| We spoke with Houseplants of Australia
At the meeting with Darryl and the Board and subsequent phone calls to many of our members, our top three best selling house plants are the birds nest fern Asplenium ‘Norfolk Gem’, the brilliant flowering Crossandra ‘Fireglow’ and the old fashioned but very hardy Nephrolepis Fern ‘Kimberley Queen’. Others that are selling are Kalanchoe ‘Mirabella’ and Ficus ‘Shorty’ with broad leaf varieties like Spathiphyllum, Aglaonemas, Sansevieras, Dracaenas and Philodendrons all consistent sellers.
With the new varieties and more light in the modern homes today, the scope of plants that can be bought inside for decoration is immense. Potting mixes that are not as messy to use and the ability to use a wetting agent has made looking after pot plants indoors so much easier. The consumer is more aware of the needs of plants with so much education from gardening experts and they are prepared to experiment with different plants. Christmas is a great example of this with some larger trees now being used to replace the old pine tree for Christmas trees.
Pot sizes vary but the bench or table plants are usually 140mm to 200mm and the floor from 300mm to 450mm. The opportunity to utilise coloured pots to suit the home decor is increasing but the traditional terracotta pot and some coloured glazed pots are the most popular.
Geoffrey Fuller, Houseplants of Australia (HPA)
Yes House Plants overall are selling well mostly in the advanced stage, as people like to have a feature, lots of sanseviera are being used in commercial indoor industry, coloured pots do help sales, as presentation goes a long way large Philodendron's, Ficus Lyrata, Golden Cane Palms, Dieffenbachia, Aglaonema's, Spathiphylum ,Zamioculcas, Monsteria, Guzmania that flower, are good and are selling very well.
Darryl South, Chair HPA
Just one plant will remove the ‘nasties’ from the air we breathe indoors and size does not matter!
New studies from the University of Technology Sydney indicate that any plants can improve indoor air quality and the size of the pot or plant does not matter above 200mm. And with air indoors generally being more polluted than outdoors that is important news!
"We have found that a plant in a 200mm pot is as effective as one in a 250mm or 300mm in removing Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and it seems that any plant will perform as well as others," reports Adjunct Professor Margaret Burchett from the University of Technology Sydney. (www.uts.edu.au/)
"This is important news - it means that any indoor room or office which is air-conditioned or closed for much of the time, can really benefit from having just one 200mm pot plant in the space - and amazingly it will clean the air of the VOCs within 24 hours."
We do not realise that the indoor air environment is more polluted than the air outside, as it contains pollutants brought in from outside - mainly fossil fuel pollutants - plus it picks up the indoor pollutants.
VOCs are emitted by almost all objects and finishes indoors - from plastics in computers, televisions, from most
The new studies looked at different varieties of plants and different pot and plant sizes and their uptake of the different VOCs which we would commonly find in indoor air.
"The whole plant system is acting as nature's air filter. The micro-organisms need a healthy plant and root system to grow and different ones absorb different gases that are toxic to us. As well, their role in removing CO2 from the air and adding oxygen means that they are the greenest way of improving indoor air quality," said Professor Burchett.
"With effective use of indoor plants to absorb VOCs, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide from air-conditioned CBD environments, they can play a role in reducing the carbon footprint of our city buildings."
|
A major sponsor of the UTS research has been Ambius, one of the world's largest suppliers of indoor plants.
"In addition to Professor Burchett's research, other research from around the world clearly shows that indoor plants have a positive effect on the people who occupy the same spaces - they contribute to employee productivity, reduce sick days and make a direct contribution to the bottom-line of a business," reports Ambius Regional Director for the Asia Pacific Region, Mr Ray Borg.
Independent recognition of the role of indoor plants is growing, with the Green Building Council now awarding two points towards green star ratings for indoor plant installations.
Providing a view of nature
Access to views of nature for office workers is both desirable and a recognised best practice. However, it is not always possible, especially in buildings with a deep floor plan or in new buildings that they may be constructed with fewer windows to reduce heat loss.
Good interior landscaping can be employed to provide a substitute by giving people access to an indoor garden or views of vegetation, especially if there is an atrium or other large space, and the combination of plants and artificial daylight can help overcome some of the problems of lack of access to natural daylight.
Some Key Points from Ambius for Selling Indoor/House Plants are:
Interior plants reduce complaints of Sick Building Syndrome
Indoor plants remove all types of urban air pollutants
Cooling effects of interior plants
Dust reduction with interior plants
Acoustic benefits of interior plants
Wellbeing improvements with interior plants
Match Plants with a Colourful Container and Sell as a Fashion Item!
Is colour in? Yes, we think it is and the beauty of selling a colourful container to your customer is that it will not only make their plant look better but they’ll get sick of the colour after a while and want to change it as fashions change. You’ll need different containers for different house styles too. Modern units and apartments will need an architectural look, your staff might need to think about design when recommending for those areas, and older houses will need something different again. It’s an exciting challenge for your staff to help your customers Mix ‘N’ Match.
And do remember the wonderful flowering House Plants; not just Phalaenopsis Orchids that have been billed as ‘The Best House Plant in the World’, but the many other top performers too.
Some of this article supplied by courtesy of NGISA and Ambius: www.ambiusindoorplants.com.au
|
