CAN PLANTS PURIFY DOMESTIC ENVIRONMENTS?

Can Plants purify your domestic environment ?

Plants are indispensable to human life. Through photosynthesis, they convert the carbon dioxide we exhale into fresh oxygen, and they can also remove toxins from the air we breathe. One famous NASA experiment, published in 1989, found that indoor plants can scrub the air of cancer-causing volatile organic compounds like formaldehyde and benzene.

Later research has found that soil microorganisms in potted plants also play a part in cleaning indoor air. Based on this research, some scientists say house plants are effective natural air purifiers. And the bigger and leafier the plant, the better. “The amount of leaf surface area influences the rate of air purification,” says Bill Wolverton, a former NASA research scientist who conducted that 1989 plant study.

 Wolverton says that, absent expensive testing, it’s impossible to guess how many plants might be needed to clean a room of its contaminants. But he usually recommends at least two “good sized” plants per 100 square feet of interior space. “The Boston fern is one of the most effective plants for removing airborne pollutants, but it is often difficult to grow indoors,” he says.

“I usually recommend the golden pothos as my first choice, since it is a popular plant and easy to grow.” But while Wolverton has long been a vocal advocate of indoor plants—he’s written books on the topic, and now operates a consulting company that advocates for the use of plants to clean contaminated air—other experts say the evidence that plants can effectively accomplish this feat is far from conclusive.

There are no definitive studies to show that having indoor plants can significantly increase the air quality in the home to improve health in a measurable way,” says Luz Claudio, a professor of environmental medicine and public health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.