After signing a lease, packing all your things and moving into your new apartment or house, the next thing on your to do list might be decorating your new place. One of the most fun things I’ve done to decorate my living spaces is adding plants.

Adding plants to living spaces can have many benefits to your lifestyle. Not only does it brighten your rooms and fill it with positive energy, but they can also provide a sense of routine, which is more important than ever now that a lot of people work and study from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Currently, my roommates and I collectively have at least 50 plants. From aloe vera to basil, each plant serves its purpose.

One of my favorite plants is my basil plant, which has been growing in my kitchen since August, but is now unfortunately dying. However, while it was thriving, my basil plant was extremely useful in so many recipes and also just smelled nice and seemed to keep our kitchen fresh. Having an herb garden or a couple herb plants can really spice up your kitchen life. In the past, I’ve had cilantro and parsley plants as well. A couple basil or cilantro leaves are great on avocado toast, pastas or so many other dishes.

Taking care of plants is also a great way to keep a routine. All my classes are online this semester, and I barely leave my house anymore, let alone get out of bed. However, every once in a while, I have to water several of my plants and make sure they don’t need to be repotted, and if they do, I make sure to take care of that right away. Instead of building a routine around leaving my house to go to classes, it now somewhat revolves around which plants need watering.

Studies have also shown that having indoor plants can increase productivity and freshen the air. While we’re all somewhat more isolated than usual, this can become really useful. In fact, it’s been proven that house plants increase concentration and productivity up to 15% as well as reduce stress levels and boost your mood, according to an NBC article.

While I definitely still consider myself a beginner at plant care-taking, I’ve gotten pretty good at figuring out which plants are easier to take care of and which ones are harder and better to stay away from when just starting out. Of course, it’s helpful to have roommates who are interested in plants, too so you can grow and take care of your plants together. Having roommates is also beneficial if you want to propagate your plants.

My first two plants that I found were easiest to take care of were aloe vera and Golden Pothos. My plant collection has grown quite a bit since then, but I’ve had these plants the longest. The Golden Pothos is a great first plant, because it’s extremely forgiving, easy to revive if you forget to water it and also don’t need the most sunlight.

I’m definitely nowhere near the end of my plant journey and plan to get many more during my lifetime. Getting plants for your household is the one thing I can 100% recommend for anyone in just about every living situation.

Samantha is a senior in Media. 

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