Gardening is gaining more popularity every day, facilitated by plant-based podcasts, greenery-inspired designs on Instagram, and plant subscription services found online.
Although trends on social media are infamous, thanks to flourish-and-fade lifecycles, gardening endures longer than due to the benefits they offer, such as the following:
1. Minimize Harmful Pollutants
Paints, particle board furniture, carpets, and most cleaning supplies contain volatile organic compounds (VOC), which are chemicals released as gases from household products.
VOCs, including trichloroethylene, formaldehyde, and benzene, have negative health impacts, such as allergies, headaches, respiratory problems, and the risk of cancers.
Adding an air purifier and opening windows at home can minimize chemical emissions and clean indoor air. But indoor plants from online stores, like Plantz, are low-cost, effective ways of breathing fresh air and reducing VOCs in your home.
2. Lower the Costs of Grocery
Herbs, fresh or dry, are among the most expensive grocery items you purchase by weight. Growing outdoor herbs in your garden are the best to offset the costs of groceries. But most common culinary herbs are better off when grown indoors, allowing you to cut down weekly costs on food.
Growing and caring for indoor herbs don’t have to be complicated. Just a well-lit and small kitchen windowsill will be enough space to grow your favorite culinary herbs.
3. Relieve Anxiety and Stress
Being surrounded by nature is proven to rejuvenate your mind and body while reducing stress levels. It might not be like walking in the forest, but growing plants in your home will help you relax. And the power of green plants to clean indoor air will improve your general health, allowing you to deal with stress better.
If you are struggling with anxiety, lavender’s smell is proven to lower blood pressure and heart rate. It is mostly found in room sprays and essential oils, but a plant on a pot is just as good.
4. Improve Focus at Work
Some studies show that a desk plant can improve your focus in an office. According to the studies, you can work 15 times faster when surrounded by plants.
This is because of soft-grabbing attention and stress-reducing elements found in plants. If space is an issue, you can opt for smaller potted plants, such as succulents and cacti. They don’t take up a lot of space at an office desk.
5. Boost Your Immunity
The benefits of plants go beyond mental health. Your physical health also benefits. Being surrounded by plants can give your immune system a boost required to fight against illnesses like the flu.
Part of this benefit is connected to mental health benefits. Your immune system works well when you are more relaxed and get enough sleep. It becomes easier to wade off viruses and bugs doing their rounds.
What’s more, plants contain phytoncides as well as other airborne chemicals. These chemicals are proven to help reduce stress levels. When you are less stressed, your immunity gets a boost naturally. You won’t feel these positive effects physically until you realize you don’t have a cold that most of your friends are struggling with.
6. Facilitate Recovery and Reduce Risks of Getting Ill
Plants don’t just beautify a space and offer psychological benefits. They also serve as the key player in minimizing the risks of getting allergies.
Rooms filled with plants have low levels of dust and fewer mold and airborne pathogens. Plants act as natural filters for pathogens and allergens and trap them through the soil and their leaves.
Another way plants reduce the risks of getting illnesses is by improving the humidity of a space. Dry air can irritate the nasal passage, making it vulnerable to allergies. Clean humid air doesn’t just soothe your nasal canal. It also minimizes the amount of airborne allergens.
Taking flowers to see a patient in the hospital isn’t just a goodwill gesture. It has a deeper meaning too. The presence of plants and flowers around a recovering patient reduces recovery time. Plus, some studies show they help reduce medication dependency quicker and tolerate pain.
7. Get Quality Sleep
Plants release oxygen and take in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis to boost air quality. But that isn’t the end of the story. Studies show that increased levels of oxygen promote more restorative, deeper, and better sleep, which is important for immunity and overall health.
Growing or adding plants, especially in your bedroom, will boost the level of oxygen in the room and ensure you have a refreshing sleep. Although most plants do this job perfectly, you wouldn’t have to take the lighting level in your room into your consideration. This will help you decide which plants are best suited for your needs.
The last thing you want is to keep plants that do better in shady bedrooms with a bright light. And moreover, some plants are mostly oxygen-producing powerhouses and more suitable in bedrooms.
8. Enjoy Aesthetic Appeal
Personalizing your space by making it aesthetic comes with many benefits. Some patterns, shapes, and colors make people more comfortable, and it happens that plants are the best ways to achieve this.
In addition, plants don’t just look good. They have a nice smell and can keep you happy, especially houseplants, such as philodendron or lavender.
9. Improve Relationships
Unlike what most of us see in many romantic movies, maintaining a healthy relationship takes effort. However, it doesn’t need to be hard, either.
Plants can be the answer if you want one of the best ways to improve your relationships. When caring for plants, you create empathy, leading to a sense of compassion for other living organisms present in your life.
Plants can help you feel less lonely and come in handy when you have little social connection. If you are homebound most of the time, talk to your plants, and you will feel better.
The Takeaway!
These days, people are leaning more towards earthly touches in their homes with natural hues, earth colors, and wood, in addition to growing plants to create a raw look close to nature. Apart from adding an aesthetic appeal, plants also breathe life and add a soothing and natural color.