Green Thumb: Plants Perfect for Kitchen Spaces
Plants are having a design moment right now – and for good reason. The verdant foliage you see splashed across your Instagram feed doesn’t just look great through the lens of your camera – it also comes with added benefits.
Adding greenery to your kitchen is proven to improve your mood, lead to better sleep patterns and detoxify the air you breathe. What’s better with a breath of fresh air that comes from a picture-perfect source?
But your kitchen is a unique space, and some plants hold up better than others. If you’re looking to introduce a splash of green into your cooking space, read on for our tips on the best plants to go for.
- Ivy
Hardy and fast to grow, ivy is a plant that adapts to its surroundings and can grow in almost any pot. Install a hanging basket on your kitchen ceiling to save on valuable bench space, or place a pot above a bookcase. Wherever you place the ivy, you’ll soon see it weaving its tendrils around for a pop of green with yellow and white shades. (Keep ivy away from your pets, as it can be poisonous to them.)
- Aloe vera
Now here’s a plant with a purpose. Aloe vera looks regal sitting in a pot, and is incredibly easy to care for. That means it can withstand hot, humid conditions – like the ones in your kitchen. An added benefit is that aloe is a plant-based healer. Break off a piece and moisturise your skin with the essential vitamins in the gel inside, or use it to cool down burns and scalds that you get from the stove.
- Jasmine
With its distinctive scent, jasmine acts to neutralise any cooking odours that may otherwise overpower your kitchen space. What’s more, the green foliage is complemented by beautiful tiny, white flowers that bloom even when it’s cold out.
- Aglaonema
This large-leafed plant is low-maintenance and creates a visual stir. Also known as a Chinese evergreen, this plant comes in green, or green with a touch of red, so you can spice up your kitchen’s colour palette in no time.
- Rubber plant
With its thick, rubbery leaves, the rubber plant is a joy to look at – and it also absorbs odours and toxins from the air so you can breathe easy. The rubber plant can grow quite large, so put it in a pot on the floor and watch it shoot its way up to form a decorative feature in your kitchen.
Plants can form a great finishing touch to your kitchen’s design, and if you take care of them well, they’ll provide you years of decoration. Always find options that are suitable for indoor use, and take note of where they’ll be placed. If you don’t have much sunlight streaming through your windows, get plants that need shade; and vice versa if you’re flooded with natural light.
