Indoor Flowers: Air Purifying Plants

Abstract

Indoor flowers are an unavoidable element in modern interior design. In addition to enriching the living and working space in terms of decoration, flowers also have a beneficial effect on people: it improves mood and increases productivity at work. The benefits of growing flowers in the interior are numerous and of particular importance for human health is the fact that they improve air quality and reduce the concentrations of many pollutants. Pollutants in the interior can be divided into non-biological and biological according to the source. In most cases, external pollution is mentioned as the main source of increased concentrations of nonbiological indoor air pollutants. The assumption is that the mechanism of air purification implies the absorption of volatile compounds by plant leaves, which are then transported to the roots, and where they are then decomposed by microorganisms. On the other hand, it is supposed that certain compounds characterized as air pollutants are degraded and used in plant metabolism. Research shows that the ability to remove organic volatile compounds from the air into the interior is different and depends on the type of flower species. Indoor flowers that have been shown to be effective in air purifying are from the following families: Moracae, Araceae, Arecaceae, Araliaceae, Orchidaceae, etc. The choice of flowers to alleviate indoor air pollution depends not only on their ability to clean the air, but also on their needs for care, light and finally of personal taste.