Popular Indoor Plants For Your New Home

Indoor Houseplants Every Home Needs and Why

Live greenery has been a part of home décor for decades, but only in recent years has it become such a hot trend that the indoor houseplant market is booming. Now, home décor shops are quick to showcase their latest pottery, succulents, or terrarium-making kits, and, thanks to social media and minimalistic design aesthetics, homeowners everywhere are finding ways to incorporate their indoor garden ideas in their homes.
 
However, having indoor houseplants is more than just a design trend—plants may also have health and wellness advantages that have contributed to their growing popularity. Learn more about the possible benefits of indoor plants, and how to find the right indoor houseplants for your lifestyle.

The Possible Benefits of Indoor Plants

Investing in indoor houseplants is not only aligned with current design movements, but could also be a way to create a healthier and more calming ambiance. In fact, the National Initiative for Consumer Horticulture has developed a series of educational materials around how plants might have a positive impact on our daily lives. Here are eight reasons why you might consider adding indoor plants to your home:

1. Air quality. Indoor plants may help purify the air in your home.

2. Improve your mood. Being among nature may have a psychological effect on your mood, and indoor plants might help decrease stress while instilling relaxation.

3. Green up your interior. With the generational changes in work environments and lifestyle shifts, people who spend more time indoors may benefit more from household greenery.

4. Create a daily rhythm. No matter how low maintenance a plant may be, all living things need some level of care. Tending to your houseplants helps add structure to your week (and could be less messy and time-consuming than caring for a pet).

5. Establish a design aesthetic. As mentioned earlier, indoor houseplants fit well into the minimalistic design trend, and can create pops of color against neutral palettes.

6. Feel better. Plants help regulate the humidity in the space around them, which may reduce your risk of coughing, dry throat, eye irritation, or other illnesses caused by dust and dry air.

7. Get more work done. Having indoor plants nearby when you’re working from home may help you to focus your attention, keep your senses sharp, and boost your productivity.

8. Sleep sounder. While many plants only release oxygen during the day, some plants also do so at night, which could help you achieve more restful sleep.

 
With these reasons in mind, it’s easy to see how having indoor houseplants may improve the overall quality of your home environment, both visually and physically. Discover more about these and other benefits of indoor plants, according to Healthline.

The 15 Most Popular Indoor Plants: A Type for Every Lifestyle, Space, and Family

Before deciding what types of indoor plants you want to incorporate in your home, it’s important to take your lifestyle, schedule, and family into account. Here’s our list of the 15 popular indoor plants, depending on your needs:

1. Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree

   • One of the most popular and stylish indoor houseplants is the fiddle leaf fig tree, known for its lush, leafy branches. It can grow very tall, and thrives in indirect sunlight.

2. ZZ Plant

   • The ZZ plant is an ideal beginner plant, as it is considered almost indestructible, requiring little water and light to survive.

3. Snake Plant

   • Put this popular plant by your bedside, as it releases oxygen at night and could improve your sleep. Snake plants can grow in any light condition, and require infrequent watering.

4. Monstera Deliciosa

   • This trendy floor plant has leaves like swiss-cheese, and grows large and fast. Place it in your living room with medium indirect light for that instant pop of character.

5. Pothos

   • Pothos grows fast, and serves as a good hanging plant with vines that cascade downward, adding charm to any dining room.

6. Peace Lily

   • The peace lily could be considered a filter for air pollutants, and is also easy to care for.

7. Spider Plant

   • The adaptable spider plant can grow in many environments, may be effective in purifying the air and is easy to propagate

8. Calathea

   • Calatheas come in “medallion” or “rattlesnake” varieties, and their beautiful green and maroon leaf colors add visual variety to any desk or countertop.

9. Bamboo Palm

   • The bamboo palm adds a tropical flair to your home, and may be effective in helping to clear out pollutants.

10. Heartleaf Philodendron

    • The attractive heart-shaped leaves of this variety of philodendron can grow as decorative vines, and may be good at absorbing toxins.

11. Red-Edged Dracaena

    • Certain types of red-edged dracaena can grow very tall to fill up a corner of your room, and may be found to remove some chemical compounds from the air.

12. Aloe Plant

    • Not only is aloe known for its healing properties, but its leaves may also absorb toxins. As with any succulent, aloe requires infrequent watering and lots of sunlight.

13. Baby Rubber Plant

    • Unlike the rubber plant, the baby rubber plant is non-toxic, and sports an attractive leaf patterning to brighten up your kitchen windowsill.

14. Anthurium

    • This beautiful red flowering plant may be perfect for your home office as it might help to increase your focus, energy, and productivity, while decreasing stress levels.

15. Dieffenbachia

    • The large leaves of the dieffenbachia help release moisture in the air and increase humidity, making it beneficial during dry winter months.

 
These are just some of the most popular indoor houseplants to consider having in your home—for more options, check out this list of 30 low-maintenance plants by Good Housekeeping.

Share Your Indoor Garden Ideas and Tips

Now that we’ve explored popular indoor plants for your needs, it’s time to start bringing some greenery into your new home! Or, for those more experienced green thumbs—have any growing tips to share? Watering schedules? Potting methods? Preferred houseplants for different rooms? Let the Shea community know your indoor garden ideas in the comments section below.
 
Of course, while there are many benefits of indoor plants, they’re not the only way to spruce up your home—check out these 5 home design trends for 2020, as well as other methods for creating relaxing spaces. Happy indoor gardening!