Indoor plants are a smart design addition to any home — they can improve concentration and productivity by up to 15%, boost mood, lower stress levels, and even purify the air, NBC News reports. Plants are also primarily a source of aesthetic beauty that add color, texture and life to indoor spaces. They can be used as design features in a myriad of ways to refresh and rejuvenate your home.
Room dividers
We all have areas of the home that feel incomplete, unfinished, or like they’re missing something. Plants can be used to divide up and section off space to create more focused and intimate settings. For example, fill a free-standing shelf unit with various plants to create a simple room divider. In particular, anthurium is a pretty flowering plant that’s easy to grow (it needs indirect sunlight and temperatures between 25-28 degrees Celsius). Hibiscus is another attractive indoor flowering plant that thrives with a few hours of sunlight each day. The straight lines and square shapes of the shelves contrast with the colorful and leafy plants to create a striking display. This simple yet stylish room divider creates privacy while letting the overall space retain an open, airy and welcoming feel.
Focal points
While large plants are an easy way to create design focal points, you can also use smaller and medium sized varieties to do so in your home. For example, Alocasia Polly — aka the African Mask plant — typically grows to roughly 20 inches tall and wide with dark green leaves shaped like arrowheads featuring silvery green veins. Strong sunlight is ideal to bring out the variegation patterns on its leaves. This unusual and striking plant can be used to draw attention to specific areas in any room. You could also incorporate focal plants that match the scale of your surrounding furniture. Just be sure any larger plants purchased have enough room to grow freely without blocking views or traffic flow.
Living plant walls
If you really want to make a design statement with indoor plants, why not install a living plant wall? This is a fantastic use for bare and boring walls. Choose a wall that gets the right amount of natural light for plants to grow — somewhere near a window or skylight. If you don’t get enough natural light, install extra light fixtures. The lighter and brighter the conditions, the wider your choice of plants (croton, English ivy, ferns and Song of India, for example, do well in medium to bright light conditions). Low light levels are ideal for plants like philodendrons, snake plants, peace lilies and pothos. An easy way to install a plant wall is by hanging angled plant trays that work like shelves; you can simply slide each individual shelf in and out to water and look after your plants.
Plants are a great way to refresh and rejuvenate your interior design. Room dividers, focal points and plant walls are just some ways to use indoor plants in your home.