Green has a beneficial effect on our relaxation and well-being. Even the view of a natural landscape has a soothing effect on our senses.We all know the effect of relaxing after walking along forest paths or looking at a meadow full of flowering plants for a long time.
Can indoor plants also be a source of such positive feelings? Does a bit of nature brought into the house have a good effect on our he alth and relaxation? Scientific research focuses primarily on the effects of plants in office rooms, but can also be applied to green specimens in our homes.
Various studies show that ailments that plague office workers, incl. fatigue, lack of concentration, stress or headaches disappear in rooms with vivid greenery.Plants are believed to be effective at suppressing sounds and reducing noise levels.Large specimens with lush foliage, such as Monstera or Benjamin Ficus, are most effective.
In addition, plants increase air humidity in the room and stop dust floating in the air. In the process of breathing, they absorb carbon dioxide from the environment and expel oxygen.In addition, they filter out harmful gaseous substances from the air.In this way they contribute to the improvement of the microclimate in the room.
The best source of moisture is from lush deciduous plants. The continuous process of transpiration makes indoor plants noticeably increase the humidity of the air.In summer there is an additional effect of this process: increased evaporation lowers the temperature in the room. Room plants with large leaves that release a lot of water vapor are most effective in moisturizing the air, e.g. Sparmannia peace fern or Asplenium fern. They can evaporate about 97 percent of the water taken up by the roots.
Equally efficiently moisturizes the air of swamp tibora. On sunny days, a large plant can move many liters of water from the ground into the air.Contrary to mechanical humidifiers, plants evaporate clean water, free of germs or fungi.
Man among plants
Scientists from the Sydney University of Technology investigated the effect of plants on the concentration of harmful substances evaporated from building materials, carpets, paints and furniture. It turned out that some plants, such as philodendron, ivy or dracaena, can reduce the concentration of such compounds in the air by 50-70%.It is worth recalling that the Nephrolepis fern is one of the plants that have the best influence on the microclimate of the rooms.
The rule is simple: the more plants, the better. It has long been found that e.g. aloe vera, herbaceous plant and doubly feathery philodendron perfectly absorb formaldehyde.
