If you found yourself joining the ranks of crazy plant ladies over the course of this weird year, don’t worry. You’re not actually crazy. In fact, you’re quite normal.
And there is actually a good reason for it – and science does endorse this particular claim.
Plants make us happy. Even if we’re not consciously aware of it.
Companies who take their employee’s wellbeing seriously have been introducing plants into their offices for years. They are motivated by studies showing that plants help to boost concentration, memory and attention levels. And they have a calming effect that improves overall productivity.
With so many people now working from home instead of the office, it is no wonder a craving for more plant babies developed. But even if we’re not “working” from home in the business sense, why wouldn’t we want all these benefits for ourselves and our families anyway?
As well as the productivity-aiding benefits, plants can also improve mood and help to alleviate stress, flowering plants especially. And they can also aid the recovery process when we’re sick.
Research has also shown that spending a lot of time around plants brings out our compassionate side, with the effect of improving our relationships with others.
Of course, we would ideally spend a good deal of time around plants in the great outdoors. But in the most severe stages of lockdown that was greatly restricted. Bringing more plants into our homes helped to counteract that lack.
If you don’t have any outdoor space, or you don’t spend much time outdoors in the colder and wetter seasons, then noting the health benefits of plants may be particularly helpful to you.
Maybe on a subconscious intuitive level many of us know how good plants are for us. And this might have contributed to our increased desire for more greenery in our living spaces.
It’s something to hold onto when we do eventually emerge out of this COVID era. These benefits are of value to us all the time, and now is a particularly good time to avail of them.
In Feng Shui, plants are also encouraged as they are living beings and help to revitalise the overall energy of our spaces. And NASA tells us that some plants can purify the air, and not just by oxygenating it. Plants can also cleanse the air of toxins such as mould and chemical pollutants like formaldehyde, which lie lurking in many of our home furnishings.
If you don’t have green fingers, start off with the hard to kill varieties. Succulents are a great bet for this. And if you don’t have a lot of natural light, there’s plenty that can survive in low light too.
Before you buy a plant simply check out how hardy or sensitive it is, what kind of light it needs and – in the case of toddlers or pets – whether it is toxic when ingested. Pinterest is a smorgasbord of links to resources to help you on these and many other plant-related topics.
And for tips and inspiration on Instagram, follow the #planttips #helloplantlover and #crazyplantlady hashtags.
Expanding your plant family is a joyous thing, and tending to them is highly therapeutic. So much happiness awaits!