6 House Plants That Can Improve the Air Quality In Your Home

photo credit: H.C. Williams

I love house plants. I have them in my workspace, in my front room and in my family room. I even have an orange tree growing in the kitchen. Plants have been shown to help relieve mental fatigue, and scenes of nature can help calm and soothe us. My husband, who studies environmental psychology, assures me that numerous studies support the idea that growing, caring for and looking at plants have positive effects.

But plants are more than just soothing for the mind; they can also contribute to your physical health. Some plants are actually able to help clean the air in your home, creating a healthier environment. Adding plants to your home decor can be a good way to improve the look of your home, contribute to better health, and enhance your mood.

3 Plants that Can Generate Plenty of Fresh Air

At TED, Kamal Meattle offered insight into arranging three house plants in such a way as to generate plenty of oxygen (helping you remain more alert and energized) for your home:

1. Areca Palm: During the day, the Areca Palm generates a great deal of oxygen, taking the carbon dioxide you exhale and turning it into oxygen. While four shoulder-high plants for each person in the home is recommended, you can can still get benefits even with fewer plants around the house.
2. Mother-in-Law’s Tongue: This plant generates more oxygen in the evening. With six to eight plants per person, you can help ensure a good supply of oxygen through the night — although you don’t need that many to get some of the benefits.
3. Money Plant: If you are interested in removing volatile organic compounds from the air (VOCs), you can use the money plant to do so. It acts a filter that can remove VOCs like formaldehyde out of the air, improving air quality.

3 More Plants that Can Improve Air Quality in Your Home

All plants give off oxygen, and they can contribute to improve air quality in your home. Some plants, though, are specialized to also help filter your air. Like the money plant, the following plants act as filters. They were shown to reduce VOCs like octane, TCE, benzene, alpha-pinene and toluene. They were tested by the Department of Horticulture at the University of Georgia:

1. English Ivy: This beautiful plant is easy to care for, and can be trained to climb book cases to add a bit of nature to your home. It can also be hung from hooks in the ceiling. One woman I know grows it along the tops of her kitchen cabinets.
2. Asparagus Fern: Another favorite, the asparagus fern is not actually fern. But it looks like one, and is easy to grow as a container plant. Grows lushly, and can add some green to your home, while purifying the air.
3. Purple Heart Plant: If you want to add a touch of bright color to your home plant decor, the purple heart plant can be a good choice. Like the other plants on this list, it is easy to care for, and it flowers beautifully.

Nature provides a number of solutions to many of the problems that we have. If you don’t mind increasing the nature you bring into your home, you can purchase some house plants that can produce oxygen and clean your air, contributing to your health and mental well being.