Plants are a healthy addition to a home, but how many are too many. What is the correct number of houseplants you should have? Perhaps the answer is different for each person. The number of plants to have in a room depends on the table or shelf space available to sit them on or the window space to hang them in. For some people, one nice plant is enough. For others it might be a dozen plants of various kinds. How many plants look good without making a room look cluttered?
Plants Have Health Benefits
There are attractive plants that help purify the air in a room they are placed in. One plant will make some difference, but a group of three will help the air quality even more. Bill Wolverton from NASA recommends 2 decent sized plants for every 100 square feet for this purpose. The leaf surface of plants is where air purification happens.
Balance Furniture and Plants in the Available Space
The purpose of having houseplants is to make a room more healthy and attractive, not to change it into a greenhouse. There needs to be plenty of room for people to move around and sit comfortably on the furniture. Family members need to be able to use a room for all the activities they enjoy. Some furniture works well with indoor plants and some not so much. Bean bag style furniture offered by fombag.com is one choice to consider.
When decorating an enjoyable and healthy room, decide what activities will take place there, then place the needed pieces of seating furniture and side tables. Put art and mirrors on the walls to add interest and beauty. Now look at the light sources and available spaces where plants can be placed. Add the plants that are the correct size for the space they will occupy. Place plants where they will be easy to get to for watering and plant care.
Plants That Are Good For Cleaning Indoor Air
Some plants that are a good choice for healthy air in a room include golden pothos, English Ivy, dracaena, spider plants, the peace Lilly, philodendrons, sansevieria, and ficus Benjamins. Chinese evergreen plants are also good. The choice of plants must also have the consideration of how easy they are to care for and if they are poisonous to dogs, cats and small children if eaten. Grouping plants in a place that receives plenty of natural light will ensure healthier, harder working plants.
Plants Can Clean the Air and Provide Mental Well-being Benefits
Attractive, healthy plants are proven to help clean indoor air and get rid of certain toxins. Plants also help the inhabitant’s mental well-being. Some experts recommend five to 10 plants grouped in a room for maximum mental health benefits. The type and size of plants make a difference with larger plants having more benefits than small plants. Choose plants with larger leaf areas that are easy to care for and hardy. Then take care to place the plants where they are accessible and get plenty of natural light.
For people who love plants, this is good news. They have a good excuse to have the plants they love. For those who don’t want to care for plants and don’t enjoy them, plants might not be an answer to making indoor air healthier. But they could start with one good sized, easy to care for plant, and try caring for it. Healthy air indoors is important because we spend a lot of time indoors.
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