Keeping house plants doesn’t have to be scary or high-maintenance. In fact, many young professionals turn to house plants to provide a pleasant distraction away from screens and noise. Caring for indoor foliage can be fun (some people sing or play music for their plants - does a fern prefer Beyoncé  or Twenty One Pilots?) and relaxing, especially for people with anxiety or high stress. But house plants also provide a breath of fresh air (literally) and a host of health benefits too. Read on to discover our five reasons to own indoor foliage plants.

1. Air Quality: House plants are celebrated for their function as natural air purifiers and humidifiers. They help cleanse the air of pollutants like cigarette smoke and even harsh chemicals like formaldehyde, and they also release moisture for easier breathing and healthier skin in the winter.

2. Improved Health: Exposure to plants is great for the immune system, even helping to reduce high blood pressure and reduce flu symptoms. Studies of Japanese “forest bathing,” (walking through trees and nature) indicate improved immune response, and a study on surgical patients indicated improved recovery for patients who had plants in their hospital rooms.

3. Better Mental Health: Not only are plants good for the body, they’re good for the mind too! Studies show that exposure to plants helps decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression, as well as overall stress. Plants make people happier and improve focus and concentration.

4. Low Maintenance Care: Easy care foliage house plants are a great choice for busy professionals or people who love to have an active social life. They provide health benefits without needing constant supervision.

5. Pet Alternative: Speaking of needing constant supervision, some people even report that they keep house plants as an alternative to having pets. If your apartment doesn’t allow animals, keeping a plant will let you take care of something that doesn’t make a mess on the rug. If you do have critters in the house, check our list of pet-friendly plants in our FAQ.

What is Foliage?

What do we mean by “foliage,” exactly? The Wild Interiors® brand offers both succulents (which you probably know as those little plants with thick, water-retaining leaves) and foliage. Foliage simply means that the plant is grown for its leaves and does not flower - think ivy, ferns, spider plants, etc.

You might recognize the use of house plants and foliage in your favorite TV reruns from the ‘60s and ‘70s, when the popularity of foliage house plants exploded. While we’re happy to leave some fashion and style trends back in the 1970s, we’re glad this trend came back around. Even Pantone got in on the green trend, selecting Greenery as 2017’s Color of the Year.

Foliage Care

Everyone learns in elementary school that plants need water and light to survive, but it’s possible to give them too much of a good thing. Each plant may have its own unique characteristics and needs, but here are the basics:

Sunlight: Our foliage plants thrive best in indirect natural light. Place them in a sunny room with light from outside, but avoid direct sun. Our plants are slow to adapt to different surroundings, so try not to move them around too much. If you need to move them into an area of more or less light, do so gradually if possible.

Water: Water your foliage frequently enough to maintain damp soil. If the soil is dry to the touch, or if you pick up the plant and notice it feels lighter than usual, then it’s time to re-water.

Under-watered plants will curl and become crispy, with dry or crusty soil. Over-watered plants will wilt and rot at the roots, with soupy soil filled with water. You want the soil to be damp, not fully saturated and soaking.

Temperature: Keep your foliage at room temperature, avoiding extreme heat and cold. An ideal temperature range is between 65℉-85℉.

Grooming: Regularly remove any dead leaves from your plant, which will help them grow full and uniform in their container. Keep an eye out for new “babies” in your pot, which can be repotted in soil to continue growing as a new plant - spider plants in particular will develop new plants with their own roots that can be easily transplanted.

Other Considerations

If you have pets or small kids in your home, take care to keep your plants in a safe place where they won’t get tipped over or chewed on. When you browse our website, look for the paw print icon 🐾 to indicate pet-friendly plants that aren’t toxic to animals.

See foliage in our Woodland Whimsy, Tropical Oasis, and Bohemian Dreams habitats at the Wild Interiors website.