Since you are buying a plant for a specific area, you cannot easily move it to a new location. I’m going to talk about some general considerations you need to keep in mind and then recommend specific plants, trees, and flowers that I have successfully put into offices over the last thirty years.

1. Most offices do not have much natural light. Even when there are windows, they have coverings of some kind to provide privacy. Low to medium light plants work best unless you have identified a specific location that has bright filtered light where a high light plant could survive. Direct afternoon sun will burn the leaves of most interior plants. Artificial lighting helps, but usually not enough to sustain high light plants. If someone goes on vacation, don’t forget to temporarily remove the plants from the dark unoccupied office.

2. Some plants do better than others when the temperature goes below 60 degrees. If you lower your office temperature to conserve energy at night, make sure the plants you buy can withstand this lack of heat. Interior plants cannot be used to decorate an unheated entranceway where the temperature may dip into the forties during the winter months. Think silk for these areas.

3. No one has the time to be constantly cleaning up after messy plants. Ferns are beautiful but not when they are shedding all over people’s desks. Everyone loves a ficus but not if it’s near a draft and fifty leaves a day are all over the floor. Select plants that are not prone to constant leaf drop.

4. Be careful to protect your computers, desks, carpets or floors from water. Do not direct pot your plants into decorative containers. Leave them in their grower’s pot; place a 2” or 3” deep plastic drip saucer under the plant, and then place it in the appropriate rattan basket, terra cotta pot, fiberglass or ceramic container. Finish the arrangement with a layer of Spanish moss on top. Don’t hang your plants over a computer, fax, or copying machine; or any other place that is difficult to reach or where it may damage equipment should it accidentally drip.

5. Avoid plants that might be harmful to clients or their children. A cactus with its long sharp spines should never be placed where anyone might brush against it. If a child were to chew on the leaf of a dieffenbachia, his mouth & throat would swell & he would be unable to speak. In some cases a child has even suffocated to death when his airways swelled shut. Check the toxicity of all plants that you purchase.

6. For your convenience and bottom line, office plants should only need to be watered once a week. Stay away from really small pots (2” & 4”); since the smaller the pot the more often it will have to be watered.

7. Everyone is “Thinking Green” today and office plants can play a vital roll in cleaning the air of formaldehyde, benzene, and carbon monoxide. Improving the quality of the air in your office makes it a more pleasant place to work and increases the efficiency & well being of your employees. The good news is that the most highly recommended air purifying plants according to NASA are also among the best plants I suggest for offices.

8. Finally, the aesthetics of the situation. The size of any plant you use should be in proper proportion to the location where it is being placed. Plants will grow; if you have a nine-foot ceiling in a 12ft. X 15ft. room you don’t need to install an eight-foot plant; a five to six foot tree will look just fine. A flowering plant on the reception desk can brighten the whole room and lasts a lot longer and is less expensive than cut flowers. Table plants should not take up important working space, think upright or dish gardens for desks, draping for the top of file cabinets and to cover unsightly computer wires, floor plants to hide outlets and additional wires. If you have several trees in a large room make sure they are of varying heights (3ft/4.5ft/6ft), different leaf shapes, and that they don’t clash because of too many color variations in the leaves.

9. You can email us your blue prints, a description of your color scheme, and style of furniture. For a small fee we will recommend appropriate plants and containers as well as locations in your area where they may be purchased. We are also available for on site consultations.

Great Office Plants:

Golden Pothos, Bamboo Palm, Chinese Evergreen, English Ivy, Cordatum, Spider Plants, Marginata, Janet Craig, Warneki, Spathyphylum, Sansiviera, Massengeana, Ficus, Bromeliads, Orchids, Anthariums, Kalancho

See Our Recommended Office Plants Page