March/April 2011 Living Now
It's Easy to Be Green with Indoor Plants
by Joanne Craft
Being green means more than just sustainable living. It also means bringing nature indoors. Green plants provide many benefits, both physiological and psychological, to all of our five senses.
Research has shown that healthy, well-maintained plants can improve air quality, reduce background noise and affect your behavior. Being close to plants reduces stress. Your heart rate, blood pressure and skin conductivity all benefit from the presence of plants. People in well landscaped offices and homes recover from stress more quickly than those in environments without plants. If you work at home or in an office building, it’s ideal to keep a plant right on your desk as well as other areas throughout the office.
Bring these Pacific Northwest plants indoors, not only to heighten and satisfy your senses but also to keep your environment happier and healthier:
Green Lady (Aglaonema Green Lady): The plants’ scientific name originates from the two Greek words aglaos, meaning bright and nama, a filament or thread, referring to the striking stamens produced within the flowers. It is a popular plant with the Chinese, to whom it symbolizes long life. The less romantic common name of Painted droptongue refers to the leathery, tongue-shaped leaves of Aglaonema crispum. The Green Lady is characterized by its dark green leaves with silver green markings, rapid growth rate, and resistance to diseases common to other Aglaonema.
Black Coral (Sansevieria Trifasciata Black Coral): This exotic plant with tall narrow leaves with gray and green wavy lines across a rich green background, can be used as artful accent or in mass in planters or beds. The seemingly indestructible Black Coral can be grown in any type of light, tolerates low humidity and water, and sporadic feeding.
Philodendron Red Congo: This plant is a new and distinct cultivar of Philodendron. It is a product of the cross or breeding between Philodendron Imperial Red as the female parent and an unidentified cultivar of the Philodendron tatei. This plant grows vigorously in an upright but spreading or open manner. New Red Congo leaves are brownish maroon to almost red in color while the large mature ones are dark green in color with a touch of red. The plant’s leaf petioles remain reddish purple to bright red with long-lasting petiole sheaths.
Joanne Craft is an environmental stylist based in the Pacific Northwest region for Ambius, the world’s leading provider of plants for the workplace. Visit www.ambius.com.