Getting to know tropical plants has been a true pleasure in my life. It is my intent to share what I have learned by featuring certain plants that are not only incredibly easy to care for, but that have health benefits when placed in your home or office.
House plants are a benefit to your life. They greatly improve the air quality of your home if you have one in each room of the house. Many of them even remove allergens as well as toxins from the air caused by household products and the very materials our houses are built with.
House plants have been proven not only to clean the air around them, but also to reduce sickness and assist in the recovery of sickness. I have been delighted by what I have discovered in my personal research, as to what discoveries and experiments are being done to explore the relationship between plants and people.
In addition to improving your health, they also positively affect your mood. They are pleasing to the eyes in the way they soften your environment, they ease anxiety, and it is simply thrilling to watch them grow and thrive.
Having said all of this, I realize the fact remains that many of us shy away from plants because we don’t have the time in our busy lives to care for them, or past experiences have discouraged us from trying again.
Over the next few weeks I am going to blog about some plants I have found to be incredibly easy to care for and very low maintenance.
Sansiveria, also known as “Mother-in-Laws Tongue,” or “Snake Plant”
I recently had the pleasure of doing a presentation for the Green Thumb Garden Club at the town hall in Oakhurst. One of the ladies I spoke with shared that on a wintertime visit to Belgum, she noticed as she drove past neighborhoods and apartment complexes, that almost every house had the same plant in their window. They were Snake Plants.
She asked one of the residents why they all had the same plants in their houses. The resident told her that they use them because of how well they purify the air and help remove toxins from the air during the winter when people spend so much time behind closed doors and windows.
The Sanseveria (Snake Plant) originates from Africa, Madagascar and South Asia, and actually made onto a list of top air purifiers done by NASA. They found this plant removes formaldehyde from the air, which exists in more household materials and items than you think.
Sanseveria thrive in low light conditions and love humidity, which makes low light bathrooms a great place for them to live. They like to be squished into their pot and they only want water every few weeks. However, as is true with most of the plants on this list, they won’t tolerate being overwatered.
In addition, the Sansiveria is undeniably unique and fun to look at.
I recall being at the Awahnee Hotel this last summer and seeing where they had filled the empty fire places with large flaming yellow and green Sansiveria with lush green Pothos at the base. The effect was captivating and clever and, of course, a great place for a plant that doesn’t mind a dim area.
They come in a nice variety of colors and shapes, ranging from dark green with white jagged lines, to yellow and green striped, silver-grey-green, and more.
So not only is this an eye-catching plant whose care instructions are unbelievably easy, it also is highly beneficial to the quality of the air in your house.
For more info on plants, come see me at my shop.
Amy Duke is the owner of Solstice Gallery located at 40282 Highway 41, Suite 3, in Oakhurst. Visit on Facebook or stop in at the Gallery for more advice and ideas.
