What Are The Best Office Plants To Spark Inspiration?

The intersection between nature and productivity is well-known, and being closer to nature in our working environments has a clear positive influence on mental and physical health, which itself helps to spark inspiration and motivation to keep going.

The evidence for this is so clear that many offices install sets of office plants, natural textures and elements of biophilic design in order to help ensure that employees feel their best and by extension work at their best, especially given that the bustle of office life can make us lose that connection.

With that in mind, the question for building managers and office owners alike is less whether they need to add office plants to a workspace, but which ones would be best suited to a fast-paced working environment and a particular team.

This will depend on a wide variety of factors, ones that expert horticulturalists are keen to discuss with any interested business, but there are certain common elements that make certain office plants ideal for providing that inspiring link with nature without distracting from a company’s ultimate aims.

Here are some of the most common factors that businesses look for in productivity plants.

Low-Maintenance

Whilst it can be a nice bonding ritual to have a team work together to take care and collective responsibility of a plant or set of plants, in practice the ideal office plant is somewhat low maintenance.

This means that employees will get the benefits of plants such as aloe vera, cacti and succulents without having to do much of anything to take care of them.

For the most part, the majority of the plants companies are interested in taking are ones that can survive in almost any environment or level of care.

Anti-Pollution

One of the biggest challenges for any office is the blight of sick building syndrome, where a combination of pollutants, poor ventilation, bright lights and crowded offices create a variety of unpleasant symptoms.

One way to help with this is to install plants that are especially capable of removing pollutants from the air and helping keep people healthier and breathing in purer air.

The snake plant, or Sansevieria trifasciata ‘Laurentii’, is a great example of an anti-pollution plant, one that according to NASA is amongst the most effective toxin removers on Earth.

There are many other plants like it, many of which are similarly low maintenance, and these are ideal for improving health, which in turn helps productivity.

Vibrant Impact

In an office world dominated by glass, brushed steel, white walls and neutral shades, modern office designs are designed to be light and airy, but this often comes at the expense of providing distinct, inspiring focal points to avoid screen fatigue and boost morale.

This means that the best plants for office spaces are amongst the brightest as well, and many companies will discuss the trade-off between the most practical plants and the most beautiful ones that suit the space and overall design goals.

This is part of the reason why orchids, despite their high-maintenance nature, have become exceptionally popular plants for offices.