If you’ve been to Mountain Burger, you might’ve noticed the plant wall. The plant wall structure is made by Live Wall and is filled with a variety of plants to liven up the space.

The plant wall uses planters that are made of 100 percent recycled post-industrial content and don’t contain any volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are human-made chemicals that can be found in many household products like paints, varnishes, disinfectants, and more. VOCs can be harmful to human health and toxicity varies depending on the chemical. Reducing exposure to VOC sources is important for keeping indoor spaces safe. 

The post-industrial content is made from the same polymer as car bumpers (PC/ABS) and is manufactured in the U.S. Using post-industrial content is one way of diverting waste from the landfill and the need to source new materials and their associated emissions for planter boxes. 

The structure of the plant wall has sustainable elements, but the plants themselves provide benefits as well. According to a study from Washington State University, indoor plants provide a multitude of benefits to the following categories: indoor air quality, well-being, and health improvement. 

Air Quality

A famous U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) study from 1989 was one of the first to explore the air quality benefits of indoor plants. He found that they were effective at reducing ozone, toluene, and benzene in the air. Indoor plants have other benefits for air quality as well though. Because plants release oxygen and moisture, they can impact the relative humidity and bring spaces to a comfortable level which they commonly are too low for indoor spaces, especially with heating. Plants can also improve air quality through the collection of particulate matter (particles like dust) on leaves and soils. Lastly, plants can help reduce noise pollution and improve acoustics in a space. 

Well-being

Plants don’t only have physical advantages, they also have psychological benefits. Studies have shown that people have more positive feelings associated with plants in a space. Numerous studies have gathered that people’s feelings are impacted by the presence of indoor plants and/or views of outdoor plants. Studies have also shown that people were less stressed and more productive in the presence of indoor plants, even when their attention was not drawn to them during a given computer task.

Health Improvement 

Other studies have shown that people recovered from surgery quicker if they had a view of trees from their hospital room and that pain tolerance increased in the presence of interior plants. Furthermore, studies have shown that general health can be improved as well. They found that fewer physical symptoms like coughing and fatigue were reported in those that had foliage plants present while working in an office. 

Even if you aren’t working in an office in Mountain Burger or recovering from surgery, indoor plants provide many benefits for both our workers and customers to create a healthy and welcoming environment.

Learn more about indoor plant benefits:

• Interaction with indoor plants may reduce psychological and physiological stress by suppressing autonomic nervous system activity in young adults: a randomized crossover study - PMC
• Study: The basic roles of indoor plants in human health and comfort