Settling in for the winter? Considering a few house plants to lighten up your interior? According to a NASA study, certain plants can be chosen to best purify your home's air.
NASA tested popular plants for their ability to create oxygen and filter common toxins like trichloroethylene (found in varnishes, paints, and adhesives), formaldehyde (present in carpets, furniture, and foam insulation), and benzene (found in plastics, synthetic fibres, and detergents) to purify the air astronauts breathe. [NASA] recommends having 15 to 18 good-sized houseplants in an 1,800-square-foot home.
Check out the list of top air purifying house plants after the jump...
The list of top air cleaning house plants:
1. Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
2. English Ivy (Hedera helix)
3. Nephytis
4. Dragon Tree (Dracaena marginata)
5. Gerbera Daisy (Gerbera jamesonii)
6. Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum)
7. Janet Craig Dracaena (Dracaena deremensis)
8. Chinese Evergreen (Aglaaonema modestum)
9. Variegated Corn Plant (Dracaena fragrans “Massangeana”)
10. Dracaena Warneckii (Dracaena deremensis “Warneckii”)
11. Chinese Evergreen (Aglaonema modestum)
12. Potted Mum (Chrysanthemum)
13. Corn Plant (Dracaena fragrans “Massangeana”)
Other recommended plants: Bamboo Palm (Chamaedorea seifrizii), Umbrella plant (Schefflera arboricola), Heart-leaf Philodendron (Philodendron scandens), Tree Philodendron (Philodendron selloum), Elephant Ear Philodendron (Philodendron domesticum), Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina), Snake Plant (Sansevieria trifasciata), Pothos Vine (Epipremnum aureus), Aloe Vera
Via: Shared Vision.
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Another great plant - scented geranium. I had mine outside for the summer, but am trying to keep some of them going indoors for the winter. I cut them back pretty hard.
I've been told that scented geraniums were used as air fresheners in the olden days....
JoanneM
Just a quick warning that should be noted: chinese evergreen, corn plant, and nephytis are toxic to cats! I'm not sure about the others, but I wonder if it has to do with their ability to filter all of those toxic chemicals?
Good to know that NASA's budget isn't going to waste.
15-18 plants seems like a lot. I wouldn't have space for anything else!
Thanks for the cat tip - saved me a trip to the humane society website.
anyone know which of these are good in low-light conditions?
The aloe and dragon plants are also toxic to cats. :( Most lilies are too. At least the spider plants could be hung from hooks on the ceiling. :)
mperlberg, my spider plants have always been happy in low light.
Yeah. Spider plants will pretty much grow anywhere. They are the easiest plants I have ever had. Hard to kill.
I'm happy to see I already have a few of those!
Emily
Why is Chinese Evergreen listed twice?
I'm interested in finding out how many are pet safe.
I would assume NASA has been figuring this out for the space stations and for possible stations ON other planets in the future . . . Very cool!
I read the Wolverton study (in his book How to Grow Fresh Air, which I recommend for anyone interested in this topic) and these are not the top performing plants, and they're not in any particular order. Aloe, along with most other desert plants, is actually a very poor performer; it's listed there simply because it was among those tested.
The best performers for removing pollutants include areca palm, bamboo palm, peace lily, Boston fern, English ivy, and Janet Craig dracaena, and rubber tree. In general, tropical/water-loving plants filter more than desert/water-conserving plants, and the bigger the plants, the better, whatever kind. (They don't really say what 'good-sized plants' are, but aim for floor plants, at least 12".)
Orchids and succulents are mid-to-poor performers, but worth keeping in the bedroom because they release oxygen at night. (Of course there are great aesthetic reasons for keeping these plants.)
You can strategically place your plants near where you work or sleep or otherwise sit for long periods. Wolverton calls it a personal breathing space.
People who have pets can Google 'pet-safe plants' and it should cough up links from the ASPCA and so on.
Low-light plants include spider plants, pothos, philos, English ivy, green rubber tree, weeping fig, peace lily, and Janet Craig.
For the record, spider plants are absolutely safe for pets and children.
Out of the top 10 NASA listed only two are safe for cats to eat:
Spider Plant - #5
Bamboo Palm - #13
My cats LOVE to eat Spider plants - so get a couple and swap them out, especially if you aren't giving them wheatgrass to much on.
Wikipedia article on NASA air quality study: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_air-filtering_plants
About.com article on Cat Friendly Plants:
http://http//cats.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=cats&cdn=homegarden&tm=19&f=00&tt=14&bt=0&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.moggies.co.uk/nontoxix.html
I went out and bought this beautiful I think it was a Tree Philodendron (Philodendron selloum). It was tall and I had a beautiful pot for it..it sat in a corner with perfect sun and filled the space quit nicely.
I left the house for a couple of hours, when I returned every inch of my living room had dirt everywhere!!!! I looked over and could only see one of my Jack Russell's covered in dirt and panting while my other JRT was rear up inside the big pot still digging. My point is if you have Terriers you might not want to have potted plants where they can get to.
I really like this post--so useful!
As other posters have said, be careful with any of the dracaena plants. Our cat ate some of our corn plant and we ended up with 4 days worth of cat vomit and a $200 vet bill. The worst part is the fronds look like grass, which cats eat when they have upset stomachs, so the sicker he was the more of the plant he ate until we figured out the problem and threw it out.