4. Plants Can be Therapeutic

Psychiatric clinics and hospitals have used plants and gardens to help patients recover for centuries. And with good reason. Spending time around plants can be an incredibly therapeutic experience, especially for those suffering from mental health problems.

Several recent studies show that having easy access to plants and green spaces lowers the risk of mental distress. The easier it is to access plants, the more pronounced this effect seems to be. And houseplants are perfect for this.

Exposure to plants can also help combat feelings of anxiety. A 2013 study in New Zealand found that the closer the subjects were to greenery, the less anxious they felt. The participants also suffered from fewer effects of mood disorders.

If you’re struggling with anxiety or depression, spending some time with your plants could be just the right tonic.

5. Plants May Help You Recover from Illness Faster

After suffering an injury or battling an illness, the road to recovery can be long and arduous. But having plants close by and looking at them may help you recover quicker. In 2002, a study was conducted that evaluated how gardens and plants impacted patient recovery in hospitals. 

The data indicated that recovering patients who could look at plants had shorter recovery times. During their hospital stay, these patients also required less medication for their pain. By contrast, patients who could only look at the four walls of their hospital room took longer to recover.

In 2009, a study by Kansas State University researched the presence of potted plants in hospital rooms. They found that patients who could see plants felt more optimistic about their recovery and their surroundings.

For those struggling to get back on track after an accident or illness, plants can lend a natural helping hand.

6. Plants May Boost Your Productivity

In the modern world, it seems that productivity is king. It can be challenging to keep up with deadlines and meetings while trying to ignore distractions. But surprisingly, plants could help you become a productivity powerhouse.

This claim has been subject to several studies in recent decades. A 1996 study published in the Journal of Environmental Horticulture placed some plants in a workspace without windows. The workers within the room felt less stress and worked 12% faster.

The American Society for Horticultural Science also published a 2007 study evaluating the effects of indoor plants in a workplace. 385 Norwegian office workers filled out a survey about plants in their office. 

The data showed that having more plants close to their desks resulted in fewer employees taking time off sick. There were also productivity improvements. It’s the perfect excuse for bringing up plants in your Monday meeting.

7. Plants May Improve Job Satisfaction

It’s easy to get run down by the 9-5 schedule, making you question your career choices while staring at your screen. Not only can plants boost your productivity, but they can also help you feel better about your job as well.

A study was published in 2006 that evaluated the impact of natural factors such as office plants. Nearly 450 American and Indian Amazon workers were quizzed about their office environment. The results indicated that higher levels of job satisfaction were displayed by workers whose offices contained some plants.

These workers also showed stronger loyalty to their workplace—interviewees whose environment didn’t contain plants scored lower on these points. Anxiety and stress levels related to work were also found to be lower in offices with plants.

Adding some live plants to your desk could help your workweek become a bit more bearable.

8. Plants Can Complement Interior Design

We’ve all seen those interior design posts on Instagram – a stunning city apartment with pothos trailing along the walls. The truth is that plants can be an incredibly unique way to make interior design changes.

Houseplants can give any space a more natural feel by bringing the outside in. They’re also a more cost-effective way of sprucing up a space without breaking the bank for new furniture or furnishings.

Plants can inject some much-needed greenery into an indoor space, which yields several mental and physical health benefits. You can also find houseplants that fit virtually any interior style, allowing you to customize your look constantly.

Sprawling Boston ferns can transform bland bathrooms. Are you going for a minimalist vibe? A snake plant can add a bit of impact. Want a lush conservatory? Round up some monsteras and philodendrons to create a vibrant jungle atmosphere. The choice is yours.

9. Plants Connect You to the Natural World

In an increasingly urban world, it can feel more difficult than ever to connect with nature. Computer screens and smartphones have replaced what was part of our daily rhythm for thousands of years.

Several psychological studies have detailed the positive impacts of feeling connected to nature. This 2014 study shows that we see several benefits when we identify as “connected” with nature. This connection results in more positive thinking and also helps us to feel happier.

While modern technology has changed our outlook, we can re-establish our connection to nature by bringing houseplants into our homes. In recent years, houseplants have become increasingly popular with younger generations who’ve grown up with technology.

Cultivating houseplants brings us back to a more hands-on relationship with nature instead of keeping it at arm’s length. Reestablishing this relationship can help all of us tackle the problems we face in the modern world.

10. Plants May Help You Sleep

Few things feel worse than struggling with your sleep. Almost one-third of all adults in America have experienced insomnia at some point.

But a 2019 study conducted by Beijing’s University of Aeronautics and Astronautics reveals that plants could be the key to a good night’s sleep. The study was primarily focused on how plants can help astronauts to sleep on deep space missions. But data showed that there are benefits for regular earthlings as well.

The study indicates that spending some time with plants before turning in resulted in better sleep quality. The color and scent of the plant seem to matter. Subjects saw more positive effects from plants like coriander and strawberry, including being more relaxed. 

It’s believed that the smell of these plants helped the subjects regulate their nervous systems, which made sleep easier. This has been backed up by previous studies as well.

11. Plants Can Help Create Positive Feng Shui

Whether you call it positive chi or just good vibes, having the proper feng shui in your home can make a big difference. One of the most natural ways to cultivate good feng shui is through houseplants.

As living organisms, plants are an excellent way to encourage harmony in your home. This also brings nature into the house, connecting with something that humans have lived alongside for millennia.

Some plants can have more impact in terms of feng shui than others. The Jade plant, for example, represents luck and prosperity in feng shui. Placing one next to your desk may act as positive reinforcement to help you inch closer to that promotion.

The health benefits that may result from plants also contribute to feng shui. These effects can include cleaner, purer air or a more relaxing atmosphere when you’re trying to sleep. Peace Lily plants are ideal for this.

12. Giving Plant Gifts Can Make Someone’s Day

Because plants can bring so many benefits to virtually any home, they make excellent gifts. Presenting a friend or family member with a living thing like a plant feels like a more profound, and personal gift. 

Plant gifts can represent just about any gesture you want to extend to someone you know or love. You might buy one of your best friends a Spider plant as a housewarming present. Or you might give a peace lily plant to someone who has recently lost a loved one. 

Receiving a plant as a gift can mean a lot to someone. In a way, it’s like sharing the gift of life. For some people who might be receiving their first plant, that gift could open up a whole new world or hobby. 

Humans have been fascinated with plants for thousands of years. Continue that tradition by giving a houseplant as a gift.

13. Plants May Fend Off the Common Cold

Humans have always turned to plants to help battle diseases and infections. For centuries, accepted medical knowledge revolved around plants. While this has decreased in the modern day, many people still use plant-based remedies for ailments like the common cold.

As such, there have been several studies on the effectiveness of these remedies. One of the most well-known plants to use against colds is echinacea. This member of the daisy family is thought to alleviate the symptoms of a cold.

Some studies indicate that taking echinacea can reduce the duration of cold symptoms by approximately 1 ½ days. The study also showed that echinacea was nearly 60% effective as a preventative measure.

Another study involving nearly 2500 subjects found that echinacea also had some success in lowering the risk of respiratory infections.

When using plant-based treatments for colds and flu, always check with your doctor and follow their instructions.

14. Plants Filter Odors in the Home or Office

While purifying the air indoors and filtering out harmful chemicals, houseplants might also have another neat trick up their sleeves. As a by-product of removing impurities from the air, houseplants might also be able to remove unpleasant odors.

In enclosed indoor spaces such as your home or office, odors can circulate quite easily. From the strong smell of cleaning products to the musty scent of the laundry basket, these smells can be a distraction.

The various incarnations of NASA’s Clean Air Study tested several varieties of plants for their air filtration capabilities. Many of these plants extracted chemicals such as formaldehyde from the air, but there was another benefit. Some plants were found to remove or reduce strong odors as well.

Plants with a larger surface area in terms of foliage, such as Cast Iron plants, were more effective.

15. Plants Can Improve Room Acoustics

Remember the old adage about the tree falling in the woods and nobody hearing it? There may be some truth to that after all. It turns out that plants may absorb sound waves, acting as natural soundproofing within your home.

A 2005 South Korean study evaluated the soundproofing effects of monkey puzzle trees and peace lily plants compared to paper-based soundproofing. The data showed that the plants performed much better, dampening some of the sounds in the room. This worked across several sound frequencies.

Plants make surprisingly effective soundproofing because the leaves and stems absorb sound. While this is more effective with large plants such as hedges, houseplants can be used on a smaller scale indoors.

By helping to improve the acoustics in a room, houseplants can make the space much more pleasant and comfortable. It sounds like music to our ears!

16. Plants Help to Increase Humidity

While we often adjust the temperature of our homes, humidity levels can often be overlooked. But humidity is just as crucial for comfort and the natural working of our bodies. 

A good amount of humidity helps us regulate our temperature better, making us more comfortable. Dry air can contribute to respiratory problems and also causes uncomfortable annoyances like cracked lips and dry skin.

Thanks to the way they interact with water, houseplants are a brilliant, natural way to increase the humidity in a room. As plants drink water from their soil, excess moisture radiates through their leaves and into the air. This is called transpiration.

This process combats the dry air that can quickly develop in our sheltered homes. Plants such as palms, peace lilies, and philodendrons are particularly good at increasing humidity. Houseplants that have a larger surface area in terms of foliage are also more effective.

17. Plants Can Help with Allergy Relief

If you suffer from allergies, particularly hay fever, then you might be tempted to give houseplants a wide berth. But some species of houseplants may have the opposite effect, working instead to alleviate allergies.

Again, we go back to NASA’s Clean Air Study, which evaluated several common species of houseplants to determine if they improved air quality. Many plants were shown to remove harmful toxins from the air, but they also collected things such as dust and pollen. These kinds of particles are catalysts for many common allergies.

By removing these particles from the air, houseplants such as indoor palms and dracaenas may reduce the frequency of allergic reactions. The harmful chemicals these plants can filter out of the air, such as benzene and trichloroethylene, can also cause allergic reactions.

By adding purifying plants to your home, you might be able to take the fight to your annoying allergies. 

18. Herbs Are Great for Many Common Ailments

Humans have used herbal remedies to treat various health problems for thousands of years. These treatments proved so effective that some people still swear by them today. Many of these medicinal plants have been examined by scientific studies to test their effectiveness.

Chamomile is one of the best-known medicinal herbs still in use. People typically take chamomile as an herbal tea, and it’s believed to reduce inflammation and alleviate hay fever, among other benefits.

Peppermint is often used to soothe indigestion and other gut problems. This is backed up by preliminary research from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Lavender is another popular medicinal plant used mainly to help the nervous system and reduce anxiety.

Medicinal herbs are typically used as ingredients for specific treatments that can be bought from pharmacies. Alternatively, you may be able to grow and use your own herbs indoors.