Partner Post: 5 Reasons to Celebrate National Indoor Plant Week

Indoor plants are the must-have home décor accessory for the year. We love them for their beauty and the essence of life they bring to our homes. They’re also wonderfully affordable, and with good care, get bigger and better with time, so they’re also a great investment.

In honor of National Indoor Plant Week, which is always the third week in September, here are five little-known benefits of indoor plants.

1. Indoor plants remove air pollution.

We usually think of air pollution as an outdoor problem, but research from NASA shows our homes and offices can have air that’s even more polluted than what’s outside. Plants can pull harmful chemicals from the air, giving us healthier homes and offices.

2. Indoor plants relax us.

As a professional horticulturist, I find it’s easier hanging around big crowds of plants than large groups of people. It turns out I’m not alone: We can all benefit from making friends with indoor plants. Social scientists have discovered that exposure to plants, especially indoors and in urban areas, reduces stress, making us feel happier and more relaxed.

3. Indoor plants make us smarter.

Don’t believe me? Get a plant and see! Scientific studies point to indoor plants improving our learning abilities by boosting concentration, focus, memory, and problem solving, which is why indoor plants are must-haves accessories for our homes and offices.

4. They help improve wellness.

More scientific studies show indoor plants offer other physical benefits to our health and wellness, especially at work. People with plants on their desks typically use fewer sick days (actually being sick, that is), suffer from fewer headaches, and not as many sore throats/coughs as their plant-less colleagues. They’re like natural hand sanitizer.

5. Houseplants help as we age.

Indoor plants also keep us happier and healthier as we advance toward old age. Yet other scientific studies reveal senior citizens feel better and more fulfilled with life when they tend to houseplants or pets (and let’s be honest, caring for an indoor plant is a lot easier—and less expensive—than a pet). Keeping an indoor plant healthy can make us more socially connected and in control of our lives.