10 Easy Care Houseplants that Clean the Air
If you want to green up your indoor living spaces, try growing some easy-care houseplants that clean the air and look amazing in your home. Be a plant parent boss with these low-maintenance, hard-to-kill air purifying indoor plants.
Houseplants are wonderful additions to the home that add life, color, and make us feel happier.
Green up a space and it instantly feels more alive.
But did you know that some indoor plants purify the air we breathe too?
Yup!
And many of them are super easy to care for too.
Here are 10 easy-care indoor plants you should grow that help clean the air.
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How Do Houseplants Purify the Air?
Houseplants clean the air through a process called photosynthesis.
They remove toxins from the air by converting exhaled carbon dioxide into fresh oxygen.
Years ago, NASA researched how houseplants purify the air by diffusing toxic chemicals such as formaldehyde, benzene, and trichloroethylene and filtering the air we breathe. It’s a pretty cool landmark study – you can read it here.
When I first started gardening, I was more of an outdoor gardener than an indoor gardener. Over the years, I’ve been increasingly adding more plants to my home and the result is pretty amazing: we are sick less often.
Now I’m not suggesting or guaranteeing that you’ll never get sick but we have experienced far fewer colds and viruses through the years since adding more houseplants to our home.
The Benefits of Adding Houseplants that Clean the Air
By adding a few plants, we have the ability to improve indoor air quality.
Do you get sick a lot or have bad indoor allergies?
Indoor air pollution directly impacts our health and comes from a variety of sources that include benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene, and toluene.
In addition to purifying the air, houseplants add life and character to both indoor and outdoor spaces. They boost our mood and breathe life into otherwise empty spaces.
So it’s a really good idea to grow some indoor plants.
Easy Care, Low Maintenance Houseplants that Clean the Air
For best practices, you’ll need about two plants per 100 square feet. But since I’m giving you an easy-care, hard-to-kill list of plants, having more plants around will be pretty simple.
Oh, and if you want to know how to care for these air-purifying houseplants, follow these tips for success.
And here are some tips to help you learn how to care for plants in winter.
Snake Plant
Snake plants are one of my favorite houseplants that clean the air. Sansevierias are super low-maintenance, hardy succulents that thrive on neglect.
Sounds pretty easy right?
They can handle almost any light conditions. Put them in a room with at least one window and don’t over-water them.
To give you a frame of reference, when mine is indoors, I water them maybe once a month.
The sansevieria plant is so cool because it can live on very little water and light as well as add lots of drama and life to living spaces.
My husband thought I was nuts for keeping this one at the Vermont cabin because there are times when we aren’t there for several weeks to possibly months, but it can go a long time without care.
If you are new to gardening or think you kill everything, try caring for a snake plant. You’ll find the most success with this one.
Aloe Vera
Aloe plants are another succulent plant that is super easy to care for and are another great houseplant that cleans the air. They love a bright sunny spot with indirect light.
And do not overwater them because they prefer dry conditions. Much like the snake plant, I probably water these once a month or a little less.
In my old house, I kept mine in the bay window on the north side. But here, my aloe vera plants reside in the sunroom (also on the north side) and are living their best life!
And I’ve got more than one now because I have to keep dividing them. The mother plant keeps producing babies, so I pot them up and either keep them or give them away.
If you’ve got aloe vera plants and aren’t sure how to divide them, follow these tips.
Chinese Evergreen
The Chinese Evergreen is a great starter plant for beginning gardeners because it tolerates low light and drought but also loves humidity.
Bathrooms are a great spot for them. If kept in a less humid room, mist the leaves occasionally to keep them from browning. Add a humidifier or group them together with other plants to create a more humid microclimate.
Also, if it gets enough sunlight, it may produce a bloom. I haven’t seen one yet on mine, but I’ll let you know when it happens!
When I first bought this plant, I kept it on the north side of my former home in the bay window. But here at the new house, it resides in the sunroom, which is also located on the north side too.
Flamingo Lily
Flamingo lilies are gorgeous flowering houseplants that can bloom year-round but need indirect sunlight, humid temperatures, and water to thrive.
Anthuriums do not like wet feet though, so check the soil before watering to be sure it is dry.
My daughter is a new plant mom and chose this one to start with a few year ago.
Don’t you love those pretty flowers?
It’s a really great starter plant for beginners as it is pretty resilient. We’ve had this plant for two years now. And it took a little abuse this summer on the front porch because I had it in these tall boho planters that kept falling over.
Everytime it would fall, the pot broke. And it sometimes took me a little bit of time to repot it up.
It wasn’t happy with me for a little while but it lives to tell about it! And is doing quite well in the sunroom today.
Peace Lily
Peace Lily symbolizes sympathy. They work grow well in partial sunlight, humid climates, and produce blooms.
If you have a pet, peace lily’s can be toxic to them. So be sure to keep out of their reach.
Be conscious of not overwatering these. They don’t respond well to wet feet so lean more towards underwatering. Check the soil before you water these.
I used to bring mine outdoors and if I sited it well, it would thrive. Since moving, I haven’t found the right spot outdoors because it does not like direct light at all and I don’t want to risk it.
It’s currently hanging out in my foyer and seems to love the location so I just leave it there.
The tips of the foliage are getting a little crisp as it’s lived in this plastic nursery pot for a few years. So she’ll be getting repotted this spring to give it fresh soil and larger accommodations.
Spider Plant
Spider plants are resilient houseplants that grow well in bright, indirect sunlight with lots of water.
They are very easy to propagate when mature because they produce these little spiderettes that can be removed and rooted in water or soil.
I’ve got two huge plants in my sunroom right now. The smaller one was a baby of the larger one. And both are producing more babies.
These are super easy to grow. I’ve kept mine in several different locations in my homes. But they seem to do best near a sunny window.
Pothos or Devil’s Ivy
Pothos is one of my favorite houseplants because it looks great on a shelf and vines down.
This plant loves indirect sunlight and only needs to be watered when dry.
If you are a self-proclaimed plant killer, try pothos because it’s nearly impossible to kill.
And it is so easy to propagate pothos too.
Philodendron
There are so many varieties of philodendrons. I have a philodendrons that I picked up from Lowe’s several years ago.
When I purchased my lacy tree philodendron, it was in a small pot and only had five leaves. After one summer on my deck, it grew exponentially and gives off a tropical vibe.
Philodendrons thrive on very little care but they do need a good amount of light, so when indoors keep them near a bright sunny window.
It requires such little care throughout the year and it so easy to grow. During the winter months, I might water these like once a month, maybe a little less. But when they are outside in the heat of summer, they get watered almost daily depending on the weather.
While these plants are known for their ability to remove toxins such as formaldehyde, benzene, and trichloroethylene from the air, they also increase humidity levels and can help to reduce the dryness caused by heating systems in the winter.
Keep in mind that all plants have different light and water requirements, so it’s important to research the specific needs of the plants you choose to ensure they thrive in your home environment.
If you are new to gardening or feel like you kill everything, start with one plant from this list and follow my tips on houseplant care.
You’ll be amazed at how good of a plant parent you actually are!
Monstera Plants
When learning how to be a plant parent, it’s best to start with plants that are easy to grow and easy to care for while cozying up our living spaces.
Monstera plants are high on this list of plants to grow for newbie gardeners and home decor enthusiasts.
With lots of different varieties available, you can grow so many beautiful options that make an incredible statement in your home. The foliage is incredibly beautiful and they boost our moods to boot.
I grow both Monstera deliciosa and adansonii and have had my plants for more than a few years now.
Pilea Peperomioides
If you are interested in growing an easy-care plant that looks unique, cleans the air, and propagates with ease, look no further than the money plant.
I was inspired to purchase my first pilea plant from Martha Stewart. She did a show on houseplants and spoke highly of them so of course, I had to try growing one.
And let me tell you how much I LOVE growing pilea peperomioides. I started with one plant that I probably paid a few dollars for and now have 4 separate plants from that first plant.
The mother plant continues to produce baby plants too. So once a year, I divide them off and repot them in new terracotta pots.
But because I have so many now, I can’t keep them all. I’ve kept a few to decorate my home and purify the air. And the rest I gift away to family and friends.
More About Easy Care Indoor Plants
Are you new to growing indoor plants or have you been growing them for a while? If so, what do you like to grow? I would love to know more in the comments below.
And don’t miss joining my Gardening DIY and Decorating Community on Facebook for more chatter. And follow along there and on Instagram as well. There are behind the scenes daily things that I share on Instagram that don’t make it on the blog. Would love to see you there too!
If you prefer to binge watch Bricks ’n Blooms on TV, we go more in-depth with tours and posts on my YouTube channel. Would love to hang out with you there!
More Houseplant Care Tips and Tricks
- 7 Simple Ways to Keep Your Houseplants Alive
- How to Revive Plants to Save Them
- How to Style Your Houseplants
- Monstera Plants and Why You Should Grow One
- How to Grow Pilea Plant
- Snake Plant Care
- Propagating Pothos Plant
- 7 Easy Indoor Gardening Ideas for Beginners
- What You Need to Know About Easy Care Houseplants that Purify the Air
- The Secret to Keeping Houseplants Alive
- How to Propagate Pothos Plant
- Have a Green Thumb With These Indoor Gardening Ideas
- Christmas Cactus Care
- Dividing an Aloe Plant
- Amaryllis Care
- Potting Bench Idea
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