I did my bi-annual job of re-potting the house plants today. At the same time as putting some in larger pots and refreshing the compost I also set a few ‘baby’ plants in little pots. This allows for replacing those which have gradually come to the end of their happy little lives. All our rooms, apart from the bedrooms, have plants in them and the hall and half landing have about a dozen.
The main reason for having the plants is their aesthetic value but did you know that many plants can help our indoor air, including Rubber Plants, Eureka Palms, and Peace Palms. Putting plants in your house or office can help your health. On http://www.gdrc.org/uem/stat-plants.html
there is a table indicating the pollutants removed by certain plants.
For example, over 24 hours a Spider Plant removed 86% of the Formaldehyde and 96% of the carbon monoxide. A Peace Lily should remove 80% of the Benzene, 50% of the Formaldehyde, and 50% of the Trichlorethylene.
That's very interesting. I have an enormous peace lily so my house should be benzene free. I spend time dicussing these horrible chemicals with people when they want to quit smoking. I hope they don't all hear about this or they might just fill their houses with plants and carry on puffing away!
ReplyDeleteThe first thing I thought was all this assumes a closed environment ie no open doors or windows. Then I thought about the addition to the air of smokers smoke. Then I read Magdalene's comment and cheered quietly.
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