
Credit: Art Photo
In our ongoing series on plants in the workplace, we introduced you to “Plants 101” a few installments ago. Now, with Spring just around the corner, it’s a perfect time for a refresher course.
Making plants an integral part of the workplace is one of the most effective ways of creating healthier, more productive work environments. Extensive research* indicates the vast range of benefits that plants bring—not only to the workplace, but to each, individual worker, as well.
Forward thinking architects and interior designers are making nature—in the form of plants—an integral part of the built environment by embracing Biophilic Design**. The body of knowledge surrounding plants and their many attributes is well established. Now, in the wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic, there is an urgent need to reimagine the workplace. It’s not just a matter of ‘normalizing’ work environments, or making traditional workplaces attractive—it’s about making the workplace enticing to employees and cost-effective for management.
Let’s review how plants improve working conditions while contributing to measurable results:
- Plants increase productivity by 15%.
- Plants increase creativity by 15%.
- Plants decrease symptoms of ill health and poor concentration by 25%.
- Plants decrease workforce fatigue by 38%.
- Plants possess a calming effect—decreasing levels of anxiety, hostility and depression by 37% to 58%.
- Plants help oxygenate the air, while decreasing carbon dioxide levels by (approx.) 10% in buildings with air conditioning and by (approx.) 25% in buildings without AC.
- One, small plant per square meter (approx. 9 sq. feet) improves memory retention.

Credit: Mariia Korneeva
Avant Garden works closely with architects and design professionals throughout Fairfield County, CT, Westchester County, NY and beyond—creating interior plantscapes that are at once aesthetically pleasing, while beneficial to workers and to the bottom line.
Avant Garden understands the importance of incorporating Biophilic Design from the very outset of early stage space planning, rather than approaching interior plantscaping as an afterthought. We work with you through every stage of the process, from initial concepts and consulting to the final design and installation. We also offer ongoing plant care and maintenance programs.
For over three decades Avant Garden has been at the forefront of Biophilic Design. The Avant Garden Team assists professionals and clients direct to incorporate Biophilic Design in commercial as well as residential spaces.

(Left to right): Avant Garden Staff Member, Patty Murray; Ecowalls Owner, Michael Coraggio; and Avant Garden Founder & Owner, Kathleen Neth, IHD.***
Using our Architects & Design Professionals Portal is as easy as it’s convenient—simply visit our Portal Information Page, register and login at:
https://avantgardenct.com/registration-info/.
In addition to a wealth of useful and informative resources, our Architects & Design Professionals Portal also features our extensive line of plant containers—login and start exploring our Portal NOW.
Need something that you’re not seeing in our Portal?
Need consulting on a subject that you can’t find there? Just contact us through our website, or call us directly at: 203.746.7577
Enjoy your Avant Garden Architects & Design Professionals Portal experience—and start making your client presentations more effective and compelling than ever before.
*Supporting Research encompasses the results of The 2015 Human Spaces Global Report on the Impact of Biophilic Design, an independent survey of 7,600 office workers in 16 countries including the U.S., Canada, Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Denmark and Spain.
**Biophilic Design is an outgrowth of Biophilia, the study of the natural tendency of humans to seek an affinity with other life forms in nature. By bringing the characteristics of nature into the built environment, Biophilic Design seeks to reconnect us with the positive aspects and benefits of our natural surroundings.
***Certified Interior Horticultural Designer.