Property News · December 27, 2015

Gardens: plants that live on air | James Wong


Tillandsia plants get all the water and nutrients they need from the atmosphere around them. So you can get on with looking after number oneOver the past 20 years, a growing body of scientific evidence has suggested that simply being around plants can have an important impact on mental and physical health. Even while sitting at your desk, having houseplants within eyeshot has been reported to result in a measurable decrease in stress hormones, reduced feelings of anxiety and, according to a trial by the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, a 36% increase in pain threshold. If you are keen to reap these potential benefits in the dead of winter but are cursed by a brown thumb, worried about mess or frankly think it’s too much work, I have the perfect solution: air plants.Hailing from the wilds of Latin America, plants in the genus Tillandsia have evolved the remarkable ability to absorb all the water and nutrients they need from the air. Specialised hair-like structures on their leaves known as trichomes act like super-efficient sponges to absorb ambient moisture and trap nutrients from floating particles of dust. This silvery fuzz gives the plants an exotic, animal-like appearance. Their ability to live off air makes them the ultimate houseplant – an ornament which, in the right conditions, needs next to no work. Continue reading…

Source : theguardian.com
Read more…Gardens: plants that live on air | James Wong

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