Back in 1980’s, the Associated Landscape Contractors of America together with NASA published the fact that, there are many plants, which have the ability to purify the indoor environment. Which could be the houseplants that have the power to purify the house space area? According to the research, a group of plants has the natural capacity to filter the unwanted, organic compounds, which can cause adverse effects on health. The growth of these phenomenal plants may help in cleaning the Mother Earth too. For indoor quality air, you must have the following houseplants:

1: Aloe Vera:

Aloe Vera being an herbal medicinal plant has lots of heath and skin care benefits, it has also the capacity for air filtration. It is easy to grow and handle; at the same time, it takes in all the essence of the harmful gases or by products of paints, chemical cleanser. It s a wonderful choice to keep in the kitchen space – its gel has the ability to cure wounds and burns too. Concisely, it is among the best great indoor plants with lots of utility.

2: Spider Plant:

The biological name for the plant is “Chlorophytum Comsum” – the plant has lot of gorgeous white flowers and contains extra amount of foliage. It helps in reducing the effects of benzene, Xylene, formaldehyde, chemical from cleansing agents and carbon monoxide. It belongs to the family of indoor plants that clean the air effectively. You can place it in your car porch, main entrance or near the windows. Related: Low light house plants.

3: Gerby Daisy:

You are not sure about the idea, how to clean the air in your home, get your house small pots of “Gerby Daisy”. The plant is rich in bold flowers that are effective in curbing the effects of trichloroethylene. This is the dangerous type of emission that is spread with the use of cleaning agents. Similarly, it would produce best results in filtration of byproducts of ink, like benzene. This houseplant is ideal to be placed in laundry space or near the bedroom. Make sure you provide it sufficient light for its growth. Related: tropical house plants.

4: Snake plant:

The nickname for this houseplant is “mother-in-law’s tongue” – as the name suggests, it is a powerful plant, which can easily fight against formaldehyde. It is released from all those products cleaning agents, toilet detergents and skin care products. It is one of the popular indoor plants that can be placed in bathrooms and laundry spaces. It does not require much care for growth, so you would not have to pay much attention to it.

5: Golden Pothos:

If you want to clean indoor air by controlling formaldehyde, place this lovely houseplant in your territory.This hanging vertical plant is one of the most common in homes, particularly because it’s so easy to grow. It grows in the form of a green bunch and makes it a wonderful floral basket. At same time, you can increase the beauty of your house too. It would always stay green and healthy, even it dark – to your surprise, it is also known as  “Devil’s Ivy”.

6: Chrysanthemum:

The beautiful flowers from cool house pant would boost the appeal and elegance: whilst, the smell and bloom would help you in reducing all those intruders that affect the indoor air. For example, glue, paint, inks, cleaning agents, these all has many emissions that you are not even aware of. Keep it in fresh sunlight and air so that it keeps on growing and reducing all the nuisances. Related: small and large indoor plants.

7: Red-Edged Dracaena: 

‘Red-Edged Dracaena’  (a vertical plant) as the name gives a hint, this air purifying plant has the ability to grow until the ceiling, and keep the air fresh and healthy within the areas it is placed. It fights best against formaldehyde, trichloroethylene and xylene.

8: Weeping fig:

Weeping fig is such a powerful plant that would help you in cleaning your indoor air from the pollutants left by furniture, paints, carpet or other detergents. However, the plant requires much attention for its growth and nourishment.

9: Azalea

It is not only the most beautiful flowering shrub, but also a great fighter against formaldehyde, which results from foam insulation and plywood. You can use them in your basement too.

10: English ivy

It belongs to the indoor air filtration plants that are easy to grow, and work best when it comes to protecting the air from the byproducts of household cleaning agents. Related: indoor vine plants.

References

PMC,National Library of Medicine, Published online 2011 Oct 1. doi: 10.1289/ehp.119-a426, “Planting Healthier Indoor Air”, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3230460/

Mushroom is a fruit bearing body of a fungus which can be grown in soil or logs which are damp most of the time. There are edible mushrooms and other which are non edible and are usually poisonous. The edible mushrooms include oyster and button mushrooms which is widely used in foods these days while other edible mushrooms are Linghzi and Ganoderma which is largely used in medicines and as food supplement for different types of diseases. Many people don’t know how to grow mushrooms indoors and many would think about it as a difficult task since there are some requirements for planting mushrooms.

The trend for growing food indoors has become very common for three obvious reasons, first to fight off with the world food crisis, second to save some money by growing fruits and vegetables home rather than purchasing from the market and third to enjoy the best and fresh taste right at your home. In order to grow mushrooms, the first thing to decide is what type of mushrooms ones want to grow. The shitake, Oyster and Button mushrooms can grow well indoors and the result can be actually great. Below mentioned are ten tips for how to plant mushrooms at home:

       1) When growing mushrooms indoors, it is important to decide what type of mushrooms you are growing because different mushrooms require different growing medium to grow and one cannot grow every type of mushrooms indoors.

       2) How to grow oyster mushrooms at home and have a successful cultivation? The answer to this is to grow in the most perfect growing medium that is in the straw. This is because for the growth it has some nutritional needs which can be provided through damp star or even sawdust logs.

       3) For quick cultivation and successful growth of mushrooms, always damp or moisten the growing medium after every two to three days so that it keeps moist and can grow well. The best growing place to keep the container for the mushroom is in the garage, basement or laundry room or any place else which have a high moisture level, avoid the bathroom, it is defiantly not the place to grow something you want to eat.

        4) You can find the spores or mushroom spawn from different retailers however they are available online as well. You can purchase mushroom spawn which is sawdust with mycelia. Mycelia are an important root structure for the fungus and helps in growing. You can say this is a seedling which facilitates the growing of mushroom indoors.

         5) For those who are beginner or amateur, they should go for mushroom spawn for growing of mushrooms rather than spores because spores may take a long time to cultivate and is recommended for professionals only or those who have been growing mushroom since a long period of time.

         6) How to grow button mushrooms? They can be easily grown indoor however you require composed manure because they grow the best in that medium. They get all the necessary nutrients from the manure such as urea which is essential for their growth.

         7) When to grow mushrooms? When the temperature on a warmer a side. The temperature should be 21 degree Celsius and higher and the best example for this is the spring season or post summer season. The humidity is good in this period and so is the temperature which encourages the growth of the mushrooms.

         8) After three weeks of damping the growing medium along with spawn, one has to keep the container or the log in a place which should be cool and dark, temperature should be 15 Celsius. The growing medium should be sprayed with water and kept cool so that the mushrooms can grow.

         9) When to know the mushrooms are ready? It can be seen through the texture and the size of the mushroom specie you have grown. The steps of mushroom growth should be done very carefully because it is very important for grower.  The cultivation of mushroom is very important in various parts of the world.

       10) How to cultivate mushrooms? When they are ready, you just have to twist and pluck them out. These are simple and best steps to grow mushrooms in the field. 

Many people prefer succulent plants for outdoor garden and indoor decoration. For those places which experiences dry and hot weather, these plants can be excellent for growing in those areas. These plants may sound very much similar to the cactus, however they may not have thorns or spikes but fleshy stamp and leaves are there. Many people have started growing succulents indoors because they don’t require much sunlight and can grow well indoors.

Maintenance of these plants are very easy, especially when grown indoors, the succulents in pots won’t be a lot of trouble unlike other indoor plants. The ones that grown in pots will remain in a perfect size because of the smaller place they will be getting from the container, however if grown in flower beds outside, their size will be much more, however they may require more water since they will be under direct sunlight. If you are a person who enjoy care-free living or are busy most of the time and at the same time love having plants indoors then growing succulents in containers is the best option for you. These plants may even produce flowers, which could be your indoor fresh flower bouquet in your house.

Related: common types of succulents

Some of the most common succulent house plants are Burro’s Tail, Christmas cactus, Crown of Thorns, Jade Plant, Panda Plant, Ponytail Palm, snake Plant, and many more. What many people don’t know is that how to plant succulents indoors? Planting these amazing plants indoors is very easy. With proper guidance and research you can grow some healthy and beautiful succulents indoors in different containers and pots. You can line them by your stairs indoors, in your kitchen, living room and other places you like. Unlike cactus, these succulents may have a variety of colors and when it is the blooming season; your interior will look pretty with all the flowers around. Here are 10 tips for growing indoor succulents:

        1)  The best place for keeping your succulent plants indoors is somewhere near the window, especially on the eastern side. The sun rises from the east, in this period the intensity of the rays are less and so will be excellent for the plants. Keep in mind that excessive sunlight can cause yellow spots on your plant which is also known as the sunburns.

        2)  Many people would think that they have to provide a lot of water to the succulents. Just like any plant, watering succulents should be kept to normal range. Between the watering periods the soil should be dry so that they can grow well, moreover, during the winter season they shouldn’t be watered much (only once a week).

      3) Without any doubt, the glass containers or pots look very pretty, however they are not recommended for planting the succulents. This is because the glass container won’t be able to drain water or let it evaporate, however the clay pots or containers can help the moisture to evaporate or excessive water to drain. Succulents don’t like sitting in soggy or damp soil, they just require normal moisture content or water.

      4) There is hardly a chance you may get bugs in your small indoor plants, but if by chance you do, avoid using the chemical because they are kept indoors can be hazardous to your health. Make a solution of diluted alcohol, water and dish soap liquid to kill the bugs. Bugs are usually attracted to those succulents whose soil is moist and soggy.

         5)  Add fertilizer to the indoor succulent plants only once in a year.

       6)  Many people don’t know how to grow succulents indoors and what type of soil to use. Unlike other plants they don’t use the same soil. The soil needed for the succulents should be well draining and porous, 70% of sand and 30% of soil is the best combination for them.

      7)   If you have kept the succulent plant in a place which doesn’t receive any sun light, then you might have to move your plants on at least weekly basis outside so that they can get some sunlight to grow better.

      8)  Avoid using chemical based liquid fertilizers and sprays on the succulent plants kept indoors. Not only it will ruin the plant but also be hazardous for you.

      9)   You can trim succulent plants only once in a year, if kept in small pot or containers, they might not even need any trimming.

    10)  Succulent are dessert plants and so can withstand both the hot and cold temperature, you don’t have to worry about the season change.