Indoor Plants
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning? Hit the snooze button? Brush your teeth? Get some coffee? Check social media? Go to the gym?
A survey conducted by the consulting firm Deloitte isn’t much of a surprise. Forty-three percent of people check their phone within five minutes of waking up. Seventeen percent check immediately, some even before they get out of bed.
In a study of morning rituals by management expert Laura Vanderkam and Inc. Magazine, successful people start their day with water instead of coffee, exercise, work on either a priority business project or spend time on a personal passion project, spend time with family, meditate – and one-third say they make their beds every day.… Read More
Survey Says: The Younger Generation Digs Gardening
When you think about gardening, do you picture your grandmother tending her rose garden? Maybe a retired neighbor mowing his lush lawn?
According to the National Gardening Survey, the typical gardener and plant enthusiast is much younger and isn’t living in the suburbs.
In the 2019 version of this annual survey presented every year at the American Horticulture Association’s Cultivate conference (which I attend every single year), 38 percent of adults age 18 to 34 plan to spend more on lawn and garden activities in 2019, compared to the overall average of 29 percent for all age groups.
Yes, plants are trending and cool and we could not be happier at Good Earth Plant Company!… Read More
Time to Celebrate National Indoor Plant Week Sept 16-22
Summer is nearly over, and the big holidays of the year – Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s – aren’t too far away.
But we are already like little kids waiting for Christmas, because next week is officially National Indoor Plant Week. Yes, it’s a real thing! It’s right up there with Naked Outdoor Gardening Day in May. It is celebrated the third week of September every year. In 2019, this is Monday, September 16 through Saturday, September 22.
What, you haven’t made your plant party plans yet? (Say it fast three times). No problem. Good Earth Plant Company can get you started as we celebrate by spreading the word to you about the benefits of having indoor plants in your work and home environment.… Read More
Best House Plants For Small Spaces
Have you ever watched the show on HGTV called “Tiny House Hunters?” Episodes follow homebuyers who want to seriously downsize. By definition, a small house is around 500 square feet. A tiny house is from 100 to 400 square feet. It’s hard to get solid numbers, but most groups agree there are about 10,000 of these tiny houses in the U.S.
This isn’t a whole lot different than an average RV. According to the RV Industry Association, one million Americans live full time in an RV.
New York City apartments have a reputation for being small, but the average studio apartment is 550 square feet.… Read More
Bring the Heat: Indoor Plants That Like It Hot
Updated August 2024.
We are fortunate living in San Diego where the weather remains close to perfect most of the time, but even sometimes the heat and the humidity can feel overwhelming. If it seems more humid lately, it’s not your imagination. Warmer ocean temperatures generate more humidity. If only they’d generate a little rain!
When you feel the heat, so do your plants. Hot summers can be rough, even for your indoor plants. If you’re trying to conserve energy and save money (and you should!) by not blasting the air conditioning, plants can suffer. Plants not native to warm climates or already weak due to poor care, pests, or other issues, need extra attention.… Read More
Noise Pollution Is The New Smoking
Do you know what a decibel is? You probably have a general idea it measures sound. A decibel measures the intensity of sound. It is similar to measurements we use for earthquakes – each decibel multiplies the last one. This is because the human ear can pick up an amazing range of sound.
Start with silence at zero decibels or dB. A whisper is 15 dB. A normal conversation (normal, not YELLING) is 60 dB. A lawnmower is 90 dB. A car horn is 110 dB – but thank goodness you’re usually not standing right next to it. A firecracker is 140 dB.… Read More
Easiest Indoor Plants to Grow For Black Thumbs
By now you’ve gotten the message: adding plants to your indoor environment at home and work provides multiple benefits to your physical and mental health. Study after study confirms plants clean your indoor air of toxins, raising humidity to healthier levels, increase the oxygen levels, buffer noise, calm your nerves and help you focus. And this is just for starters.
“But Jim,” you say, “I have a black thumb. I’m a plant killer. I can’t grow ANYTHING. What can I do?”
You can always hire a professional and leave it to us (hint). But there are some plants nearly impossible to kill.… Read More
Here Come The Plant Police
It’s been our mission at Good Earth Plant Company for more than 40 years to improve peoples’ lives through the beauty, health, wellbeing, and environmental benefits living plants bring into all the spaces around you. From a simple plant in a striking container to a complicated living wall structure, it’s our passion as well as our mission. Even after all these years, I still get excited about our work every day.
In the last 10 years, people have embraced the benefits of indoor plants and the principles of biophilic design. I’m so excited about the enthusiasm our current generation of young adults has for plants.… Read More
Our Love For Blue Flowers: It’s Complicated
With Memorial Day coming up and the Fourth of July not all that far away, the red, white and blue decorations are starting to appear, including garden and floral displays. Commercial garden centers and big box stores are putting their red, white, and blue flowers and plants front and center.
Forty years ago when I sold flowers downtown, the only option I could offer to patriotic customers were red, white and blue carnation bouquets. I’ll let you in on a secret: those blue carnations were NOT found in nature.
Naturally blue flowers aren’t just rare. They don’t exist. True blue pigment doesn’t exist in plants of any kind.… Read More
Don’t Bug Me: Control Pests Without Pesticides
Summer is coming, we promise. Summer brings so many good things, but it also brings some not-so-good things. Plant pests love the summer weather as much as people do. While bugs can bug your indoor plants any time of year, they get more opportunities to thrive in the late spring and summer months.
The weather warms up. You turn off the heater, and open your windows and doors. Pests have more ways to enter your house, and they like the more humid air. You see your indoor plants have a growth period as spring arrives. Bugs see a plant buffet.
If your first reaction to finding pests on your plants is to grab the pesticide, please stop!… Read More