In some moist and Heavenly place
We will set it out to grow.

– Edna St Vincent Millay, from “The Blue-Flag in The Bog”

A place where nothing grows usually means bad news. A toxic environment certainly, if nothing natural can survive. So this should have been a dire warning to me when I moved in to a basement flat three years ago, and none of my house plants survived to the next months rent payment.

Being a lover of nature, I was dismayed not to have any greenery in my living environment. I tried my best with the courtyard garden – a rarity in Central London and the reason for taking the flat in the first place – but with only four hours direct sunlight a day at best, it was only dense, forest plants like ferns that flourished in that garden. Fuschias withered before they had a chance to be popped; a stack of basil plants  produced enough leaves for only a few tablespoons of pesto. It was a garden where plants came to die.

The situation has, thankfully, improved.   Having endured over two years of the basement flat of dodgy wiring, scary neighbours and no sun, we now have a beautiful home in the country with a living room that gets all day sun, ideal for cultivating a little family of house plants.

Me and My Plant is a campaign currently running in the UK to encourage people to consider getting a house plant for the amazing benefits they provide. Here’s just a few of them:

A house plant is your personal detoxifier.

Most plants have the ability to absorb some of the harmful chemicals from your work or home environment. Most of us spend a fair amount of our time indoors, and toxins emanate from printers, air conditioning, photocopiers, computers, cleaning solutions, even carpets and paint. Popping a few plants about the place actually can improve the quality of the air you breathe.

A house plant can help you keep your cool, and recover faster.

Research at the University of Surrey has found that having plants in your place of work can reduce stress. Another study compared patients who had had gall bladder operations. One group had a view of gardens and trees while recovering, the other had a view of a solid grey wall. The first group were discharged from hospital earlier and had less post operative complications.

A house plant tells you how healthy your environment is.

The health of your house plant is an excellent measure of how humid or draughty your environment is. If the air is too humid, it creates perfect breeding ground for bacteria and mould. If your plant is thriving and looking healthy, that’s a good sign that you’ve got the balance right.  What’s good for your plants is also good for you.

A house plant absorbs sound.

I didn’t know this but plants process sound waves by catching them in their leaves and bouncing them back. In spaces with hard surfaces (cement floors, stone walls or glass partitions) plants are particularly effective at absorbing sound. This can make it easier to concentrate amid the usual office symphony of noises, or any trams, trains or construction work that might be going on near your home.

A house plant makes your home or desk beautiful.

I think it goes without saying that a place that you spend a lot of time in should be….well, a pleasure to spend time in. When you make that space – be it at home or in the office – as pleasing to you as possible, good energy will flow through it. Having a plant, a living thing, thriving in that space helps generate that good energy. Bonus if they have pretty leaves and flowers, and smell nice!

Me and My Plant have an online questionnaire to help you determine the best plant match for you. Not all plants are the same – there are social divas, quiet and shy retiring types, and little Miss Independents, all of which have different varieties, different sun and water needs, and different soil and climate requirements. Like all relationships, you and your plant have to be well suited for things to work!

Surprise, surprise: my quiz result netted in me receiving Peter the Phalaenopsis, a butterfly orchid with beautiful flowers that loves company. After nearly three weeks in my living room in a sunny position, Peter appears to be thriving. He likes being talked to, and he loves music.  I’ve discovered he likes a bit of Chopin, but responds very well to The Piano soundtrack, Brian Eno, Pink Floyd and Kate Bush too. He really doesn’t like being left on his own though!  On a day my husband Tom and I spent all day in Milton Keynes buying our new car, Peter spent the day alone, with no music, no company and no light (it had been snowing that day!) and it took him a few days to recover!

Prior to welcoming Peter to the house, we had needed a de-humidifier on in the living room most evenings to rebalance the humidity, as we have a mould problem in some rooms. Since he arrived, he has been a better indicator of the temperature and we’ve been able to nip any mould problems in the bud (no pun intended there!) and hence have hardly needed the dehumidifier. I’m amazed, to say the least.

But most of all, he’s a very attractive plant….and I think he knows it!

Since doing a bit of research into his social nature, I got Peter a friend – a hyacinth…aptly named Hyacinth…who is scenting the house beautifully at the moment but who has a short shelf life. Peter’s next companion I hope will be a peace lily, whose toxin-combating virtues are impressive.

As all house plant carers will know, your plants are working hard for you and they need, like all living things, to be looked after. Me and My Plant are giving away free copies of their excellent book on plant care every day via their web site: it’s a jargon-free and friendly guide to caring for your plants and covers everything from watering to position for the best sun, from plant feng shui, to pruning, and helping your leafy friend recover from a fungi attack.

So if you’re looking for an easy way to green up your office or home, literally and figuratively, bring in some plants!

Give-away time!

Me and My Plant are offering one lucky UK Superethique reader a chance to win their very own plant.  If you’re the lucky winner you’ll receive a Kalanchoe, a flowering succulent which has been used in traditional medicine to treat inflammation and rheumatism. I’ve even seen recipes for a foot soak using its leaves! As well as its healing properties, Kalanchoes are very pretty plants that brighten up your office or home.

If you would like to be in the running to win one, all you have to do is sign up for the Superethique newsletter!

Kalanchoe doesn’t have a visa to get in to Australia, sorry folks! As Steve Irwin said, quarantine matters BUT we encourage Aussie readers to get on the house plant bandwagon too. Peace lilies, chrysanthemums and cacti are available in Oz and all of them are fantastic benzene beaters! Also, think about habitat gardening and what plants naturally thrive in your local area.

UK readers, you lucky things, make sure you sign up for the newsletter by February 29th (ooh, leap year!) to be in the chance to start greening up your indoor space.

Two (green) thumbs up from me!

 - Phil. xx