Because of off-gassing, chemicals are in the air. I read a letter to the editor in one of our local papers recently where a man complained about the money NASA spends, but none of it helps you and me. Well, here is some research they've done that does help:
research on plants. They've rated the top indoor plants for their effectiveness cleaning the air. The common and incredibly easy to grow spider plant is one of them. According the Clean Air Gardening's website, "For an average home of under 2,000 square feet, the study recommends using at least fifteen samples of a good variety of these common houseplants to help improve air quality. They also recommend that the plants be grown in six inch containers or larger."
Renee Loux has written one of the best books I've found so far on living greener with fewer chemicals. In her book
Easy Green Living, she says, "Two small plants or one medium-size plant per 100 square feet will provide fresh air and healthy mold-free humidity in any room so everyone can breathe deeply with ease."
She also lists the following as the most effective air-purifying plants:
- bamboo palm
- Chinese evergreen
- corn plant
- dragon tree
- chrysanthemum
- English ivy
- peace lily
- pothos
- philodendren
- snake plant
So, in my 13x18 office which I spend 8+ hours in a day, I have a Chinese evergreen, golden pothos, a palm (no idea what kind) and a spider plant. Think about where you work. How's the air in there?
I have five plants in my living room, four in my kitchen, but several of them are small. Perhaps I should get Chinese evergreens for my bedroom and bathroom. Chinese evergreens don't need much light, so that seems to be my best bet. We had a large one in an indoor foyer at work that was not exposed to any natural light and lived by only two lamps. It did fine. I need easy-to-grow plants!
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