How to enhance your lifestyle with these bedroom-friendly plants

Have you ever considered how helpful plants can be to your health? According to studies from NASA and the American College, certain houseplants are best suited in our bedrooms — but which are they and why? Join specialist designer of bedroom furniture in Glasgow, DM Design, as we detail which plants can benefits your home and health…

Why houseplants in the bedroom?

So, why do some people have lots of pants in their homes and others choose not to have any? Is there a reason we bring plants indoors rather than keep them outdoors? Speaking to The Telegraph, interior landscaper and gold-medal winner at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, Ian Drummond, explains: “Many people now live in cities with no outside space. We all have this longing to have some green around us, and houseplants are the perfect solution.”

Rather than buying air fresheners and other aromatic products, houseplants can also help keep your home smelling pleasant — and there have even been studies that have shown that houseplants have been found to help with concentration, promote better sleep and reduce anxiety among. The Plantsman, when reporting on a 2016 piece which was published in the RHS’s journal, underlined: “As placing indoor plants in rooms is one of the simplest changes that can be made to enhance the environment, it stands out as a practical and affordable support for health.”

The best plants for the bedroom

According to NASA and the American College, these houseplants are the best for your bedroom:

1. Areca Palm

The Areca Palm plant goes by many monikers — including Dypsis Lutescens, Chrysalidocarpus Lutescens, the Golden Cane Palm, the Bamboo Palm, and the Yellow Butterfly Palm.

This plant is one of NASA’s top 10 air-purifying plants and is ideal for helping people with colds or sinus problems due to how it releases moisture into the air. Aesthetically, the Areca Palm plant will add a touch of tropical climes to your bedroom thanks to its long and graceful feather-shaped fronds.

Don’t place your Areca Palm in direct light — you’ll know if this is the case, as the leaves will begin to turn a yellowish-green hue.

2. Boston Fern

Also named Nephrolepis Exaltata, this pretty plant has green, drooping fronds that make a ruffled effect. Ranking in ninth place on NASA’s list of the best air-purifying plants, the Boston Fern effectively removes formaldehyde from rooms for better and safer air.

The Boston Fern is a perfect plant for the bedroom, just ensure that it isn’t exposed to chemicals — like smoke from coal fires and wood burners. Due to its drooping appearance, places where Boston Fern look great include across the edge of a shelf or bookcase in your bedroom.

3. Aloe Vera

Otherwise known as Aloe Barbadensis, these plants have been grown by people for millennia and are hugely popular in the medical world to treat a range of ailments. This is because the clear and cool gel of an Aloe Vera leaf can be applied to burns, cuts, rashes and areas of sunburn to provide instant relief and speed up the healing process. 

NASA also states that the Aloe Vera is excellent at air purification. This is because it releases oxygen on a regular basis during the night, not to mention fights against both benzene — an ingredient of detergents — and formaldehyde — found in varnishes — to ensure a room’s air remains pure.

Aloe Vera is a great plant for the indoors, as it’s made up of a lot of water which means it can be harmed by frost. Although, preferably, place it in a space that gets plenty of sun throughout the day. When planting, use only spacious pots that contain soil that has been well drained beforehand.

4. Chinese Evergreen

One of the most appealing aspects of the Chinese Evergreen plant — also known as Aglaonema — is that it is one of the easiest houseplants to look after. Why? It’s because the plant needs very little light to survive. From the perspective of looking out for your health, the Chinese Evergreen plant works to remove a growing number of toxins from a room as the time passes and its exposure to the space grows.

If you opt for a Chinese Evergreen plant, make sure it’s out of the way of bright sunlight (its leaves may be burned) and water it regularly with cold water. Also, we recommend you feed it plant food once every three to four weeks.