Houseplants: More than Just Décor!
Jenae Ryan, Horticulture Agent
It’s that time of year when
colder weather drives people to spend more time indoors. While I may have
missed National Indoor Plant Week (September 15-19), talking about the benefits
of houseplants is still quite appropriate as we try to keep our warm air inside
our homes and prevent wintery air from getting in.
Thanks to improved building and
insulating practices, homes are less “leaky”, reducing the transfer of
potentially contaminated indoor air with fresh outside air. This lack of air
flow can lead to the buildup of air pollutants. New furniture, paints,
household cleaners, inks, carpets, and a variety of other household sources
release chemicals in a process called “off-gassing”.
Through
photosynthesis, a plant takes in carbon dioxide, converts the carbon into food
for itself, and releases oxygen. This is one way a houseplant filters the air
and can improve indoor air quality. A NASA study in the late 1980’s studied the
abilities of common houseplants to remove carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and
benzene from the air. They identified several houseplants that were successful
at removing the majority of these chemicals from the air. However, not all
houseplants remove the same air pollutants equally, so it is recommended to
have a variety of houseplants to help improve air quality.
It is
important to choose the right houseplant for your home, not only for its air
cleaning abilities, but also for the temperature and lighting in your home.
During the winter, plants that normally do well in a window may need to be
moved further from the window or to a completely different spot to maintain a
desired temperature. Plants in the winter may not need as much water as they do
in the summer time. Over-watering and over-fertilizing in the winter can cause
plants to produce more vegetative growth and leaves and produce fewer blooms.
For more information on selecting air cleaning
houseplants, check out the latest version of the K-State Research and Extension
Horticulture Newsletter at this link:
For more information about watering houseplants, click
this link to a K-State Horticulture publication on watering raised beds, berms,
containers, and houseplants:
