5 Benefits of Owning a Snake Plant that Improve Mental Health

If you're someone who has a lot of houseplants, you probably already own a snake plant or two. It turns out that along with being an aesthetic choice for your living room window, these houseplants have amazing benefits for your home and health. From making your air cleaner to helping you achieve your plant-parent goals, these pretty houseplants are more than worth your while. 

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Also known as Dracaena trifasciata and previously as Sansevieria trifasciata, snake plants are beloved for their unique appearance and how low maintence they are. These easy, resilient houseplants can survive in many different environments and won't pose a challenge to even the most inexperienced plant-owner. Best of all, snake plants are perfect for those who struggle with insomnia, as their air-filtering abilities are shown to improve sleep.

Here are 5 benefits of snake plants that make them the perfect houseplant. 

1. Natural Air Purifiers

These plants are naturally air purifying! The air-cleaning qualities of this plant are shown in the NASA Clean Air Study, which specifically found that these plants are an excellent choice for home decor because they convert CO2 to oxygen at night, which regulates airflow and improves your quality of sleep. They also "remove toxins from the air, in particular; benzene, formaldehyde, xylene and trichloroethylene." This removal of harmful toxins and allergens can help with airborne allergies and improve indoor air quality. 

2. Improve your Feng Shui

According to the principles of feng shui, house plants can have a positive effect on your personal energy. Wood is one element in feng shui that's believed to bring energy and growth to the space, while the color green is considered rejuvenating. Because of this, plants are an excellent way to promote good energy in your home. The snake plant in particular is associated with a protective energy that can shield you from negativity.

3. Easy and Low Maintenance

If you have a busy lifestyle or struggle to remember to care for your plants, you should consider these. Snake plants are known to be survivors, resilient in a wide range of conditions. These hardy plants can thrive in low light, full sun, and anywhere in between.They are also drought-tolerant and can thrive with little to no water.However, be mindful that they don't do well with overwatering. Whether you have a window with direct sunlight or a shady corner, snake plants are resilient and easy to care for.

4. Easy to Propagate

If you want to practice with plant propagation, snake plants are a good place to start. Propagation is when you take cuttings of a plant and use them to grow new plants, and it's a great way to expand on your houseplant collection without buying new plants. When it comes to snake plants, they are propagated by cuttings or by dividing the rhizome and are great at growing happy little roots in water until they're ready for potting.

5. Improve Mental Health

Plants and nature have long been shown to improve mental health, from horticultural therapy to the benefits of gardening. As shown by the National Library of Medicine, owning houseplants relieves stress and improves physiological symptoms. Having plants around your home boosts mental health and brings an element of life to your home that's hard to replicate with other decor. Since snake plants in particular can help with sleep quality, they're especially beneficial when it comes to mental health, since insomnia and other sleep struggles can have a negative affect on mental illnesses.