First things first, National Indoor Plant Week is next week! It’s a week to celebrate houseplants and the benefits they bring to our lives. By now you’re probably very familiar with the benefits of indoor plants, including better indoor air quality, improved health and immunity, and better mental health and mood. 

We can’t get enough of your amazing plants on Instagram and submitted to our Real Life Plant Parent stories, and we’re taking advantage of Indoor Plant Week to showcase the benefits of plants in the workplace as well as your living space! We know your plants look amazing at home, but we’re ready to see your business casual Calatheas, your presentation ready Peperomias, and your thank-goodness-it’s-Friday Ferns! Read onward for our recommendations of seven indoor plants that will help improve your motivation at work.

The best indoor plants for the workplace 

Aloe: Aloe succulents are great for your desk and help remove formaldehyde and benzene particles from the air. If you love succulents, an Aloe plant (like our Aloe mitriformis) can give you a cute and on-trend addition to your space at work, and you can even get a mini version to save space! 

Crassula Succulents (Jade): We have several Jade succulents including Hobbit Jade (Crassula ovata “hobbit”), Mini Jade (Crassula minor), and traditional Jade (Crassula ovata compact). Jades are great plants for the office for several reasons. They’re easy to care for and don’t require much water, so they will continue looking beautiful on your desk with minimal care. Jade is also celebrated in Chinese Feng Shui as a prosperity magnet, so keeping one in your cubicle can help you think fortune in mind and bring new opportunities to your door. 

Ivy: Ivy is a good choice for indoor spaces with a lot of people, because it’s a powerhouse when it comes to cleaning indoor air. It can filter formaldehyde particles from the air (and there could be a lot in an office with newer carpet and furniture) and help refresh stale office air. Ivy is a trailing plant, so it would look great on a shelf with space to grow vines. 

Pothos: Also called Devil’s Ivy (rude), we love Pothos for indoor spaces at work. Its trailing vines can be supported by tacks up the side of a cubicle or corkboard for a beautiful visual display, or you can leave it on a high shelf and let it grow downward for an office jungle vibe. Its large leaves brighten your mood and clean the air. 

Sansevieria: The humble snake plant is one of the easiest indoor plants to maintain. It can thrive in all levels of indirect light and needs very little water, so it’s perfect for an office environment where it won’t get much light over the weekend and you might forget it’s there every once in a while. Snake plants are attractive and easy-care, and they’re also celebrated for their air purifying properties. 

Spider Plant: Everybody knows somebody who has had a spider plant! These common houseplants are attractive shades of bright green and brighten up any space. They look great on a shelf or desktop and when they produce babies you can share them with the whole office!  

ZZ Plant: Part of our Signature Collection, the ZZ Plant is the number one plant for a beginner. It is so easy to take care of because it thrives on neglect. If it looks familiar, that’s because you’ve probably seen it decorating malls and doctors offices - it’s one of the few living plants that requires almost no care because it stores water in an underground rhizome and needs to be watered very sparingly! And like the rest of the plants on this list, it’s a great air purifier. 

Plants in the workplace

We’ve gathered some examples of plants in the workplace from our Instagram followers! Check out the slideshow below for some examples of how plants can spruce up a desk or other work area. In order from the first image, credit to: @chloeellacharms, @jerischoi, @thatswhatsheeats, @tristanlynae, and @yupitsjosh on Instagram!

Tips for a healthier workplace environment 

Adding indoor plants to the workplace is a great way to boost mood and productivity, cut down on sick days and work stress, and add some nature to the place where you spend eight hours a day. But plants aren’t the only things you can add to your routine to improve stress levels. Fit one or more of these workplace self care tips into your daily to-do list and see the stress melt away (okay, probably not entirely, but maybe for a few minutes). 

Stretch at Your Desk: Take a moment to stand up several times throughout the day and raise your arms to the sky, bend side to side, and lean over to touch your toes. Notice any stiffness in your body and adjust your posture in your desk chair to see if you can get rid of the tension by the next time you stand up. 

Take a Walk: Take ten minutes of your lunch to walk around the office or outside, even if it’s just around the parking lot. Getting your blood moving is a great way to break up the day with some physical activity to avoid an afternoon slump.  

Breathe Deeply: Close your eyes and breathe in deeply for a count of four or eight, then back out for the same count. Do this five to ten times. Repeat throughout the day whenever you feel stressed. 

Take an Eye Break: You’re guilty, we’re guilty, everyone in the country is guilty of staring at their devices for too long without a break. Use the 20-20-20 rule: Every twenty minutes, look at something twenty feet away for at least twenty seconds. You can also close your eyes for twenty to thirty seconds as well, but the goal is to look away from your computer monitor, tablet, and phone. Take a screen break to protect your eyes during the workday and you’ll maintain energy and productivity. 

Do a Stand Up Job: If your workplace offers standing desk attachments for desks, take advantage. Switching between sitting and standing throughout the day has many health benefits and can help you maintain better posture, which reduces aches, repetitive strains, and headaches. 

Don’t Eat at Your Desk: Go literally anywhere else, seriously. Stop looking at your computer! 

Take a Nap: If you have an hour for lunch, use half the hour to grab a quick nap if you have a place where you can comfortably do so. 

Take Time to Laugh: Work doesn’t have to be a constant grind where you wring your brain out all day only to go home and sleep it off to repeat it the next day. Grab coffee with your coworkers, share a joke of the day, recap your weekend highlights on Monday afternoon when everyone is at a natural lull anyway. Take time to be a person, even when you’re an employee. 

Ready Set Grow

We’re excited to see what you’ve done with the place. Show us your workplace plants on Instagram when you tag us @wild_interiors. And be sure to take your self care seriously even when it’s during your nine to five.