Decorating with Houseplants

Lesson 1: Foliage Friends: better living through houseplants

House Plant Feng Shui

Considered to be the art of placement, feng shui began centuries ago in the observations made by rural people who were closely tied to the land. And so it is no surprise that it appeals to us so strongly today as we search for ways to blend more harmoniously with our environment and with nature as a whole.

- from Barbara Martin's Feng Shui Gardening: A New Year, A New Spirit

While I'm certainly not a Feng Shui Master, I have observed, first-hand, the beneficial effects of using proper Feng Shui principles. Since plants embody the element of wood, containing the life force, any healthy plant will attract vital energy into your abode.

According to Mary Lambert, Author of Clearing the Clutter for Good Feng Shui, herb plants energize a room and clear the air, mentally and physically. The smell of burning herbs creates an energy shift that is both refreshing and peaceful.

This is why incense or herbal smudge sticks are burned to clear a space after illnesses, arguments or unsettling events, or simply to pave the way for mental relaxation after the work day has ended. Just having a scented houseplant, such as a Lemon Geranium, or kitchen herbs like Basil, Thyme and Rosemary, is good feng shui.

Lambert also suggests allowing plants into the home office. Peace Lilies, Cacti and Peperomia are said to absorb potentially harmful EMF emissions from computers.

Plants are also believed to lessen the effects of electromagnetic stress emitted from televisions and other electrical equipment.

Hanging and trailing plants are useful for hiding, draping over, or otherwise softening sharp corners of household furniture or jutting walls, which are said to create "shars" (cutting lines) across the "chi" (energy flow) of your home.

Important places to soften shars:

• Any that cut across the bed you sleep in
• Ones that angle at your workspace at home or the office
• Corners that face your couch or TV chair
• Any place where you spend lengthy periods of time and need to concentrate or relax

Hanging plants slow down the speed at which beneficial chi flows through a hallway or room, creating a more relaxing sense of space.

Chi tends to stagnate and pool in a room's inside corners. Placing a tall, attractive 'architectural plant' (such as a Palm, Split-leafed Philodendron or Dracaena) square in your otherwise empty corners will keep chi cycling smoothly around your space.

Paired items are said to encourage "coupleness" and can either help attract a mate, or encourage closeness within a pair-bond. Try placing two potted African Violets or Heartleafed Philodendrons by your bedside table!

Jade Plants are well-known Chinese "cures" for attracting wealth into the career areas of your life - it's not referred to the the "money plant" for nothing. Why not set one near your computer, or at the place where you pay your bills?

A good use of intentional shars: placement of spiky plants under ground-floor windows, which discourages intruders.

Whether or not you ascribe to feng shui principles, plants do lift the mood, and thus, most certainly belong in the home and office.

Basic principles to keep in mind, when relating Feng Shui to houseplants

• Areas intended to be mentally restful should never have plants with spines or spiky leaves on them. This creates cutting lines of chi across the room, and are too dynamic for easy slumber. So a bedroom should not contain yang-looking plants like a Cactus, Bromiliad or Dragon Tree.

• A more yin, round-leafed succulent, such as the Jade Plant, can stand in for cacti, it that is the look you're after. And a Rubber Tree or Schefflera can be the large, stately plant you want in the bedroom corner. A nightstand Peperomia is better than a Snake Plant in this case.

• For more obvious reasons, the bathroom is also not such a great place for spiky, dangerous-looking leaves. Try Dieffenbachia, Boston Ferns or Baby's Breath instead.

• Rooms meant to stimulate the mind (dining room, living room, family room, rec rooms, home offices and kitchens) are better candidates for the Snake Plant, Palms, Aloe Vera, Yucca, Bromiliads and those spiny cactus plants.

• It should go without saying that healthy plants bring good chi into a room, while dying, wilting, sickly plants are bad for the soul. A happy, healthy-looking plant will always lift your spirits. Take care of your plants and they will take care of you!

There's more to cover on this topic, like the proper use of interior water features, which often include indoor greenery.

For More Information

Potted plants indoors: It’s a good feng shui thing http://www.mochasofa.ca/garden/program/a...

Feng Shui with Houseplants http://www.garden.org/regional/buzz.taf?...

Indoor Gardening the Feng Shui Way http://www.indoorjungle.net/article1040....

The Barefoot Robin http://members.tripod.com/the_barefootro...

Feng Shui Gardening: A New Year, A New Spirit http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/cott...

What do you think of using houseplants for better Feng Shui in the home? Write a few paragraphs about what kind of mood you want in each room (ie, restful, energizing, creative, romantic or work-oriented), and decide kinds of plants would help you fulfill that image.

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