At first glance, if we ask ourselves the question of why to grow vegetables?, the first thing that comes to mind is: “to eat”. We grow for food. This is the main cause of the transition from nomadic human beings to sedentary human beings. Manage the plant cycles of these species that interest us to feed us from small towns to large empires. And what about ornamental plants? The current volume of business is overwhelming. What do we get with them? Let’s talk about it.
What do we mean by ornamental plant?
The question is simple. And even more his response. An ornamental plant is one of the species we grow for the sole purpose of adorning, decorating, satisfy senses other than taste or the simple fact of nourishing ourselves to continue our life. They brighten the visa, smell, touch and indirectly the ear. As? Attraction of pollinating insects, for example. And we have thousands of them.
Additionally, we are concerned hybridize species and varieties to draw all the colors there has been and there will be In ornamental horticulture, England, France and the Netherlands are the pioneers and the most fond of the cultivation of ornamental plants, although one cannot disdain the Spanish fans that exist also. Both in our section on ornamental plants and on the website of our friends at ornementalis.com, there is an abundant literature on the maintenance of hundreds of species of ornamental plants.
It’s not just a matter of meaning. There is something else.
There is something written in our DNA that drives us to surround ourselves with plants. Although it’s increasingly common for people born and raised in purely urban environments to shy away from anything other than glass, steel and concrete; what is certain is that we have never separated from the natural elements. A small indoor plant, wooden floors, cupboards… there is always something vegetal that warms us in one way or another. It is something that is inherent to us. We cannot escape it.
cities. Concrete, steel, asphalt… but with green spaces, and by decree-law.
Throughout the developed world, theUrban plans provide space for green spaces established for each X inhabitants or buildings.
English Victorian Gardens, French Gardens at Versailles, Xeriscaping in Arid Zones, Indoor Plants, Gazebos, Decks, Private Gardens, Fences, Green Walls, Green Roofs or the Bathroom even at home. Everywhere, one way or another, organic herbal forms are sought. Depending on the type of environment and tastes, we will “include” more human action or not. From a wild English garden to a garden full of topiaries (plant sculptures). Ornamental plants surround us because we want them to be there.
Photo by ZeroOneIs there an advantage to growing ornamental plants?
A step. Various advantages and guarantees. Let’s list a few.
Reduces stress and anxiety.
It happens as with the benefits of the garden. There is something that relaxes us. Vegetable growing times are so quiet that they help in a way to look at the world in a different way. We know that plants are alive, but at the same time they are sculptures with little movement, silent, but pleasant. Several studies draw positive conclusions from environments “dressed” with vegetables. Even environments that are generally not pleasant like work offices or hospitals. According to Lohr et al.1996, an office environment with well-groomed and varied ornamental plants reduced workers’ stress and anxiety levels.
Another study (Ulrich et al., 1991) also indicated that postoperative hospital rooms with ornamental plants made recovery faster and decreased pain (less intake of analgesics). These are very bold statements, but why do we sometimes give flowers to those recovering from surgery? The color, the smell, the joy, the freshness… are factors that encourage and the attitude towards a recovery influences.
Learn at any age
Not everyone has the space to grow a garden, but we can all grow ornamental plants. Homes provide environments with constant temperatures (18-28ºC) that allow crops to be planted that would not grow outdoors. We can have Kentias, Pachiras, see an avocado grow… which would not grow in our external environment.
Grow the plants learning opportunities for children. They learn about the life cycles of plants, they learn about different species, they are taught values of care (if they don’t eat and drink they die!), about pruning (it’s like cutting your hair!), transplanting (they’re moving to a bigger house!). There are a thousand ways to stimulate the taste of the natural world. School gardens have been very fashionable lately but these are things that were already studied in the 90s.
Photo by: NappyStockImprove air quality
Ornamental plants, to a greater or lesser extent, can support somewhat healthier environments. We have already talked in other articles of this blog about indoor plants that can purify the air. The pot is one. In this article, we mentioned a study about it. Here are some other studies published by NASA in 1989. You can consult them in the references.
The studies have been done fairly controlled and the results they show should be taken into account because they have been tested. Plants in airtight chambers, in which the reduction of several compounds typical of air pollution (benzene, formaldehyde and trichlorethylene) was evaluated during a 24-hour exposure. The results were good enough to prove the hypothesis.
The references
All referenced articles are freely available on the web.
Lohr, VI, Pearson-Mims, CH and Goodwin, GK (1996). Indoor plants can improve worker productivity and reduce stress in a windowless environment. Journal of Environmental Horticulture, 14(2), 97-100.
Wolverton, BC, Johnson, A. and Bounds, K. (1989). Indoor Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Reduction (No. NASA-TM-101766).
Wolverton, BC, Douglas, WL and Bounds, K. (1989). A Study of Indoor Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Reduction(No. REPT-6).
Ulrich, RS, Simons, RF, Losito, BD, Fiorito, E., Miles, MA and Zelson, M. (1991). Recovery from stress during exposure to natural and urban environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology, eleven(3), 201-230.