Easy plants for healthy indoor air

Some indoor plants are easier to care for than others

Putting one leaf plant for every ten square yards (m²) will help purify the confined indoor air of your home.

Take your pick from these plants which are among the easiest to care for.

Ferns are plants that are both easy going and that have been proven to have air-purifying properties. To always keep them in top shape, cut the dry fronds regularly. Shown right (above on mobiles) are various species of Dracaena.

You can pair them with other plants, to which they will adjoin their luxurious wild greenery.

Spathiphyllum, also called “peace lilies”

Spathiphyllum is an easy-care indoor plantIt furnishes shiny green evergreen leafage that absorbs many domestic pollutants (ammonia, acetone, carbon dioxide, benzene…) that result from varnish and paint, and cigarette smoke, too.

It favors moist environments and will relish living in your kitchen or bathroom, even if quite dark.

Ficus trees are a classic

This is one of the plants most grown in apartments the world over. There are over 1,000 species, the most common of which is the weeping ficus (especially Ficus benjamina).

It cherishes luminous settings and doesn’t quite like dry air: move them away from radiators in winter and mist leaves during heat waves in summer.

Hanging plants

Ivy has a preference for cool and well-lit environments. You can either hang it or let it grow along a stake.

To make it last, water moderately during the growth phase (from March to October) and almost stop watering it during the dormancy. Pinch new stems to favor the growth of lateral growth.

Chlorophytum

It is also part of the air-purifying indoor plants: it absorbs toluene, carbon monoxide, benzene…

Does great in rooms both warm and cool, from bathroom to winter garden. It tolerates indirect light.

Set up the Chlorophytum as a hanging plant, you’ll discover its tiny white flowers and clumps of small leaves. These turn into tiny plants equipped with roots.

This makes the spider plant so easy and enjoyable to propagate!

M.-C. H.


Image credits (edits Gaspard Lorthiois): Flower Council Holland