Indoor plants have significant benefits for employees and as interior plantscapers we are able to advice on what indoor office plants can enhance specific office spaces.
This is a rough guideline that may help keep the indoor office plants alive in the workspace.
Office plants and living walls for a noisy office
To drown out the hustle and bustle of the office or to resolve the acoustics of a busy restaurant the answer is simple – the bigger the plant, the bigger the leaves and the thicker the stem will absorb the sound waves.
Banging your head against the wall because of excessive noise in the office? Why not try a living wall or a vertical wall. There are a variety of designs from large wall installations to picture walls or free standing green walls. Not only do living wall increase the number of indoor plants you have in an office, but this helps improve humidity and increase insulation.
Indoor office plants for low light
Dingy work spaces and low light levels in the office is not only depressing but it also means very little can grow.
At Life Indoors we have plucked a list of indoor office plants from the depths of the rainforest floors, meaning these plants are adapted to little or no light conditions. As a rule the darker the leaf the more chlorophyll the plant has and the less light it needs.
The heartleaf philodendron (Philodendron cordatum) and the ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia) are two such plants. So if your desk is far from a window consider these.
Control humidity with interior office plants
Every office and building has their own problems with humidity, however, there are certain indoor plants that are very effective in controlling humidity. Humidity is the amount of moisture or water vapour in the air, levels of between 30% and 60% are considered ideal by most environmental experts.
Indoor plants are able to control and adjust humidity in a room through a process known as transpiration that either allows them to either release moisture or absorb it.
The boston fern (Nephrolepis exaltata), bamboo fern (Dypsis lutescens) and peace lily (Spathiphyllum) are great humidity controllers. If planted in clusters they are even more effective.
Absorb toxins and fight sick building syndrome with this interior plantscaping advice
Sick Building Syndrome can have a major impact on business and the productivity of employees. A NASA study has proved that indoor plants can remove up to 87% of indoor air pollutants within 24 hours.
Depending on the specific construction work you have done in your office or the nature of the factory or industrial plants, interior plantscapers recommend the following for these toxins.
Trichloroethylene is commonly found in printing inks, paints, varnishes and adhesives. Indoor plants like the lilyturf (liriope spicata) and Cornstalk dracaena (Draceaena fragrans) are effective at absorbing Trichloroethylene.
Xylene is a found in paint, rubber leather, and vehicle exhausts. If you have recently repainted then consider orchids for your office to purify the air of Xylene.
Formaldehyde is a toxin found in paper bags, table napkins, panelling synthetic fabrics and paper towel. Indoor office plants that are known to filter formaldehyde are the broad leaf lady palm (Rhapis excelsa) and Varigated snake plant (Sanseveieria trifasciata)
Benzene is a pollutant found in plastic resins, rubber lubricants dyes detergents and sometimes tobacco smoke. Spider plants (Chlorophytum comosum) Chinese evergreen (Aglaonema modstum) office to purify the air of Benzene
Ammonia – window cleaners, salts and fertilisers. The devil’s ivy (Epipremnum aureu) red-edged dracaena (Dracarna marginata) are very effective at cleaning the air of ammonia.
Click here to read about indoor plants that filter the air of carbon monoxide found in cigarette smoke. These plants are ideally suited for designated smoking areas in office buildings.
Using indoor plants to create dividers and barriers between employees
This is where plantscaping gets creative! From desk bowl arrangements to indoor climbing plants like the money plant (Epipremnum aureum) to custom made living wall can all create effective barrier for cubicles or desk barriers.
Long thin containers don’t take up a lot of space and taller range of plants makes for a scenic barrier between employees.
© Zoo Fari
