Air-Purifying Plants

About

These are the classic air purifying plants: snake plants, peace lilies, palms, figs and pothos, over 200 easy care indoor varieties in all. One honest note first. A few pots will not filter a room the way the old laboratory studies implied, but a healthy indoor collection does lift humidity, soften a hard room and make a home feel better to live in. Choose on what actually matters: your light, your space, and whether pets share the house. What air purifying really means The claim traces back to a 1989 NASA experiment in small sealed chambers. Research in real homes later found the effect tiny at normal plant densities; an open window does more for air quality than a shelf of pots. What healthy plants genuinely deliver is higher humidity, less echo and a space people consistently rate as calmer. Buy them for that, and treat cleaner air as a bonus. How to choose: light first, then size, then pets Light is the constraint most people ignore. In a bright room away from direct glass, the Fiddle Leaf Fig ( Ficus lyrata ) makes a 3m indoor tree, and Monstera deliciosa fills a corner as quickly. For dim rooms, the Cast Iron Plant ( Aspidistra elatior ) holds glossy 70cm foliage in deep shade and the Lady Palm ( Rhapis excelsa ) reaches 2.5m in the same low light; our low light indoor plants collection gathers the rest. If you forget to water, start with the Snake Plant , a 1m upright grower that tolerates drought, heat and neglect. If cats or dogs chew foliage, choose plants carrying our Pet Friendly flag: Kentia Palm, Bamboo Palm, Lady Palm, Cast Iron Plant and Baby Rubber Plant. Peace lilies, pothos, philodendrons and figs do not, so start at the pet friendly indoor plants collection if that matters in your house. Pots, position and repotting A 200mm to 250mm pot suits benchtop plants; floor plants like palms and figs want 300mm to 400mm. Every pot needs a drainage hole and a saucer, no exceptions. Repot in spring every two to three years into a pot about 50mm wider, using