, and formaldehyde. It can help keep the humidity nice and fresh in the air, and suppress harmful airborne microbes that may be responsible for allergy symptoms.
2. VALERIAN
This perennial flowering plant with scented flowers that come in shades of white or pink is an ancient token, described as an insomnia treatment by Galen, the Roman philosopher and physician.
3. SNAKE PLANT
The snake plant is known to be an oxygen powerhouse, said to particularly release oxygen at night, like a plant built by nature to help us sleep.
4. SPIDER PLANT
This one is also known to be one of the most potent air purifying plants, capable of eliminating a large amount of formaldehyde from the air, something that genuinely is found to contaminate homes. It’s capable of absorbing odors and fumes, sustaining the levels of oxygen in the air if you have enough of them. Remember, you need a lot of these plants to really produce a significant effect.
5. GERBER DAISIES
It has been said that these flowers can improve a person’s mood, produce oxygen like the rest of them, and alleviate some symptoms referred to as allergies.
6. BAMBOO PALM
This bamboo plant is known to help purify the air of airborne odors and toxins.
7. LAVENDER
Lavender is known to be a plant capable of relieving stress. Some claim that it can lower blood pressure, and even soothe a crying baby.
8. JASMINE
Jasmine is a plant that carries a soothing aroma, supposed to improve your sleep, reduce your anxiety, and help you feel productive. It’s difficult to say that so much could be attributed to the smell of a plant, but you get the picture: it feels good to be surrounded by some foliage, some real plants indoors, it taps us into something within us.
9. GARDENIA
Gardenia plants carry the same attributes mentioned for a lot of these flowers, and it is said to promote sleep.
10. GOLDEN POTHOS
Marbled, heart shaped leaves can be found on this common house plant, another one known for purifying the air. You can hang it, but make sure nobody ingests the leaves, they are a little bit toxic.
11. ENGLISH IVY
This plant is known to purify the air and supposedly combat airborne mold, but make sure nobody ingests it or touches it too much, this plant is toxic as well.
12. ALOE VERA
Aloe vera is a classic plant known to heal a variety of ailments, usually by placing the gel inside the cactus on the skin. In Ancient Egypt, it was known as the “plant of immortality.”