New Year, New Plants!

January is seen and marketed as a time of renewal. A time to start better habits and break bad ones. A time of reflection and intention. It’s a time to think about what you want to accomplish in your life this year or in general. That can sometimes feel a bit too overwhelming. If you are, like many of us, just trying to live day-to-day and the most you can plan for is what is for dinner tonight, I hear you. However, there is one small thing (or large) that you can do to improve your life, and it is super easy too….

*drumroll*

PLANTS!

Houseplants specifically. Having plants around us is what nature intended. It is our natural environment that our bodies have evolved with for thousands of years. Only recently have we built concrete boxes to live and work in, and it isn’t natural. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my concrete box, but hear me out. It should be no surprise to us that plants lower our cortisol levels just by being in the same room as them. It should be of no surprise that they boost productivity, stabilize mood, ease depression and anxiety, and even help us heal from health issues quicker. Maybe instead of another pill, we just need more life in our lives.

When I was in college, I remember reading a study that focused on a man in the hospital in a coma. He had been unresponsive for a very long time. Forgive me if I don’t get all the details right but Google it and you’ll probably find it! Anyway, there were no plants in the room until one day a well-wisher brought one to him. They set it beside the window to the right of his bed. Slowly, day by day, he started to turn towards the plant. Eventually he actually woke up which stunned the doctors and family as it wasn’t a positive prognosis. Now, I’m sure there will be sceptics, I’m usually one of them, but I am confident that that man sensed that plant next to him and it helped restore him. We truly don’t understand how special our world is, myself included, but I believe things were created for a reason and meant to aid us if only we are open to accepting that.

To me, and I am biased I know, but a house doesn’t feel like a home without those that inhabit it. For example, my home wouldn’t be much without my husband and my dog. The same with plants! Before you say, oh well they are dirty, yes, they can be, but they actually make their environment much cleaner. In a time when we should know all too well the dangers of chemicals we cannot see, plants are the answer. Plants help clean the air we breathe, if that isn’t a god send, I don’t know what is. It’s like they were put on this earth for a reason… I’m sorry to get so philosophical, but it is just my brain works! Certain plants like Sansevieria or Snake Plants have accompanied our astronauts into space because they remove dangerous heavy metals and other toxins from the air. I mean how cool is that? Who needs a clean air machine when you have plants that also double as decor? No need to change their filter or anything.

So maybe you don’t have it all together yet this year, believe me neither do I, but one step in the right direction is to add more plants to your space. Whether it is your office or home, I guarantee you will feel better once you do. Maybe not all at once, of course, the best things in life take time, but it is our nature to be with nature, and sometimes the solutions are simpler than we think. I’m sending you blessings this year and hope you all have a happy, healthy 2026 filled with life!