Herself’s Houseplants

Maybe you really do have a green thumb and it’s the air in your house that is doing in your plants?

A new home can be even more dangerous. Just bring in a plant, and it will tell you.

“Fresh paint, fresh carpeting, fresh furniture — the plants are dying. You could see the leaves just burning to a crisp,” said Bruce Jacobson, a plant expert who does indoor landscaping for offices and buildings. “What were they doing? They were cleaning the air.”

Jacobson said newer buildings and homes have chemicals in the air that plants can help filter.

Experts said not to be too disappointed if your plants die. It could just be a sign that your plants are doing their job.

“Every time we replaced them, they did better and better, and after about six months, the plants were just fine,” Jacobson said. [ read more Healthy House Plants]

Plants, for your health has a chart of which plants are recommended by them to remove which toxins.

Maybe it isn’t the cat causing your allergy. It could be your houseplants.

Any house plant can cause allergic reactions but Ficus ( weeping fig aka Benjamin’s fig ) is the most common. The milky sap on the leaves is the cause. The sap gets attached to dust particles and dispersed through out the home or office. People with latex allergies are most likely to react to ficus.

Other plants known to be a problem are chrysanthemums and daisies. Of course any blooming plant or scented plant can cause reactions.

Then there is the problem of mold in the potting mix of house plants to be considered.

More information:
House plants can cause allergic reactions

Clas Bergvall did his PhD dissertation on the subject of what house plants do for people.

He discovered:
- Americans spend ~$147 on house plants each year
- Plant filled rooms contain 60% fewer airborne molds and bacteria
- Poinsettia is the favorite indoor flowering plant
- Best plants for decontaminating the air and balancing humidity are: Areca, Reed and Dwarf date palms, Boston ferns, English ivy and Peace Lilies.

But most important is that house plants bring us closer to nature.

More Information:
Study Documents the Power of Indoor Plants